All The News For San Antonio Escorts.

Strip Club’s Battle Over ‘Pole Tax’
…
A row over whether strip clubs in Texas should have to charge a $5 entrance fee has become the subject of a bizarre battle in the state’s Supreme Court.
Texan strip clubs want to drop the state enforced 5 dollar admission fee
…
Chief Justice Wallace Jefferson asked lawyers for the strip clubs: “Is it proper or not for the state to have the position that live nude dancing should be discouraged?
…
The Texas Entertainment Association, which represents strip clubs across the state, sued and a district judge struck down the law in 2008.
…
Figures from the state’s accountants show that around 2.7 millions strip club customers have paid the fee since it took effect, although many clubs ignore the fee.
…
In Texas, the law applies specifically to strip clubs that sell alcohol.

See the full article from “Sky News”

Strippers to the Supremes 
So the Texas Supreme Court became the latest legal entity to be dragged into the slow-burning legal argument over the $5 stripper surcharge – AKA the titty tax – after it heard the latest round of arguments in San Antonio yesterday.
…
The issues have been getting obscured by salacious coverage, and it really doesn’t help when the Statesman ran a story today posing the question “Is exotic dancing, performed partially clothed or fully nude, a form of free speech protected by the U.S. Constitution? Strip club owners insist that it is.” Yes, strip club owners and the U.S. Supreme Court. The unfortunate problem for those opposing the tax is that the Texas Supremes are not as enamored of the fact that naked performances are still protected free speech as SCOTUS is.

See the full article from “Austin Chronicle (blog)”

Strip clubs tell top Texas court $5 ‘pole tax’ violates free speech
Texas strip clubs have asked the state’s top court to strike down a $5-per-patron levy, saying it violates the First Amendment.
The state Legislature levied the so-called pole tax in 2007 on clubs offering live nude entertainment and alcohol. Proceeds were intended to help sexual-assault victims and to pay for health insurance for the poor.
State officials defended the tax in court yesterday, saying it promotes safety by discouraging the “combustible combination” of alcohol and nudity, the Austin American-Statesman writes.
Nonsense, argued the lawyer for the strip clubs, himself a former Texas Supreme Court justice.
Craig Enoch contended that the law was “designed for one purpose only: to raise revenue. And it picked an easy target: unpopular speech.”
The law was struck down in 2008, and a state appeals court agreed. But the judges could not agree on the reason why it was unconstitutional, so the state Supreme Court took up the case. The American-Statesman says the court typically takes about 13 months to rule.

See the full article from “USA Today”

Free WebCPA Site Registration Sign-up today and take advantage of member-only content—the kind of timely, cutting-edge industry insight that only WebCPA.com can deliver. Free site registration entitles you to: Exclusive online-only content Newsletters Online seminars…and much more!
Texas Fights for Strip Club Pole Tax
By Michael Cohn
The state of Texas is hoping to entice some more dollar bills out of strip club patrons, even though two courts have already said the states so called pole tax is unconstitutional.
The Lone Star State is now taking the fight to the states Supreme Court, according to The Wall Street Journal, arguing that the $5-per visit fee does not violate the right to free speech. Texas argues that the tax will help deter rapes and other undesirable behavior by alcohol-imbibing customers at the Bada-Bing-like establishments, while the bar owners argue that the tax violates the dancers First Amendment right to freedom of expression.

See the full article from “WebCPA”

Texas Gets Its Day To Defend Strip Club “Pole Tax”
…
A few short months ago, the proposed law hitting Texas strip club patrons with a $5-per-visit tax seemed almost dead. Two lower courts had struck it down, in part because of concerns it would violate the First Amendment by limiting the free speech of both patrons and dancers. 
…
The proposed tax would apply only to strip clubs that serve alcohol or bars that promote nudity-based activities, such as wet T-shirt contests, the American-Statesman says. The state contends that limiting demand for such establishments would reduce the number of sex assaults committed in the state. The strip clubs, represented by Winstead’s Craig Enoch, claim the tax would violate the First Amendment by punishing unpopular speech. Enoch engaged the court in a spirited debate Thursday over whether nude dancing is an art form that should be protected by the First Amendment. “The act of dancing is expressive,” Enoch told the justices, according to the American-Statesman. 

