Jul 11, 2016 5:12 PM PDT    Text size: 

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Secretary of State Alex Padilla this evening invited interested Californians to submit arguments for or against statewide ballot measures that will be voted on in the Nov. 8 General Election.

One of the items on the ballot that is of particular interest to those in the adult entertainment industry is the Condoms in Pornographic Films Initiative, which is labeled Proposition 60.

Michael Weinstein, the proponent of the ballot measure and president of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, received more than 1 million signatures to put the barrier protection item on the ballot.

He is asking California voters to weigh in over Proposition 60, which many call an existential threat to adult filmmaking in the state.

A "yes" vote would be a vote in favor of requiring the use of barrier protective measures during the filming of adult films, as well as requiring pornography producers to pay for certain health requirements and checkups.

A "no" vote would be a vote against requiring the use of condoms and other safety measures during the filming of pornographic films

Submitted ballot arguments will be considered for inclusion in the Official Voter Information Guide. The guide is mailed to every voting household in California and posted on the Secretary of State’s website.

The full text, provided by the Office of Legislative Counsel, and nonpartisan analysis, provided by the Legislative Analyst’s Office, of the propositions will also appear in the Official Voter Information Guide.

Arguments selected for the Official Voter Information Guide will be on public display between July 26 and Aug. 15.

Ballot arguments cannot exceed 500 words and rebuttals to ballot arguments cannot exceed 250 words.

The deadline to submit ballot arguments is Tuesday by 5 p.m. (PDT). The deadline to submit rebuttals to the ballot arguments is July 21 by 5 p.m.

All submissions should be emailed to VIGarguments@sos.ca.gov.  

Proposition 60, which will appear as the ninth measure on the General Election ballot in November, will include the following language (including bold text):

Adult Films. Condoms. Health Requirements. Initiative Statute. Requires performers in adult films to use condoms during filming of sexual intercourse. Requires producers of adult films to pay for performer vaccinations, testing, and medical examinations related to sexually transmitted infections. Requires producers to obtain state health license at beginning of filming and to post condom requirement at film sites. Imposes liability on producers for violations, on certain distributors, on performers if they have a financial interest in the violating film, and on talent agents who knowingly refer performers to noncomplying producers. Permits state, performers, or any state resident to enforce violations. Summary of estimate by Legislative Analyst and Director of Finance of fiscal impact on state and local government: Potentially reduced state and local tax revenue of millions or tens of millions of dollars per year. Likely state costs of a few million dollars annually to administer the law. Possible ongoing net costs or savings for state and local health and human services programs.