UPDATE - Labor Committee Passes AB 1576

SACRAMENTO—The hearing on AB 1576, the "barrier protections" in porn bill, has concluded, and while its fate was still undecided as of that time, one of the members who had abstained from the voting, and who later cast hsi vote against the bill, still later changed his vote to one in favor of the bill. That made the vote 3 to 1 in favor of passage, with Vice Chair Sen. Mark Wyland still to be heard from. Voting in favor of the bill at the hearing were committee chair Ben Huesa and Sen. Holly Mitchell; voting against was Sen. Mark Leno, who had asked very specific questions during the hearing challenging statements made by Isadore Hall III, the bill's sponsor, and Rand Martin, appearing for AIDS Healthcare Foundation. The bill is particularly important for Hall, who will be running for state Senate next year, having termed out in the Assembly, and the legislator has been selling support of the bill as his "last chance" to leave a legacy in the Assembly. Now that the bill has passed the Labor Committee, it will go to the Senate Appropriations Committee, but it is unknown when that will be, although it could be as soon as next week. For a more in-depth account of the hearing, check back with AVN.com this afternoon.