Valley Industry & Commerce Association Joins in Campaign to Defeat Measure B

LOS ANGELES, CA--(Marketwire - Sep 20, 2012) - The Valley Industry & Commerce Association (VICA), the San Fernando Valley's premier business group, announced its opposition to Measure B, the so called "Safer Sex" initiative on the November 6th Los Angeles County ballot. VICA has joined with the No on Government Waste Committee, a broad-based coalition of business organizations, chambers of commerce, entertainment companies, community activists and healthcare advocates to oppose the measure.

"The real results of this ballot measure, should it pass, will be a loss of thousands of jobs. The industry employs more than ten thousand workers in production-related jobs such as make-up, lighting, carpenters, transportation, food service, payroll processing, web design and actors," said VICA President, Stuart Waldman. "At a time when growing the economy and creating more jobs is imperative, Measure B is precisely what Los Angeles does not need."

The adult film industry produces millions of dollars in annual revenue, is responsible for a considerable number of jobs in the San Fernando Valley and Los Angeles County, and is considered a major player in the Los Angeles economy. Yet, the ballot measure for November, the County of Los Angeles Safer Sex in the Adult Film Industry Act, could force production of films out of its long held San Fernando Valley home, taking jobs and revenue along for the ride.

"With an unemployment rate stuck at 12 percent in the county, it is clear the threat Measure B poses to the local economy should it pass," said James Lee, spokesman for the No on Government Waste Committee. "Measure B is no less than an attempt at government overreach in setting up a system where the county would have to hire more government employees and pay them to hang out at adult film sets to check for condom usage. It's a ridiculous waste of taxpayer dollars."

Measure B, funded and placed on the ballot by the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, would require the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health to license and permit adult movie productions in the county and require performers to wear condoms and create an unworkable system of on-set inspections and enforcement by county personnel. The county estimates initial start-up costs for the program to be in excess of $300,000, but acknowledges it does not know if permitting fees would be adequate to fund the program's long-term costs.

"Voters should be under no illusions -- Measure B would not only drive jobs out of the region, but the entire industry, which is already being aggressively courted by other states and cities to relocate," Waldman said. "And unlike California, those states have ample redevelopment funds available to help pay the costs for this industry to move."

According to the California Dept. of Public Health, from June 30, 2008 to June 30, 2011, there were 6,447 new cases of HIV reported in Los Angeles County, but only two were adult performers who did not contract the disease on-set. Since 2004, there have been no documented cases of HIV transmission on an adult entertainment set. In fact, with the industry's strict testing protocols -- requiring testing at least every 28 days for HIV, chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis -- adult performers are the most tested workforce in the nation.

VICA
The mission of the Valley Industry & Commerce Association (VICA) is to enhance the economic vitality of the greater San Fernando Valley region by advocating for a better business climate and quality of life. Visit www.vica.com for more information.

No on Government Waste Committee
The Committee is comprised of entertainment companies, local business organizations, community activists, adult entertainment performers and healthcare advocates who oppose Measure B's plan for creating an underfunded government inspection program diverting badly needed resources from local community clinics and underserved minority communities.