The American Family Association (AFA) has begun a petition drive to urge the U.S. Senate to discriminate against, among others, massage parlors and adult bookstores which, along with thousands of other businesses, would be eligible for a federal tax relief package to offset the effects of the recent Gulf Coast hurricanes.
"Congress is being asked to give nearly a half-billion dollars in tax credit to casinos, country clubs, liquor stores, massage parlors, adult bookstores and 'escort' services which were damaged by hurricanes Katrina and Rita," the AFA petition reads. "The House version doesn't allow tax breaks for casinos, country clubs, liquor stores and massage parlors while the Senate version does. Send an email to your U.S. Senators and urge them not to include casinos, country clubs, liquor stores, massage parlors, adult bookstores and 'escort' services in the half-billion in tax credits."
(We chuckled at the quote marks around "escort"; perhaps someone at the AFA has had some experience with the services in Louisiana?)
On Dec. 8, the Family Research Council (FRC) hailed certain ultraconservative House Republicans for managing to exclude "private or commercial golf courses, country clubs, massage parlors, hot tub facilities, suntan facilities, liquor stores and racetracks or other facilities used for gambling" from the House tax relief bill, and it seems likely that FRC and several other fundamentalist religious groups will be urging, along with the AFA, that the Senate exclude these businesses as well – probably before today's sunset.
"These corporations have never had favorable tax treatment in the past and they should not get it now," announced FRC president Tony Perkins in boldface on FRC's website.
But the adult businesses (and likely the others) aren't asking for "favorable" tax treatment; just equitable treatment, the same as any other affected legal business.
"The root issue is rebuilding the economy of the devastated Gulf Coast, not catering tax benefits to companies that have a proven negative economic effect on even flourishing economies," Perkins continued.
Funny; we thought liquor stores, racetracks, casinos and even suntan facilities, hot tub facilities and massage parlors contribute plenty of revenue to the local economy, not to mention provide employment even in bad economic times like these.
The relief bills are currently in a House/Senate conference committee, which is trying to work out the differences between the proposals to come up with a version both houses of Congress can support – but for Congress to discriminate against legal businesses that the religio-reactionaries consider "sinful" would go against basic constitutional principles of fairness.
If such discrimination makes it into the finished law, the affected companies could easily sue, which might hold up the federal aid for months or even years – a situation that Congress would likely want to avoid, and could easily do so by simply providing the tax breaks without regard for the type of business being helped.
Imagine if Congress passed a hurricane tax bill that specifically excluded churches from such relief!
Oh, wait a minute; that's right – churches don't pay taxes!