See the full article from “The Am Law Daily”

Austin, TX, United States (AHN) – The Texas Supreme Court is deciding whether to get rid of a $5 cover charge to enter strip clubs.
The “pole tax,” which requires nude clubs in Texas to charge a entrance fee, was received by the state’s highest court Thursday. Arguments over strippers expressing themselves freely were countered by arguments over tax and zoning standards as judges mulled the law created to fund programs for sexual assault victims.
Lower courts agreed with the strip clubs, ruling that the fee–despite raising over $13 million since 2008 – unconstitutionally regulated free expression, according to reports.
The law specifically targets strip clubs that sell alcohol.
The court is not expected to rule for months.
…
Despite affecting more than 2 million customers, some strip clubs have ignored the fee so far.

See the full article from “AHN | All Headline News”

The state Supreme Court made a rare group appearance in San Antonio on Thursday to determine the fate of Texas’ embattled “pole tax” on strip club patrons.
The justices heard oral arguments at St. Mary’s University School of Law for the 2007 legislation, which instituted a $5 fee for each person at a nude dancing establishment where alcohol is served.
A state district judge in Austin and the 3rd Court of Appeals have agreed with the Texas Entertainment Association — a lobbyist group for the strip clubs — that the tax is unconstitutional.
“A tax imposed on a small group of First Amendment speakers, particularly a group conveying a message that the taxing body might consider undesirable, carries a greater risk of suppressing speech than a zoning ordinance because the power to tax involves the power to destroy,” 3rd Court Justice Diane Henson ruled in June.
…
Austin-based attorney Craig Enoch, who represents the strip clubs, pointed out that courts have long held nude dancing to be a form of expression protected by the First Amendment.

See the full article from “Houston Chronicle”

Strip club ‘pole tax’ in hands of Texas high court
…
The so-called pole tax, requiring strip clubs in Texas to levy the admission charge, made its way Thursday to the state’s highest court. Talk about strippers engaging in free expression was balanced by rebuttals about tax and zoning precedents as justices considered the law designed to fund programs for sexual assault victims.
…
Lower courts have sided with the strip clubs, ruling that the fee that has collected more than $13.6 million since 2008 is an unconstitutional regulation of free expression.
The law specifically applies to strip clubs that sell alcohol. Texas Solicitor General James Ho told the nine Republican justices that the fee is justified, since the state could already impose bans on both.
…
The Texas Entertainment Association, which represents strip clubs across the state, sued. A state district judge struck down the law in 2008. Then a 2-1 ruling by the Austin-based 3rd Court of Appeals said the tax improperly singles out one form of expression, nude dancing, for regulation.

See the full article from “The Associated Press”

Strip club ‘pole tax’ in hands of Texas high court
By PAUL J. WEBER (AP) – 3 hours ago
SAN ANTONIO — The Texas Supreme Court is deciding whether to strip away a $5 entrance fee to watch nude dancers.
The court heard arguments Thursday about whether the so-called pole tax, a fee mandated by lawmakers in 2007, is unconstitutional.
Texas has so far collected more than $13.6 million from the fee. But many clubs have ignored the law, which is intended to fund programs for sexual assault victims.
The Texas Entertainment Association, which represents strip clubs across the state, sued to block the fee. Lower courts have sided with the clubs.
Justices questioned both sides at length. Talk about strippers engaging in free expression was balanced by rebuttals about tax and zoning precedents. It will likely be months before the Supreme Court rules.

See the full article from “The Associated Press”

Texas Strip Club Pole Tax Challenge Goes To State Supreme Court
The Texas Supreme Court will take up the state’s so-called strip club pole tax.

See the full article from “KWTX”