Miss Kitty's Saloon, Inc. v. Missouri Department of Revenue

Sections 573.500 to 573.5051 authorize a county tax on sales by “adult cabarets.” Johnson County enacted such a tax. The circuit court found the tax valid. The cabaret appeals. Mo. Const. art. V, sec. 3. Affirmed.

The cabaret asserts that the statutes violate its rights to equal protection under the federal and state constitutions— amendment XIV and article I, section 2, respectively. The cabaret concedes that its equal protection challenge faces a “heavy burden.” The cabaret does not invoke a suspect class or a fundamental right. The only issue, then, is whether the classification is…