High Court Approves "Pole Tax" on Strip Clubs
The Texas Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that a $5-per-patron tax on strips clubs does not violate the First Amendment, adding the latest chapter to a four-year legal battle.
After the 2007 Legislature passed the law known as the Sexually Oriented Business Fee Act — or the "pole tax" in the vernacular — strip club owners challenged the fee in court. They argued it violated their freedom of expression under the First Amendment.
But the court today disagreed, saying that the fee was directed not at the expression of nude dancing, but at the "secondary effects of nude dancing when alcohol is ...
Comments (5)
Janice Hobbs via Texas Tribune on Facebook
this is sooooo wrong! what the hell are they going to tax next in this state? our air???
Jimmy Couch via Texas Tribune on Facebook
total garbage.
Robert Adams via Texas Tribune on Facebook
Rick Perry is not going to be happy! He spends a bunch in strip joints as is.
Keith Kritselis via Texas Tribune on Facebook
what does that even mean?
David Spratt
I propose a $5 tax on fat people entering a grocery store. The secondary effects of the food contained within and the costs of obesity to the state and the public are overwhelming. It makes about as much sense, possibly even more.