Sex Workers Ask Cali Lawmakers to ‘Keep Adult Performers Safe’ by Rejecting Mandatory Condom Bill

The California Assembly is moving on rules to establish compulsory condom use for adult film peformers. Tomorrow the Assembly’s Appropriations Committee will vote on AB 1576, a bill that would require condoms in porn sex scenes, along with other industry “safety” measures, including “the provision of condom-safe water-based or silicone-based lubricants to facilitate the use of condoms.”

The bill also mandates that porn production companies keep confidential employee health records indefinitely, use “plastic and other disposable materials” to clean sets, and provide all employees with a safety training program. It does not “require condoms, barriers, or other personal protective equipment to be visible in the final product of an adult film.”

In other words, there’s little way for California officials to monitor or enforce adherence to the condom rule aside from sporadic checks on porn production studios. The bill also seems packed with enough random regulatory requirements to allow health officials to selectively make life miserable for any adult film company they feel like harassing.

Pitched as a measure to protect porn performers, AB 1576 has almost exclusively drawn harsh criticism from this constituency. Hundreds have signed a petition asking Assembly members to “keep adult performers safe” and vote no on AB 1576. On Twitter and other social media, sex workers have been speaking out usiing the hashtag #StopAB1576.

Read more at Reason.com…