Lawmaker Wants To Tax Patrons Of Strip Clubs

The legislator behind the nations first law against driving while using a cell phone is proposing a $10 tax for patrons of nude and seminude dance clubs and strip bars.

By: Jamie Burch | WKRG-TV
Published: March 11, 2009

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ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - You might call it a "pole tax."
The New York legislator who brought the nation its first law
against driving while using a cell phone is proposing a $10 tax for
patrons of nude and seminude dance clubs and strip bars.
Assemblyman Felix Ortiz, a Bronx Democrat, says the revenue
would go toward helping victims of human trafficking at a time when
government budgets are being slashed.
The bill doesn't have a Senate sponsor yet.
In Texas, state lawyers are fighting to preserve their $5 "pole
tax," a cover charge on strip clubs, is being challenged by
business owners.
The Texas Legislature approved the fee in 2007, hoping to spend
the money on sexual assault and health insurance programs, but a
judge declared it unconstitutional. The state is appealing.

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)