DADE CITY – The Pasco County Commission on Human Trafficking is not only working to combat the crime locally, but it is also helping other communities across the country mobilize against exploitation.
The commission has worked to ensure every current and future Pasco County employee is trained on human trafficking issues. Members are preparing to expand that to every Pasco County Schools employee.
Several members of the commission led a workshop at the Shared Hope International conference on Oct. 15 in Orlando. The 90-minute session was on how county commissions can lead in child trafficking prevention.
Liana Dean, chair of the Pasco County Commission on Human Trafficking, said one of the results of presenting at the conference has been hearing from groups across the country with interest in launching commissions of their own.
“Our reach is growing,” Dean said. “I’m very excited that we’ve had those opportunities to assist other counties across the U.S. in setting up commissions.”
The Pasco Board of County Commissioners presented a resolution Jan. 6 declaring January 2026 as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month in Pasco County. Elected officials praised the work of Dean and her team.
“Human trafficking is occurring in Pasco County,” according to the resolution. “Through the Pasco County Commission on Human Trafficking, our community has united to combat this horrific crime and restore dignity to survivors by bringing together the sectors deemed critical to effectively combat human trafficking, such as law enforcement, schools, child welfare, nonprofits, businesses, faith-based organizations, survivors and more.”
Outside of training, the Pasco County Commission on Human Trafficking has also provided materials to firehouses. Middle and high schools have received posters about sexting and sextortion.
Dean said members have assisted in law enforcement operations involving missing and endangered children, specifically mentioning the U.S. Marshals’ Home for the Holidays, which led to the recovery of 57 kids from the Tampa Bay area.
Members also assisted the University of South Florida’s Trafficking in Persons Risk to Resilience Lab this past year in launching the first State Report on Human Trafficking.
Members with the Pasco County Commission on Human Trafficking are also organizing events for the coming year, including a national survivor leadership conference.
Pasco County Commissioner Seth Weightman credited Dean for her leadership.
“She’s really, in my opinion, the subject matter expert and the leader in combating these horrific, horrific crimes that take place in our county and beyond,” Weightman said.
