Friday, December 28, 2007

Texas Taxes

Somehow my preparation for the ASSA meetings distracted me from this piece of news:
In what some have dubbed the "pole tax," the Lone Star State will require its 150 or so strip clubs to collect a $5-per-customer levy, with most of the proceeds going to help rape victims. The tax goes into effect on New Year's Day.
....
The strip clubs are suing to block the tax, which state officials estimate will raise more than $40 million a year, based on liquor sales figures. If accurate, the estimate suggests at least 8 million people a year go to Texas strip clubs to get a lap dance or watch women pole-dance in a G-string.
I should point out the estimates imply there are 8 million visits, that does not mean 8 million unique visitors. From the NHSLS data I find the average number of visits for someone who has gone to a strip club is approximately 4.45 yielding 1,797,753 unique visitors. Though this may even be skewed upward as the median number of visits is 2.

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