Despite winning an injunction against HB1751, which assessed a $5-per-customer fee on strip clubs to pay for a sexual assault fund and other things, the fee must still be paid while the matter is still being litigated.
The state comptroller has sent a letter to strip clubs saying the fee is active and that the first reports and payments are due Monday. If they aren't sent in, a 5 percent penalty takes effect.Strip clubs have vowed to keep fighting the fee.
"It's a grave injustice that the attorney general and the comptroller would use procedural court technicalities to continue to trample on the rights of these business owners," said attorney Stewart Whitehead, who represents the Texas Entertainment Association, which includes more than half the topless clubs in Texas.