Penny Ronning

The daughter of a trafficking survivor, Penny learned early in life how trauma impacts families and how victims of childhood sexual violence live with the painful affects throughout their lives. During her years as a Court Appointed Special Advocate for abused and neglected children (CASA), Penny again saw firsthand the impacts of sexual exploitation and violence on children in her community. In 2016, Penny approached the FBI with the idea of creating a community and law enforcement task force to fight human trafficking. Shortly thereafter, with the support of the FBI and the United States Attorney’s Office, Penny Ronning and Stephanie Baucus partnered to co-found the Yellowstone Human Trafficking Task Force, now the largest such task force in Montana.

Penny speaks throughout the country on anti-trafficking work at the local, state, and federal levels of government, and has trained thousands of people throughout Montana and the country on how to fight human trafficking. She has initiated and co-authored state and municipal legislation strengthening laws against crimes of sexual violence and has successfully increased funding for law enforcement at the state and local levels directly impacting law enforcement’s ability to investigate crimes of sexual violence and exploitation. As an elected member of Billings City Council, Penny successfully led the creation and passage of a city ordinance that has effectively shut down the most illicit massage businesses within the state of Montana. In 2020, she was invited to participate in and attended the White House Summit on Human Trafficking. In 2022, the Yellowstone Human Trafficking Task Force was recognized nationally as a recipient of the prestigious FBI Director’s Community Leadership Award. 

Penny volunteers her time overseeing the Task Force and helps communities build their resources to fight crimes of sexual violence, support victims, and strengthen laws to protect vulnerable populations and prosecute violent offenders. She is known nationally as a leader in the fight against human trafficking and works with the National Center on Sexual Exploitation, Shared Hope International, Fairplay, Protect Young Eyes, and other national organizations in championing state and federal legislation to protect children from online predators and sexual exploitation.

Penny was a 2022 candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives in Montana’s Second Congressional District. In her years of professional and public service, she has led on issues of public safety, economic development, energy conservation, infrastructure, equality, mental health, and homelessness. She is a small business owner and throughout her career has lived, worked, and traveled around the world. She holds a BA in Film from Montana State University and an MBA from the University of Mary.

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