Wash. stripper safety bill signed into law

SEATTLE (AP) – Washington Gov. Jay Inslee has signed a bill intended to increase safety for adult entertainers working at strip clubs and similar establishments in the state.

The rules will require safety and rights training for adult entertainers, panic buttons, and for venues to keep and enforce ban lists for violent or threatening patrons.

Inslee signed the bill Wednesday at the state Capitol.

Educational requirements laid out under the bill include workplace rights and harassment reporting, risks of human trafficking, and financial literacy information. Panic buttons are set to be required in rooms where customers could be alone with dancers and in bathrooms, and the bill sets conditions for their use.

Establishments will also be required to keep a list of patrons that have acted violently toward dancers, share it among co-owned establishments, and ban customers on it for a minimum of three years.