Gov. DeSantis signs bill raising age to strip in Florida, combats human trafficking

You won’t see an 18-year-old stripper in Florida after July 1.

Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a bill Monday afternoon that bans anyone younger than the drinking age from working at an “adult entertainment establishment,” affecting not only strip clubs but places like adult movie theaters and libraries, too.

That restriction is expected to receive First Amendment challenges in court. It’s part of broader legislation (HB 7063) aimed at combating human trafficking, including by extending the lifetime of the Statewide Council on Human Trafficking.

“We’re going to stand strong for those who may not be in a position to defend themselves,” DeSantis said at a press conference in Coral Gables. “Our state is a great state … We are a united front here saying that we’re not going to just stand idly by.”

DeSantis also announced he would be approving $4.9 million in the state budget to expand access to emergency beds and increase staff to provide trafficking survivors a safe place to begin their recovery. He added that the state has a $900,000 grant opportunity to enhance staffing and training for law enforcement targeting trafficking.

Bill supporters have alleged businesses like strip clubs are dens for trafficking, especially of young women.

But when the bill was making its way through the Legislature, some Democrats wondered if the age restriction had more to do with ideological disagreement with the exotic dancing profession. And they warned those who lose their jobs could go into more dangerous work.

“If there’s not controlled environments, young girls will get pulled into private parties,” said Rep. Michele Rayner, D-St. Petersburg, on the House floor this past session. “Once again, this House, this body, is trying to legislate what women can and cannot do with their bodies. And it’s overwhelmingly a lot of men who are trying to do that.”

Rep. Carolina Amesty, a Windermere Republican and a bill sponsor, said during press conferences that adult entertainment establishments are no place for those younger than 21 years old.

“My vision for the young women of Florida is to not work in the adult entertainment (industry) but rather get a job, an education and career and have a good quality of life,” she said.

The bill ultimately passed the Legislature with bipartisan approval, including from Rayner, with only three Democratic “no” votes in the House and Senate.

Under the law, employers who “knowingly” hire workers younger than 21 years old at adult entertainment establishments would face criminal penalties. Those criminal penalties would go as high as a second degree felony, punishable by up to 15 years behind bars, if that worker performs nude.

And the language emphasizes that “a person’s ignorance of another person’s age or a person’s misrepresentation of his or her age may not be raised as a defense in a prosecution.” 

Expect a legal challenge

The measure comes as the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is expected to rule soon on a Jacksonville dancer age restriction ordinance, a decision that could set a First Amendment precedent on age-based regulation of expression – and a decision that could potentially knock down such restrictions.

During the Jacksonville litigation, it came out that “no arrest for human trafficking has ever been made in an exotic dance establishment” in that city, according to court records. But a federal judge upheld the ordinance, and it remains in effect awaiting the decision.

“It just seems rushed and unwise to to pass a law like this now, while litigation is ongoing,” said Gary Edinger, a Gainesville-based First Amendment attorney who is representing Jacksonville clubs that filed suit against the ordinance. “You’d think (lawmakers would) just wait until the next legislative session, so they know whether the law is constitutional or not.”

Regardless, Edinger says he’s in talks with other attorneys and he has “no doubt” a lawsuit will be filed against the state law.

“There are lots of things to be concerned or note about this statute,” he said. “Adult entertainment (establishments) are not a hotbed of sex trafficking … When we’re dealing with the First Amendment, the state can’t just say something and have the courts accept it. There’s no deference to the Legislature. They’re going to have to prove those allegations.”

Lawmakers pass the age restriction: On International Women’s Day, Florida lawmakers pass bill to raise age to be a stripper

Age restriction was once thought dead: Florida Senate passes bill to raise state’s exotic dancing age to 21

This reporting content is supported by a partnership with Freedom Forum and Journalism Funding Partners. USA TODAY Network-Florida First Amendment reporter Douglas Soule can be reached at DSoule@gannett.com.