Mo. state Sen. Matt Bartle again reaching for pasties

​Missouri state Sen. Matt Bartle (R-Lee’s Summit) sure hates porn.

As the 2010 legislative session draws near, the occasionally bow-tied lawmaker is again putting adult-entertainment businesses on notice. Bartle has filed a bill restricting the time, manner and place that “purveyors of pornography” can operate. Citing the proliferation of sex-related businesses alongside I-70, Bartle says his bill will restore Missouri’s family-friendly image.

Bartle has tried for years to regulate the retail sex trade. In 2005, he proposed a bill requiring sex shops to charge a $5 cover and close at 10 p.m. It also banned strippers from accepting tips, which is sort of like telling a cupcake artist not to use frosting.

In the past, adult businesses have been able to thwart Bartle’s attempts to regulate them. Brian Yates, a Republican state representative from Lee’s Summit who resigned on December 1, recently complained that the industry killed the 2005 bill with a $35,000 donation to a campaign fund associated with former House speaker and mug-shot hunk Rod Jetton.