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From: Free
Speech Coalition FREE SPEECH COALITION-SPONSORED BILL BECOMES LAW On Monday, August 30th, Governor Arnold Schwartzenegger signed into law AB1894, a pro-business measure authored by Assemblymember John Longville (D-San Bernardino) and sponsored by the Free Speech Coalition, the trade association of the adult entertainment industry. Originally introduced in 2003 as AB1438, the legislation establishes a non-judicial procedure whereby a business whose records are seized during an investigation may obtain a copy of critical business files in order to continue operating during the course of the investigation. Although the bill passed out of both houses of the legislature last year on a unanimous “aye” vote, Governor Davis still vetoed the measure, saying he did not wish to aid “pornographers” who might benefit from provisions in the law. Assemblymember Longville, who demonstrated great courage in carrying the bill because of the political risks of being identified with an adult industry-sponsored bill, re-introduced the measure in 2004 as AB1894. The bill again attracted broad business support, spear-headed by the California Chamber of Commerce which had signed on early in 2003. Other supporters in 2003 included the California Retailers Association, the California Attorneys for Criminal Justice and the Food and Beverage Association of San Diego. Additional supporters joined on in 2004, including the California Apartment Association and the California Association of Licensed Investigators. After lengthy negotiations with law enforcement during the course of the bill’s passage through the legislature, even the office of the Attorney General sent a letter in support of the measure. “We are grateful to Assemblymember Longville for carrying this important bill and we are proud of our role in getting this legislation into law,” stated Kat Sunlove, FSC’s Legislative Affairs Director. “Many members of the adult entertainment community are small business owners who may suffer extreme financial setbacks if their business records are seized and held for an extended period. Often no charges are even filed and yet the business can be devastated by such a seizure. We believe that AB1894 will help alleviate this problem.” The bill was originally drafted several years ago by First Amendment attorney Al Gelbard and was “shopped” by lobbyist Sunlove through two legislative sessions before finally getting Longville to agree to carry the measure in 2003. In the course of its passage through the legislature, the measure faced opposition from the California Association of District Attorneys, the Attorney General’s office and other law enforcement groups; Mr. Longville and FSC agreed to a number of amendments to address the concerns of law enforcement without substantially affecting the purpose of the bill.
ELECTION 2004 - FREE SPEECH COALITION NEEDS YOUR HELP! Chatsworth - (September 1, 2004) – Free Speech Coalition (FSC) is the trade association of the adult entertainment industry. Since 1990, it has provided member services including legislative watchdog for the industry, lobbying at the state and federal level, public education, member education on legal obligations, and as a last resort, litigation on key issues. FSC is working to mobilize the adult site industry and their member base to encourage them to register and vote and urging them to keep their “erotic interests” in mind on November 2nd. “If the current administration, with a Justice Department headed by a fundamentalist minister, is re-elected in November, the adult industry will face federal prosecutors under orders to cripple this industry. They will be armed with mandatory 5-year penalties for a paperwork error under U.S.C. Title 18, Section 2257, the federal adult material record-keeping and labeling law newly enlarged to include webmasters. The last time we saw this level of attack against our industry, 30 of our colleagues were arrested for obscenity, lost their businesses and some even went to prison. We must prevent this from happening again,” said Kat Sunlove, Legislative Affairs Director, Free Speech Coalition. To reach the most people, FSC needs the help of the adult site industry. It is asking all webmasters to: 1. On all sites, newsletters or anything other communications, please post the following message in a prominent place, along with the logo and link code found at http://freespeechcoalition.com/webmasters.htm DEFEND YOUR RIGHTS – REGISTER AND VOTE! The federal government has declared war on the adult entertainment industry and on YOUR RIGHTS to enjoy it. REGISTER AND VOTE!! 2. Please post this information on all boards and ask people to bump the thread. 3. Forward this information to your business associates. 4. Request that your credit card
processor include the following statement (and link) in all
confirmation emails: Sunlove states, “Together, we CAN make a difference in this election. With your help, we WILL!” To learn more about FSC, click on www.freespeechcoalition.com. For further information or media inquiries, contact: Kat Sunlove at Sunlove@direcway.com |