AMITE, La. — Agreeing with an Alliance Defense Fund attorney and a group of concerned citizens, the Tangipahoa Parish Council joined other parishes and cities in the state and approved an ordinance Monday to enforce comprehensive regulations on sexually oriented businesses.
“When lawmakers have to choose between protecting our children and protecting a sexually oriented business, the choice is obvious,” said ADF Senior Legal Counsel and Community Defense Counsel attorney Mike Johnson. “Our children’s safety comes first.”
For several years, Community Defense Counsel has made available a model ordinance to assist local governments in keeping children and communities safe from the harmful secondary effects of sexually oriented businesses. The ordinance has been adopted by community leaders around the country. CDC is a popular resource of ADF.
At a meeting Monday night, the Tangipahoa Parish Council adopted a version of the model ordinance for their parish that takes effect immediately. The new law outlines what owners and employees of sexually oriented businesses may or may not do and enacts permit and licensing requirements; criminal background checks; hours of operation limitations; health code, architectural, and signage requirements; and other rules.
The council also passed a resolution to encourage all towns in the parish to support the ordinance and consider adopting it themselves.
A group of local residents concerned about the secondary effects of such businesses, the Christian Community Network, began fighting for better regulations in the parish.
“We want other local groups to feel empowered to take the same actions as CCN,” Johnson said. “This ordinance is something that can be duplicated in other cities and counties nationwide.”
A copy of CDC’s model ordinance, which is similar to the version adopted in Tangipahoa Parish, can be read at www.telladf.org/UserDocs/modelordinance.pdf. A variety of other helpful resources can be found at www.communitydefense.org.
ADF is a legal alliance defending the right to hear and speak the Truth through strategy, training, funding, and litigation.
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