SB 450

Under current law, the Department of Health Services (DHS) must provide for

uniform statewide licensing and regulation of tattooists and body piercers

(collectively, body art practitioners) and of tattoo and body-piercing establishments

(collectively, body art establishments). Current law prohibits a person from, with

limited exceptions, tattooing or attempting to tattoo another, designating or

representing himself or herself as a tattooist, or using or assuming the title

"tattooist" unless the person is licensed by DHS or a local health department

designated as DHS's agent (local health department). Likewise, current law

prohibits a person from, with limited exceptions, piercing the body of or attempting

to pierce the body of another, designating or representing himself or herself as a body

piercer, or using or assuming the title "body piercer" unless the person is licensed by

DHS or a local health department. Current law requires DHS to promulgate rules

pertaining to body art practitioners and body art establishments, including rules

setting standards and procedures for the annual issuance of licenses and rules

setting standards for: a) the performance of tattooing and body piercing by licensed

body art practitioners and b) the maintenance of licensed body art establishments

that will promote safe and adequate care and treatment for individuals who receive

tattoos or body piercings and eliminate or greatly reduce the danger of exposure on

the part of these individuals to communicable disease or infection. This bill retains

the foregoing prohibitions and DHS's rule-making authority regarding body art

practitioners and establishments, but adds a number of provisions pertaining to the

regulation and licensing of body art practitioners and establishments.

The bill includes the following provisions with respect to body art practitioners:

1. The bill provides that, in order to obtain a body art practitioner license, a

person must: a) be at least 18 years old; b) pay a licensure fee; c) provide proof of

having completed, in the 36 months before applying for a license, coursework

approved by DHS on bloodborne pathogens, the prevention of disease transmission,

infection control, and aseptic technique; and d) provide proof of having at least 200

hours of experience gained under the supervision of a licensed tattooist or body

piercer, depending on which license the person is seeking. The requirements

specified in c) and d) for an initial body art practitioner license, however, do not apply

to an individual who was licensed as a body art practitioner on the bill's effective

date. In addition, the bill allows DHS or a local health department to waive the

requirements specified in c) and d) for an individual who is licensed in another

jurisdiction with licensure requirements that meet or exceed those under the bill.

2. The bill allows DHS to grant a training license to an individual who lacks

the required 200 hours of supervised experience but who otherwise satisfies the

requirements for licensure as a body art practitioner, if the individual provides DHS

or a local health department with a signed letter from a licensed body art practitioner

who holds the same license the applicant is seeking, stating that the applicant will