Bill to halt clubs’ payoffs to cabbies headed for Guinn

Friday, May 28, 1999 | 11:44 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- A bill is on its way to Gov. Kenny Guinn to stop owners of adult nightclubs and topless bars in Clark County from paying off cab drivers to divert their customers to the businesses.

The Assembly on Thursday agreed to accept Senate amendments to Assembly Bill 193, which started out as a bill to clamp down on automatic telephone dialing messages. But the Senate added the so-called "diversion" section.

There has been testimony during the Legislature that managers of adult cabarets and similar businesses in the Las Vegas area have been giving cab drivers bonuses for steering customers to their businesses when the rider asked to go to another destination.

In Northern Nevada, at least one cab driver told a Senate committee he got payoffs for taking his customers to a certain house of prostitution in Lyon County.

The bill says it's a deceptive trade practice for an owner or employee of one of these businesses to give cash or services to the driver of a taxicab, limousine or bus to divert the passengers away from the location requested, to the business which is making the payoff.

The first offense would carry a civil fine of up to $1,000. A second offense would carry a maximum fine of $5,000 and the third violation would be a maximum fine of $10,000. For third and subsequent offenses, the businesses could lose their business licenses for up to six months.

Also in the bill is a section aimed at reducing the annoying telephone calls one receives from an automatic dialing device with a pre-recorded message to solicit business. It prohibits calls from 9 p.m. to 9 a.m.

Under the bill, the telephone message must immediately announce the nature of the call and the name, address and telephone number of the organization of the caller.

It would also prohibit the caller from replacing the call to the same number if the prospective customer terminated the original call.

Violation of the law is a misdemeanor.