TALLAHASSEE – If it went to a good cause, how would you feel about handing over your birth certificate and social security number then paying an extra $10 or even $25 plus cover charge before entering a strip joint in Miami-Dade or Broward such as Floppy Rooster, Boardwalk, Swinging Richards or Le Boy?
In an attempt to disrupt the flow of illicit human trafficking around the state, owners of gay and straight nightclubs in every Florida county would likely take a hit, gouge their customers or even shutter their doors if new legislation being considered in Tallahassee actually makes it to the current governor’s desk.
On Feb. 3, the House Finance & Tax Committee reportedly agreed to advance two separate bills that would impose entry requirements on still-to-be-defined nightclubs catering to adults and smokers.
Most notable is that one of the bills would add a surcharge to an existing club’s admission price, and get this: local business owners would also be required to keep a record of their customers. Yep, I’m not joking. Keep a record of their customers in the event that any single one of you going out on Saturday night dabbles in the downright serious issue of slavery and buying and selling of human beings.
Committee chairman Matt Gaetz, R-Fort Walton Beach, told the News Service of Florida that the idea is to actually discourage people from supporting these businesses and ideally redirect all that money to people, efforts and organizations assisting the victims of human trafficking.
“Should the resources that go to rehabilitate victims of human trafficking come from all 19 million Floridians, or should people who frequent adult-entertainment establishments, which have become a focal point for that illicit trade, pay a disproportionate share to help rehabilitate victims?” Gaetz asked rhetorically.
However, Rep. Charles Van Zant, R-Keystone Heights, made no bones about a surcharge of $10 on adult nightclubs without nudity and $25 tax for the few allowing nudity, justifying that any action by the state to collect the names of frequent patrons wouldn’t violate personal freedoms because of previously established links between live adult entertainment and illegal human trafficking.
But not everyone agrees fortunately. Rep. Mike Hill, R-Pensacola Beach, who agreed with the concept of an adult-entertainment surcharge, reportedly did voice some concern about privacy rights when it came to requiring businesses to maintain records on their customers.
My calls and emails to the offices of Rep. Gaetz and Rep. Hill for additional comment were not returned. And while no estimates are readily available, the amount of money that might be collected if this bill became law would tap what many people understand is a multi-million dollar industry.
Many Americans see strip clubs, smoking, alcohol and gambling as social vices, and federal and state levies meant to discourage these activities are commonly referred to as “sin taxes.” And a big reason for adding taxes and surcharges is because stigma makes these vice-related industries easy pickings.
“It’s not gonna happen,” said Antonio Pinheiro, manager of Flopper Rooster, who’s no stranger to both male and female strip clubs, having managed nine in his career. “Florida has the second-most strip clubs in the country after California. You got famous people and politicians coming in all the time. I don’t know one club in Miami-Dade that isn’t pulling in north of $1 million a year.”
But Pinheiro explained to me that there is a very big difference between female strip clubs and their male counterparts apart from the former dwarfing the latter in number alone. Owner Paolo Picente opened Floppy Rooster in January 2014 and it’s the only all-nude, male strip club in all of Miami-Dade, and it is relatively small compared to its closest neighbor Swinging Richards in Pompano Beach.
Female clubs on the other hand, like the Wal-Mart-size Tootsie’s on Hollandale Blvd. in Broward County, is packed everyday of the week, with up to 200 girls dancing on any given night, large projection TVs in the back and 2,000-plus people paying $10 a head at the door, Pinheiro said.
Another big difference, according to Pinheiro, is that with the female clubs, you have male pimps in charge of the girls, a practice that has been around for generations. The pimps approach strip club managers and get paid for supplying women of all ages and backgrounds. But guys tend to be in charge of their own business and pretty much do their own thing, he said.
“There’s no drama of dancers showing up with a black eye or dealing with a lot of drug use,” added Pinheiro, who said girls have come to use the clubs as safe havens for customers that they wouldn’t and couldn’t find on the streets, where a good chunk would go if their employers went belly up.
The legislation currently before the House committee has yet to reach the Senate. With opposition expected from smart people and small businesses around the state, committee members like Rep. Hazel Rogers, D-Lauderdale Lakes admit the bill needs clearly defined language.
Follow