Representative Todd comments on court’s decision on Adult Entertainment Act

JACKSON, Tenn. — A decision has been made regarding the “Adult Entertainment Act” that was passed in Tennessee in 2023.

It was the first act of its kind to pass in a state legislature. The bill was passed in both the Tennessee House and Senate, and later signed by Governor Bill Lee on March 2, 2023.

We spoke with Representative Chris Todd, who sponsored the bill, about how it started.

“We looked into the laws on the books and found that there was a potential that a group could have some kind of sexually explicit show in front of kids, and we wanted to close that loophole,” Todd said.

A group out of Memphis challenged the bill, and eventually, it made it all the way to the Supreme Court. This is where the most recent decision was made.

“The last stop was in the last week or so at the Supreme Court, and they refused to hear it and basically referred it to the decision of the lower court, the Sixth Circuit, and said their ruling stands,” said Todd.

Wednesday morning, Representative Todd released a statement regarding this decision. We asked him to explain how he felt.

“We’re elated that that came out. I hate that folks had to spend money, taxpayer dollars, defending this all the way through for something that I was confident was constitutional,” Todd said.

A U.S. District judge previously blocked the law temporarily in Shelby County, but a federal appeals court later reversed the ruling.

Attorney general Jonathan Skrmetti said, “Free speech is a sacred American value, but the First Amendment does not require Tennessee to allow sexually explicit performances in front of children.”