Don't touch strippers, at least in the wrong spots, or you could face a maximum $1,000 fine and six months in jail.

That would be the law of the land in Ohio if a strip-club-regulation bill that passed a House committee yesterday is enacted.

On the same day a statewide Quinnipiac University poll said that 45 percent of Ohioans admit having visited a strip club, the GOP-controlled committee voted 8-7 along party lines to make it a first-degree misdemeanor to touch a nude or semi-nude dancer in certain erogenous zones, a stricter standard than current law.

Senate Bill 16's original requirement that clothed or nude strip-club dancers remain 6 feet from patrons was scrapped after lawmakers questioned its constitutionality. And instead of prohibiting nude or semi-nude dancing between midnight and 6 a.m., the bill would allow semi-nude dancing after midnight if the club has a liquor permit.

The bill would close adult bookstores at midnight.

If anyone sues to block enforcement of the law, which club owners say is a near certainty, the bill would protect local townships from paying damages if they lose in court.

"It does appear to be something that is going to accomplish the objectives of reducing crime that is linked to these establishments," said David Miller, vice-president of Citizens for Community Values, the Cincinnati-based group that created Senate Bill 16 through a petition drive. "We worked with them and came to a place where they know the courts have already upheld these provisions."

Gov. Ted Strickland said he hasn't decided whether he would sign the bill, but he's watching for constitutional concerns. He called the bill a "frivolous issue" and praised the Bill of Rights for protecting what can be unpopular.

"Now, I think those are kind of weighty concepts to apply to a stripper bill; but nevertheless, simply because this activity is unpopular does not necessarily mean that it should be illegal."

Speaker Jon A. Husted, R-Kettering, said yesterday he expects the bill to pass the House today, and he criticized reporters for focusing on the bill rather than the state budget.

"Collectively, you've spent 99 percent more time on this thing than I have," Husted said.

The speaker's staff was busy tending to it yesterday, however. His legal counsel, communication director, chief of staff and a caucus policy adviser all attended the hearing.

Club owners are preparing to fight. If the bill becomes law, it will "put on the backs of Ohio taxpayers the biggest legal challenge ever mounted in this state," said Angelina Spencer, executive director of the national Association of Club Executives. "Don't let the no-touch provision fool you. It still brands the entertainer with a scarlet letter. She can't hug or hand shake without risk of being challenged."

The Quinnipiac poll said Ohioans are split on whether lawmakers should impose statewide strip-club regulations, with 45 percent supporting it and

46 percent in opposition. The gender gap is wide: 53 percent of women but only 36 percent of Ohio men support state standards, the poll said.

More Ohioans support the bill's former 6-foot distance requirement (52 percent) than the required midnight closing time (43 percent), the poll said.

Democrats tried unsuccessfully yesterday to block or amend the bill. They argued that it would violate local control and that some provisions are too vague.

Dispatch reporter Mark Niquette contributed to this story.

jsiegel@dispatch.com