Opinion ID: 471855
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: License Requirements

Text: 22 The ordinance requires that all operators of erotic dance studios and all erotic dancers obtain licenses from the County. To obtain a license, a prospective operator must supply the County with various data including: his or her name, address, phone number, and principal occupation; similar information for all partners in the venture; and descriptions of the proposed establishment, the nature of the proposed business, and the magnitude thereof. A dancer applying for a license must provide the County: his or her name, address, phone number, birth date, aliases (past and present), and the business name and address where the dancer intends to dance. 23 It is well established that the government may, under its police power, require licensing of various activities involving conduct protected by the first amendment. See, e.g., American Mini Theatres, 427 U.S. at 62, 96 S.Ct. at 2448; Shuttlesworth v. City of Birmingham, 394 U.S. 147, 150-51, 89 S.Ct. 935, 938-39, 22 L.Ed.2d 162 (1969); Tyson & Brother--United Theatre Ticket Offices, Inc. v. Banton, 273 U.S. 418, 430, 47 S.Ct. 426, 428, 71 L.Ed. 718 (1927) (The authority to regulate the conduct of a business or to require a license, comes from a branch of the police power....); see also Genusa v. City of Peoria, 619 F.2d 1203, 1212-13 (7th Cir.1980) (court relied on American Mini Theatres in upholding simple license requirement for operators of adult bookstores). A licensing requirement raises first amendment concerns when it inhibits the ability or the inclination to engage in the protected expression. See Thomas v. Collins, 323 U.S. 516, 65 S.Ct. 315, 89 L.Ed. 430 (1945) (requirement that union organizers register with state unconstitutionally inhibits free expression). Further, a licensing requirement must provide narrow, objective, and definite standards to guide the licensing authority. Shuttlesworth, 394 U.S. at 150-51, 89 S.Ct. at 938-39. 24 Here, there is no suggestion that the licenses required either to operate, or to perform in, a topless facility would be difficult to obtain or would for some other reason discourage either a prospective operator from exhibiting dancing, or a prospective dancer from performing. None of the information required by the County unreasonably diminishes the inclination to seek a license. 5 Moreover, the County has no discretion in issuing the licenses. Sections 4 and 7 provide that both licenses would be issued automatically by the County within five days. 25 Further, both license requirements serve valid governmental purposes. By monitoring erotic dancers and erotic dance studios, the County can allocate law enforcement resources to ensure compliance with the ordinance. Thus, we conclude that the County may require operators of erotic dance studios and erotic dancers to obtain licenses. 26 However, although the County may require dancers to be licensed, the County has failed to demonstrate a need for section 7d's five-day delay period between the dancer's filing of an application and the County's granting of a license. The ordinance unreasonably prevents a dancer from exercising first amendment rights while an application is pending. Because the County has not justified the five-day delay permitted by the statute with respect to the dancer's license application, this provision is unconstitutional. 6 Thus, we hold section 7d of the ordinance unconstitutional. 7 b. Business Records Requirement 27 Sections 9b and 9c of the ordinance require operators of erotic dance studios to maintain business records and complete lists of all dancers, for inspection by the County. 8 28 Although the business records requirements may impose a limited burden on operators of erotic dance studios, the burden is significantly outweighed by the advancement of the County's interest in preventing the infiltration of organized crime into erotic dance studios. The business records requirements are no more burdensome than the requirements placed on a myriad of other businesses and substantially further the County's interest. Thus, these regulations do not violate the first amendment. 29 c. Regulations Affecting Dancing 30 The ordinance also regulates the manner in which dancing may be exhibited. The ordinance: (1) prohibits dancers and patrons from fondling and caressing each other; (2) requires that all dancing take place at least ten feet from the patrons and on a stage raised at least two feet from the floor; and (3) prohibits patrons from tipping dancers. 9 31 The alleged purpose of these requirements is to prevent patrons and dancers from negotiating for narcotics transfers and sexual favors on the premises of an erotic dance studio. Separating dancers from patrons would reduce the opportunity for prostitution and narcotics transactions. 10 Similarly, prohibiting dancers and patrons from engaging in sexual fondling and caressing in an erotic dance studio would probably deter prostitution. 11 Preventing the exchange of money between dancers and patrons would also appear to reduce the likelihood of drug and sex transactions occurring on regulated premises. 32 Further, these regulations do not significantly burden first amendment rights. While the dancer's erotic message may be slightly less effective from ten feet, the ability to engage in the protected expression is not significantly impaired. 12 Erotic dancers still have reasonable access to their market. See Ellwest Stereo Theatres, 681 F.2d at 1246 (open booths regulation did not affect access to adult films). Similarly, while the tipping prohibition may deny the patron one means of expressing pleasure with the dancer's performance, sufficient alternative methods of communication exist for the patron to convey the same message. Thus, the regulations are reasonable time, place, and manner restrictions that only slightly burden speech.