- It sends government inspectors, at full salary and benefits, to adult film sets to check up on whether actors are using not only condoms, but rubber gloves, goggles, and lab coats.
- It takes county public health officials away from outpatient clinics, flu clinics, and other county public health services in order to keep an eye on adult film sets.
How much will Measure B Cost?
Measure B is recklessly expensive. Enforcement will cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars a year just in administrative fees, plus the expense of hiring inspectors. In other words, this measure takes tax dollars away from police, firefighters and schools, and pays government agents to watch adult films being made. Measure B exposes the county to tens of millions of dollars in lawsuits from well-heeled film companies. It is a misguided use of county funds at a time when we can least afford it.
Is Measure B necessary?
- The film industry has rigorous and frequent testing for HIV. There have been no cases in eight years. In fact, passing this measure could create a health threat by driving the industry underground, with no testing.
- The adult entertainment industry has the most aggressive and comprehensive testing and reporting program in the country. It’s an industry that acts swiftly and responsibly in shutting down production nationwide at even a hint of a positive test result
Will Measure B affect public health?
- According to the California Dept. of Public Health, from June 30, 2008 to June 30, 2011, there were 6,447 new cases of HIV reported in Los Angeles County, but only two were adult performers who did not contract the disease on-set. Since 2004, there have been no documented cases of HIV transmission on an adult entertainment set.
- The costs to maintain the inspection system and training of government inspectors takes valuable resources and funds away from a county healthcare system already straining from demands of an uninsured and unemployed county population.
- Driving production underground will actually lead to less safe work environments devoid of any testing. Measure B will make the workplace more dangerous—not less dangerous—for actors.
How will Measure B affect our local economy?
- The adult entertainment industry contributes an estimated $1 billion in economic and tax benefit to the region. It also employs over 10,000 people through its affiliated businesses and vendors.
- After Measure B qualified for the ballot, adult entertainment companies were openly wooed by neighboring states to relocate with offers of tax credits, redevelopment funding and attractive infrastructure improvements.
- With an unemployment rate throughout the county at 12 percent, four percentage points higher than the national average, the county and local cities cannot afford the loss of up to 10,000 jobs and billions in tax revenue and related economic activity.
- Measure B will hurt working, middle-class families that have been hurt hardest during the Recession.