No G-strings for ‘young things’? Under 21-stripper ban moving forward in Legislature

Rep. Carolina Amesty’s bill that is intended to combat human trafficking by banning people under the age of 21 from working in the adult entertainment industry now matches the Senate version of the bill.

Before advancing the bill by a 17-2 vote, the House Judiciary Committee approved an amendment to HB 1379 that would impose felony penalties on club and establishment owners who allowed people under 21 to perform nude, but misdemeanor penalties on those working in the places with clothes on.

The committee bill analysis advances a preemptive legal defense of the bill, noting that “the state has a compelling interest in safeguarding the community and children from trafficking and sexual exploitation.”

Amesty noted that Florida is among the top three states for the human trafficking “epidemic,” with the average age of victims being 19.

In support of the bill, Amesty invoked a seminal Jacksonville case: Wacko’s Too, Inc. v. City of Jacksonville, in which Jacksonville has used a licensing scheme to restrict those under the age of 21 from performing as a “permissible way to keep track of licensed performers, secondary to combating human trafficking.”

The Republican sponsor took numerous questions from Democrats who questioned why this industry was being targeted, and she repeatedly referred people to the bill analysis for answers to questions about the bill’s language.

Rep. Mike Gottlieb wondered why this doesn’t apply to other fields of exploitative agricultural labor that see trafficking also, even though he ultimately supported the bill.

Rep. Dotie Joseph suggested the industry was an “easy target” for Republicans and said she actually changed her vote based on the sponsor’s inarticulate defense of the legislation.

Other Democrats, like Rep. Yvonne Hinson, supported the measure to keep young people from exploitation.

Sen. Clay Yarborough’s measure (SB 1690) also stipulates, after an amendment adopted in committee, that owners would be subject to first-degree misdemeanor charges regarding those under 21 working in the clubs as support staff, such as kitchen workers and clothed performers.

If those under 21 dare to bare, the penalty is enhanced to a second-degree felony penalty for the proprietors.