ORDINANCE NO. ____, SERIES 2026
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AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE LOUISVILLE METRO CODE OF ORDINANCES (“LMCO”) SECTIONS 115.170 TO 115.196 REGARDING MASSAGE FACILITIES.
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SPONSORED BY: COUNCIL MEMBERS RUHE, RENO-WEBER, AND HUDSON
WHEREAS, according to Polaris Project, protecting victims of human trafficking requires policies that focus on identifying coercion, control, and exploitation – not placing added burdens on lawful professionals; and
WHEREAS, Polaris research shows that illicit massage businesses are often run through organized networks with hidden ownership and financial secrecy, meaning enforcement should focus on these systems; and
WHEREAS, research from the Polaris Project reveals that human trafficking operations frequently hide behind the façade of illicit massage businesses, while also utilizing other legitimate-seeming entities such as nail salons, restaurants, and various service-oriented storefronts as a guise to mask criminal activity and evade oversight; and
WHEREAS, reducing trafficking requires addressing the demand for commercial sexual services, and policies that do not target demand may fall short; and
WHEREAS, License Massage Therapists (LMTs) in Kentucky complete rigorous state licensing, including education and hundreds of hours of training, exams, comprehensive background checks, and ongoing ethics training, and provide legitimate therapeutic healthcare services; and
WHEREAS, while LMTs meet established credentialing and licensure standards similar to other healthcare professionals, they are more frequently subject to additional scrutiny and expectations to demonstrate the legitimacy of their services, reflecting an inconsistent standard across healthcare fields; and
WHEREAS, the Mayo Clinic stated in its March 2022 article, “Benefits of Massage Therapy,” that for many patients, massage therapy is an important part of medical treatment plans that help them return to daily activities; and
WHEREAS, according to the American Mas...
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