February 09, 2017
Courtesy of Angelina Spencer-Crisp/for PhillyVoice
Angelina Spencer-Crisp, the executive director of a federally registered trade association of America’s adult nightclubs, said a proposed $5 fee on strip-club patrons in Pennsylvania is not the way to go about raising money for domestic-violence and rape crisis centers.
It’s been a month since state Rep. Thomas Murt filed a co-sponsorship memoranda regarding a bill that, if passed, would “impose a $5 entrance fee on each customer of a sexually oriented business.”
The stated purpose of that fee? To raise monies to help close a funding gap for the state’s domestic violence and rape crisis centers.
What initially drew my ire was its assertion that such businesses – read: strip clubs – are “frequently the nexus of criminal activity and disorderly conduct in an otherwise quiet and law-abiding community.” This, because I don’t believe that to be true.
I spoke to Murt, who represents the 152nd Legislative District in Hatboro, Montgomery County, about the proposal a few days after the introduction. The way he explained his motives – coupled with my soda-tax support – left me realizing he might be onto something.
Judging by the reaction, I was in the minority with that view.
First came a radio appearance on Dom Giordano’s morning show on 1210AM. He held firm in the stance that this is a tax targeting a niche business, and government should cut waste to make up those funding gaps.
He made some solid points, which you can hear via the “Strip Club User Fee” entry on this link.
“If you really want to help, go to where the correlation is. It’s not nude dancing. It’s alcohol." – Angelina Spencer-Crisp
I also received a thought-provoking email from Angelina Spencer-Crisp, the executive director of ACE National, which is a federally registered trade association of America’s adult nightclubs.
“Helping victims of domestic violence and rape is noble and should be lauded,” she wrote. “But such taxes, like in Illinois and Texas, have not produced the numbers hoped and have actually cost taxpayers a lot in enforcement and audits.”
While the “Sexually Oriented Business Revenue Act” hasn’t progressed in the statehouse since Murt's memo was filed, I caught up with Spencer-Crisp on the phone Thursday from Florida. She expanded upon everything that’s wrong with a bill that I begrudgingly supported.
Spencer-Crisp grew up as a ward of the state and excelled at Ursuline College, George Washington University and an Oxford University summer program. She parlayed exotic dancing into club co-ownership and lobbying “because I feel like all people deserve a voice.”
That varied background enabled her to see the issue from a wide-ranging perspective, but one that zeroed in on taxes and misguided connections.
“I’m not saying the cause isn’t noble, because it is. But, is that the reason we do a tax?” she asked of Murt’s explanation of the fee. “If you really want to help, go to where the correlation is. It’s not nude dancing. It’s alcohol. Every liquor and beer distributor should get behind it. Nightclubs, bars, hotels should get behind it.
“Let’s really make a difference. If you really want to help rape and domestic violence victims, (a wide-ranging tax) would rake it in. Make it reasonable. Instead of a $5 fee, do a dime or a nickel more fairly and equitable where the correlation lies. The reason why that won’t happen is because there’s something called the liquor lobby.”
Spencer-Crisp said the fee, as proposed in the co-sponsorship memoranda, unfairly singles out an industry that is easier to pick on than hear defenders out.
As it stands, she said, adult-entertainment businesses are overtaxed as it is, and similar initiatives in Texas and Illinois haven’t raised as much funding as expected. Legislators in Illinois are currently considering a bill that would modify that Adult Entertainment Tax as of January 1, 2018.
Donning her political cap, she noted that she’s seen similar legislation considered in 12 states, most likely the effect of legislative staffers localizing it after hearing from peers through the American Legislative Exchange Council. One recently passed in Georgia.
Not only that, but she questions how much of the money would go to the victims or get siphoned off for staff salaries and office expenses.
“This isn’t a new thing. I saw it as early as 2007 or 2008, where I was a registered lobbyist in Florida,” she said. “I’ve seen (the fee or tax) as high as $10 and as low as 50 cents. They target the clubs for camera time. If you frame a tax around a strip club, who defends that? It’s very easy for them to get bang for their buck.
“I get where (Murt) is with this," she said. "He said he wants to help victims, and we all do, industry-wide. But, there are better ways to do that.”
