Municipalities across California should soon have greater leeway when it comes to preventing illicit activities by massage parlors, thanks to new legislation passed by the California State Assembly on Friday.
The Massage Therapy Reform Act or AB 1147 replaces a 2009 law which placed regulation of the industry into the hands of a non-profit agency known as the California Massage Therapy Council (CMTC) and restores much of that power to local jurisdictions.
“We are ecstatic that the bill returns local control and land use authority to be able to regulate the massage industry,” said Kirstin Kolpitcke, representative from the League of California Cities. “I think really the bill did a pretty good job of striking the balance of preserving the ability for professional massage therapists to practice and local governments to regulate those that have ill intentions.”
Under previous law, cities could not pass ordinances restricting certified massage therapists unless the rules applied to all licensed professionals. But, under AB 1147, local governments will be able to more effectively zone and regulate massage establishments. In addition, the new law will change the makeup of the CMTC board, which has been accused of being too cozy with the industry, and require background checks for certified massage therapists.
Critics of the 2009 law say it made it too easy for parlors to gain licenses and led to a proliferation of illegal activity like prostitution and sex trafficking. The number of massage parlors in San Gabriel, for example, increased from one in 2003 to 53 in 2013. South Pasadena has gone from one to 17 in the past 10 years. Captain Darren Perrine of the San Gabriel Police Department said his city has received 90 complaints of illicit massage parlor activity since 2009 but, because of the sheer number of new massage businesses, it’s been difficult to get a handle on the situation. With the passage of the new law, Perrine and others are hoping to stem the tide.
Read more about AB 1147 here.