Oregonians Protecting Neighborhoods

Oregonians Protecting Neighborhoods is a political action committee supporting Oregon Initiative Petition 54. This initiative proposes an amendment to the Oregon Constitution which will empower communities to establish their own regulations regarding strip clubs. If we gather 110,000 Oregon voters' signatures for submission by July 2008, this constitutional amendment will be in front of the voters in the November 2008 election.

We need this constitutional amendment because the Oregon Supreme Court has ruled that all strip acts represent free expression which is protected by the Oregon Constitution. No other state's Supreme Court has made such a ruling, and 49 other states allow regulation of strip acts. We need to amend our constitution to empower our communities to take action.

The following are examples of actions taken in cities and counties in other U.S. states to regulate Strip Acts. Currently, due to the Oregon State Supreme Court’s interpretation of “free expression” under the Oregon Constitution, Oregonians are powerless to do any of these:

Zone strip act locations away from churches, schools, and residential neighborhoods
Specify, through zoning, limited areas where strip acts may be performed
Regulate the distance between dancers and patrons
Prohibit dancers from touching patrons and patrons from touching dancers
Impose requirements for height and design of a stage where strip acts take place
Require elevated stage separated from patrons by a barrier
Prohibit nude dancing in any establishment that sells alcohol
Require dancers to wear pasties and G-strings
Require dancers to wear bikini tops rather than just pasties
Establish other minimum clothing requirements
Establish standards as to maintenance of the premises, restriction of loitering by minors
Require that all areas in which entertainment is provided be visible from the common areas
Require establishment maintain a registry of all employees showing identification, demographic information
Require licenses for strip shows and require applicants to provide fingerprints and photographs
Require background checks on strip club personnel
Deny licenses to own or operate strip act businesses to those who have been convicted of certain crimes.

We must put Initiative Petition 54 on the ballot so that communities across Oregon can make their own decisions about regulations.

(503) 485-2002

Oregonians Protecting Neighborhoods
2007 State St.
Salem, OR 97301

Downloads:
» Position #54 Ballot Title (.pdf)
» Proposed Constitutional Amendment (.pdf)

For more information on this important initiative (#54) that will make Oregon an even greater place to live, contact us at:

(503) 485-2002

Oregonians Protecting Neighborhoods
2007 State St.
Salem, OR 97301