Four community-based providers will deliver transitional housing and flexible help with service expansion beginning as soon as this month
SEATTLE (September 12, 2025) – Today, Mayor Bruce Harrell announced $1.7 million in new awards to expand services for survivors of commercial sexual exploitation (CSE). The 2025 CSE Survivor Services investments build on the City’s ongoing support for survivors of sexual exploitation by expanding access to safety planning, medical and mental health care, and increasing the availability of safe housing and shelter options. Effective CSE programs empower survivors to feel safe and in control by supporting their goals through emergency safety services, transitional housing, culturally specific healing, and mobile, flexible advocacy that meets them where they are.
“Seattle is committed to being a city where every person can live in safety, dignity, and hope for the future. Survivors of commercial sexual exploitation deserve support that honors their experiences and helps them create their own path to healing and stability,” said Mayor Bruce Harrell. “This investment is about more than dollars — it’s about expanding safe spaces, removing barriers to care, and uplifting the culturally responsive organizations that are walking alongside survivors every day. By making these services stronger and more accessible, we are sending a clear message: in Seattle, we stand with survivors, and we will keep building a city where everyone has the opportunity to thrive.”
These new awards are part of the City’s $7.5 million investment in survivor services in 2025, representing an 83 percent increase in annual funding since 2022. Since 2022, the Harrell administration has directed more than $22 million to organizations providing direct support to survivors, reporting an average of 3,100 service engagements each year.
This expanded funding adds 28 housing and emergency shelter beds; increases the number of advocates and skilled professionals offering therapeutic services, support groups, and healing options; and strengthens partnerships to reduce barriers to care.
Commercial sexual exploitation exists along a spectrum, ranging from children who are trafficked to adults engaged in sex work. An effective response requires a nuanced approach—one that supports survivors in making their own choices, provides access to services that reflect their culture and lived experiences, and minimizes the risk of further harm. For the purposes of these investments, the terms commercial sexual exploitation, prostitution, sex trafficking, and sex work all refer to situations where sex is exchanged for something of value, such as money, housing, food, safety, or protection.
The 2025 CSE Survivor Services Request for Proposal (RFP) prioritized two strategies:
- Mobile Flexible Advocacy, an evidence-informed approach where an advocate meets with a survivor one-on-one in a chosen location and provides access to supports such as flexible funds, safety planning, and medical care.
- Shelter/Transitional Housing to expand safe CSE-specific housing with built in wraparound services that are guided by individual needs.
The Seattle Human Services Department (HSD) steers the City’s efforts to address human trafficking, which includes CSE. HSD awarded contracts through a competitive process, launched in June 2025. Proposals were evaluated against a standardized criteria by a panel of gender-based violence, victim advocacy, legal system, and public safety subject matter experts and community members. Fifteen agencies applied with requests totaling over $8 million. Proposals selected for funding were based on their ability to provide culturally responsive, survivor-centered care that fills a gap in service or unique need of CSE survivors.
Four providers were selected to receive awards that will be renewed annually based on performance and ongoing funding.
Mobile Flexible Advocacy Awards (Contracts begin Sept. 2025):
- Organization for Prostitution Survivors (OPS) – $868,686: OPS will create a survivor-led, Black women-led collaborative that will include partner organizations such as the YWCA, Healing Byrd Therapy, the Silent Task Force, Roni LifeWorks, and Survivors Inspire Solutions. This group, designed by and for those most impacted by CSE, provides services such as mental health care, support for recovery from substance use disorder, peer support, and other healing options that reflect an individual’s cultural background and experiences.
- Seattle Indian Health Board (SIHB) – $228,400: SIHB will expand advocacy and support for American Indian and Alaska Native survivors of CSE. Case Managers will provide mobile advocacy, safety planning, flexible assistance, and coordination of care provided by their human service teams. Their teams use an integrated approach of medical, dental, behavioral health, and Traditional Indian Medicine.
Shelter/Transitional Housing Awards (Contracts begin Jan. 1, 2026):
- Real Escape from the Sex Trade (REST) – $402,914: REST will expand its advocacy services and increase its Seattle shelter capacity with two emergency beds for those facing an immediate crisis and three 90-day beds for those seeking to exit commercial sex work and prepare for long-term housing.
- Consejo Counseling and Referral Service – $200,000: Consejo will strengthen its transitional housing program, which provides family-style apartments for survivors of domestic violence and CSE. The program emphasizes holistic support like counseling and employment readiness for individuals and families.
“This investment reflects what survivors and providers have told us: help must be flexible, reduce harm, and be culturally sensitive. We’re proud to fund programs that center self-determination and healing,” said Seattle Human Services Director, Tanya Kim. “Today’s awards deepen our partnership with organizations closest to the work. Together we’re building a more responsive system that keeps people safe and opens doors to stability.”
Awardees will participate in a new CSE Collaborative Network led by the Seattle Human Services Department. The network will create a simple referral pathway, offer 24/7 support, emergency funds, and recommendations for policy and system improvements. Partners in the network include CSE community providers, HSD’s Crime Survivor Services, the Seattle Police Department, and other stakeholders.
What people are saying:
Norma Guzman, Domestic Violence and Transitional Housing Manager, Consejo Counseling and Referral Service.
“This award will allow Consejo’s bilingual and culturally competent staff to further their support of CSE survivors by providing them with a variety of options for their recovery journey. Our transitional housing site encourages survivors to participate in mental health counseling and trauma-informed care, along with confidential wellness groups, creating essential stability for both the survivors and their children.”
Abigail Echo-Hawk (Pawnee), Executive Vice President of Seattle Indian Health Board.
“Systemic inequities and racism have made Native people and other communities of color disproportionately vulnerable to sex trafficking. One-size-fits-all solutions don’t work, which is why we are grateful for this award because it allows us to provide flexible, low-barrier, and culturally attuned services that truly meet survivors’ needs.”
Yasminda Dorrough, Director of Survivor Services, REST
“At REST, we see every day how critical emergency shelter beds and 90-day beds are for survivors. These beds provide the stability they need to take their first steps toward long-term housing. For many, having a safe place to sleep means they can finally focus on healing, building trust, and planning for the future. These beds create the breathing room that allows survivors to regain stability, access resources, and ultimately begin to exit the sex trade to pursue lives of freedom, safety, and hope.”
Rekina Perry, Executive Director of the Organization for Prostitution Survivors
“This investment affirms that healing is possible when services honor our lived realities and are shaped by the leadership of those who have walked this path. As part of a strong coalition of professional, survivor-, and Black-women-led organizations, we are gleaning from our own experiences and cultural perspectives and respecting the very essence of who we are. When services represent those who are most impacted and are survivor-centered and culturally responsive, they honor our identities, resilience, and communities—making real healing, stability, and the chance to exit exploitation possible.”
###