California's 25% Porn Tax Defeated

SACRAMENTO — Assembly Bill 2914, which would have imposed a 25 percent excise tax on adult products and productions, has died in committee.

The outrageous tax burden would have applied to all businesses that either sell or produce sexually explicit shows, movies, books and magazines — as well as websites.

Proposed by Democratic Assemblyman Charles Calderon, the tax was intended to offset the harms that opponents claim the industry creates, including "numerous health, safety and societal problems, including reducing property values in affected neighborhoods and encouraging unsafe sex and aggressive attitudes toward women."

According to Diane Duke, Executive Director of FSC, who attended one of the bill's hearings, the people Calderon got to testify were very inflammatory.

"[They] were telling lies about the industry; that people were committing suicide and that drugs were rampant on the set," Duke said. "Of course, we had people from the set there to testify that [those things] are not happening."

Some opponents opposed the bill on the belief that the government shouldn't be involved in people's sex lives; some saw it as a violation of free-speech rights as it singled out the adult industry, which could have been forced to leave the state; while others saw it as a simple case of the Democrat's trying to pile more taxes on legitimate business owners.

While Calderon claimed that his bill didn't cast judgment on adult content but was only targeting his claimed "negative financial impacts" of adult entertainment and thus would survive court challenges, his ruse was transparent; despite the bill's wording that the tax was "not intended as a prohibition of legally protected forms of expression."

Calderon hoped that AB 2914 would raise $260 million annually to offset the notoriously poor budgetary discipline exercised by the state's legislature; using the "sin tax" revenues to replace other tax-based revenues used for some health and public safety programs.

Related:  

Copyright © 2025 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

UK Lawmaker Calls for Appointment of 'Porn Minister'

Baroness Gabrielle Bertin, the Conservative member of Parliament who recently convened a new anti-pornography task force, is calling for the appointment of a “minister for porn,” according to British news outlet The Guardian.

FSC Toasts Jeffrey Douglas for 30 Years of Service

n the very same evening when the adult industry was hit hard by the Supreme Court ruling supporting Texas’ controversial age verification law, HB 1181, members of the Free Speech Coalition board, staff and supporters gathered to celebrate Jeffrey Douglas’ 30 years as board chair — a fitting reflection of his reputation as an eternal optimist.

Hookup Hotshot Adds TobyDick.com

Hookup Hotshot (HUHS) has added U.K. paysite TobyDick.com to its network.

TTS Opens UK Testing Location

Talent Testing Service (TTS) has opened a new U.K. location in Ware, Hertfordshire.

FSC: Age-Verification Laws Go Into Effect South Dakota, Georgia, Wyoming on July 1

The Free Speech Coalition (FSC) has published a statement regarding new age verification laws set to go into effect tomorrow in South Dakota, Georgia, and Wyoming.

Leana Lovings, Shay Sights Front 'Substance' Parody From Brazzers

Leana Lovings stars with Shay Sights in the latest release from Brazzers, a parody of "The Substance.”

FSC Responds to Supreme Court Decision on Texas AV Law

The Free Speech Coalition (FSC) has released a statement responding to last week's Supreme Court decision on FSC v. Paxton, the Texas age verification law.

Sex Work CEO Debuts Upgraded 'GPTease' AI Assistant

Sex Work CEO has introduced the new Canvas in-chat editing feature to its AI-powered, NSFW text generator, GPTease.

Little Puck Stars in Latest Episode of 'The Bottom Floor' From Adult Time

Little Puck stars in the second episode of Adult Time series “The Bottom Floor,” titled “The Second Coming.”

Haley Spades Stars in Latest From Immoral

Haley Spades stars with Charlie Dean, Matt Bird, and Dean Van Damme in a new three-part release from Immoral Productions, directed by "Porno Dan" Leal.

Show More