Billings Spa Ordinance Alert – Jan. 16 – #2

Leave a Comment / Establishment Licensing /

This is not a drill. The Billings City Council is moving forward on the proposal.

WHEN: TUESDAY, JANUARY 19 @ 5:30pm

We’ve written about this before.
Here is what you and your clients can do: 
(all of the how-to’s are below)

  1. Virtually ATTEND the Council Meeting – TUESDAY Jan 19 @ 5:30
  2. COMMENT – The City won’t know you’re there unless you comment – Even if all you say is that you oppose the ordinance
  3. CALL / EMAIL AGAIN – The people in favor of this are out performing us! Make those calls and emails AGAIN and get others to do it too. This needs to be done before the meeting on Tuesday!
  4. Sign the Petition – If you’ve already signed, skip this. BUT encourage anyone who hasn’t signed it to sign it now: http://chng.it/8xtVq5my
  5. Watch the video: If you’re not sure why establishment licensing is a bad thing or don’t object to the language in such proposals, please watch this video: https://youtu.be/hsfK6GVXVEo
    We must untangle our profession from human trafficking and prostitution and establishment licensing does not do that!
  6. Tell all your colleagues, family and friends to get involved.  Please let any bodyworker you know just how destructive this proposal is to them. They can read this.

Thanks!!

The How To's

To Attend the meeting: (TUE. Jan. 19 @ 5:30)
There are several ways to watch the meeting. If one doesn’t work, try another. It changes every time. If all else fails, text me at 406-544-4704 and I’ll provide you with the correct method. But don’t text until you’ve tried everything.

The Order of agendas can change, so you’ll need to pay attention to make sure they don’t move it around. You want to pay attention for an agenda item that is about spas, massage, or human trafficking. We don’t know how it will be presented, but these are some possibilities.

Ways To watch:

The last two can be sketchy. Try them if the other methods don’t work.

How to make a comment:
Call in for public comment ONLY when comment is requested for this topic.

Call 406.237.6196.

  • All callers will be in a queued system and are asked to remain on hold and be patient.
  • Calls will be taken in the order in which they are received.
  • Callers will be restricted to 3 minutes of testimony as is customary.

 General Talking Points:
Be polite and talk about how it will hurt you. Also include something that the city could do instead.

  • It is blatant discrimination against a legally licensed, state-regulated healthcare profession.
  • This regulates massage therapists as adult entertainment, rather than as a healthcare profession – It targets the wrong people.
  • There are other solutions out there are cheaper and more effective.
  • This proposal hurts legally practicing bodywork pracitioners and could put them out of business.
  • This proposal regulates massage therapists as if they are the ones behaving badly. They are not – it is criminals who are behaving badly and there are other laws to address this.
  • The adult entertainment provisions about genitals, sexual arousal, and other provisions are offensive and demeaning toward this healthcare profession.
  • This will negatively impact an already hurting industry – Describe how the pandemic has hurt your business.
  • Brothels disguised as massage businesses represent less than 6 % of the entire human trafficking problem. It would make much more sense to target trafficking generally rather than pick on a single, healthcare profession that has nothing to do with this illegal activity other than also being a victim.
  • Requiring that doors be unlocked is a safety issue for therapists and clients. The exemption doesn’t cover all cases. Example, a larger practice without a front desk person or a practice owned by two people but one person is working alone. (Other businesses, like casinos, can operate with a buzzer and lock their doors).

 What the City Council can do instead:
None of the following ideas require massage establishment licensing. They do affect the issues of human trafficking and prostitution broadly.

  1. Set up local laws to pressure landlords: If there is no place for these businesses to rent, they go elsewhere. According to human trafficking experts, it is one of the cheapest and most effective way to tackle the problem.
  2. Take the definition of “dormitory” in the proposal, make it applicable to all businesses and prohibit dormitories in any business.
  3. Beef up public nuisance laws
  4. Beef up code inspection
  5. Clarify the definition of adult-entertainment or sexually-oriented businesses (AE/SO), prohibit massage and bodywork in these businesses and bust them using these laws.
  6. Reduce the demand, there’s no need for supply. Go after the sex buyers.

Contact Info for the Billings City Council
Email all council members – council@billingsmt.gov
Mayor Bill Cole: 406-657-8296 coleb@billingsmt.gov

Ward 1
Kendra Shaw: (406) 670-7772 shawk@billingsmt.gov
Mike Yakawich (406) 254-2445 yakawichm@billingsmt.gov

Ward 2
Frank Ewalt: 406-861-8964 ewaltf@billingsmt.gov
Roy Neese: (406) 794-3318 Neeser@billingsmt.gov

Ward 3
Danny Choriki: (406) 748-6116 chorikid@billingsmt.gov
Denise Joy: 406-647-0337 joyd@billingsmt.gov

Ward 4
Pam Purinton: (406) 656-9495 purintonp@billingsmt.gov
Penny Ronning: 406-579-9778 ronningp@billingsmt.gov

Ward 5
Mike Boyett: (406) 694-2436 boyettm@billingsmt.gov
Shaun Brown: (406) 698-2328 browns@billingsmt.gov

FOR A DEEPER DIVE IF YOU WANT TO KNOW MORE:

What’s Wrong with the Proposal? Read the draft proposal along with commentary here.

 

 

Billings Spa Ordinance Alert – Jan. 16 – #2 Read More »