Pennsylvania lawmakers are proposing a new 10 percent tax on porn. The tax would apply to "subscriptions to and one-time purchases from online adult content platforms," according to a memo from the bipartisan pair of lawmakers behind the plan.
The porn tax—or "tiddy tariff," as the Free Speech Coalition's Mike Stabile has dubbed it—would be levied in addition to the state's normal 6 percent sales and use tax.
As a means to either raise revenue or discourage porn consumption (or both), this type of tax might make sense if most porn viewers were paying for porn videos or platform subscriptions. But in a world of ample free porn, it seems unlikely to accomplish either of the state's likely aims. You can't tax what people already aren't paying for.
And to the extent that it even further dis