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Porn website trolls Utah Legislature over warning label bill

(Rick Bowmer | AP file photo) In this April 19, 2016, file photo, Utah Gov. Gary Herbert looks up during a ceremonial signing of a state resolution declaring pornography a public health crisis, at the Utah state Capitol, in Salt Lake City.

(Rick Bowmer | AP file photo) In this April 19, 2016, file photo, Utah Gov. Gary Herbert looks up during a ceremonial signing of a state resolution declaring pornography a public health crisis, at the Utah state Capitol, in Salt Lake City.

A popular pornography website, is trolling the Utah Legislature over a proposed bill that seeks to put warning labels on printed and online porn.

Utah visitors to the site, Xhamster, are greeted with a “warning” label that says “porn may lead to decreased stress, increased happiness, and lower rates of teen pregnancy,” reports FOX 13. The label plays on the state’s proposed warning label.

State Rep. Brady Brammer, R-Highland, is sponsoring HB243, which would require porn distributors to include a warning label containing information on the harmful effects of porn or face thousands of dollars in fines. The bill has yet to receive its first public hearing.

Alex Hawkins, vice president of Xhamster, told FOX 13 that “this isn’t the first time that we’ve had to deal with ignorance and fearmongering in the Utah government around sex.” He also said that they know how many Utahns visit the site and that the decision to include the mocking label “seemed like the ideal way to let them know just what the government is trying to censor.”

Free speech representatives for the adult entertainment industry say they will sue the state if the bill passes in the Legislature, according to Fox13.

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