I was half-kidding when I wrote last year about all the things Pennsylvania has found to tax. I said what's left? The air that we breathe? Apparently I forgot one area the state still hasn't taxed. The adult entertainment industry. State Sen. Jane Orie, a Republican from western Pennsylvania, is making noise about a porn tax.
According to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Orie will ask the Senate to approve a resolution asking the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee to study the possibility of a 10 percent excise tax on adult-oriented businesses.
Nathan Benefield of the Commonwealth Foundation's Policy Blog makes some interesting observations about a porn tax:
1) State government should not try to use the tax code to manipulate personal decisions.
2) Taxes on narrow segments of the economy encourage loopholes and evasion. For instance, there is already some question as to how to define "adult businesses"
Benefield also points out that it would nearly impossible to tax Internet "adult entertainment" venues, so what's the point of the tax?
Is a store that sells lingerie fall under the "adult entertainment" umbrella. What does lingerie usually lead to?
Unlike a tax in cigarettes or alcohol, various types of "adult entertainment" have been ruled "expressions of free speech" by the Supreme Court and are protected from government interference.
Is Pennsylvania prepared to wage expensive legal battles with hundreds or thousands of businesses?
Will the tax be worth it if the state is paying for lawyers to fight for the right to impose the porn tax?
What about an "All-Male Review" at the local firehouse? Is that adult entertainment? How about one of those home parties where sex toys and novelties are sold?
It's a slippery pole that Sen. Orie is sliding down.
It's bad enough that Gov. Ed Rendell has found dozens of ways to relieve Pennsylvania residents of their money during his five years in office. You'd think Republicans would be the last officials to talk about new taxes -- of any kind.
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