Senator seeks tax on pimps, prostitutes
 

Grassley: 'It's a no-brainer to have the IRS go after sex traffickers'
Wednesday, June 28, 2006; Posted: 9:40 a.m. EDT (13:40 GMT)

NEW YORK (CNN) -- Republican Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa is hoping to
stamp out the sex trade by taxing pimps and prostitutes, then jailing them
when they don't pay.

The Senate Finance Committee is expected to vote Wednesday morning
on the pimp tax. The bill also calls for more jail time for sex workers.

If passed, the provision will authorize at least $2 million toward the
establishment of an office in the Internal Revenue Service Criminal
Investigation unit to prosecute unlawful sex workers for violations
of tax laws.

"Recent headlines have focused on sex trafficking in connection with
the World Cup in Germany," Grassley said. "This vile crime is under
our noses in the United States, and it's a no-brainer to have the IRS
go after sex traffickers. Prosecuting these tax code violations can get
these guys off the street and yank from their grasp the girls and women
they exploit."

Grassley said the problem is "especially horrible" when underage girls
are involved.

Asked if taxing sex workers would legitimize their trade, a Grassley
spokesman said the goal was simply to find "yet another alternative
to track the money flowing in this industry to get at potential criminals."

Currently, the IRS has to prove a prostitute's or pimp's income to pursue
a tax law violation. But under Grassley's proposal, a pimp could get up to
10 years in prison for each prostitute for whom the pimp hasn't filed a
W-2, which means a pimp caught with 10 unregistered prostitutes faces
a century in prison.

Carol Leigh, a representative of the Bay Area Sex Worker Advocacy
Network in San Francisco, California, called the proposal short-sighted.

"Forced labor, kidnapping should be targeted. But this legislation broadly
targets the sex trade in general, and could target your local strip club,"
Leigh said. "We want laws enforced against those who abuse us, against
those who are violent, and enforcement of labor regulations. That is the
only truly effective way to protect the welfare of the women who work
in the industry."

Are you a news bot?

no news is good news imo

lol ... no ... thought it be an interesting topic
to post up along with your morning coffee :)

We have thounds of taxes as it is. What is one more.

True, thanks for the read :thumbsup

typical dumb ass move from the gov . .