GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 1993

H	2 

HOUSE BILL 203
Committee Substitute Favorable 4/7/93

Short Title:  Tattooing Regulated.	(Public)
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Sponsors:
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Referred to:
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February 18, 1993

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO REQUIRE THAT INDIVIDUALS AND BUSINESSES ENGAGED IN THE PRACTICE OF TATTOOING OBTAIN A PERMIT FROM THE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENT, HEALTH, AND NATURAL RESOURCES.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1.  Chapter 130A is amended by adding the following new Part to read:
"Part 11. Tattooing.
"§ 130A-283. Definitions.
As used in this Part, the term 'tattooing' means the inserting of permanent markings or coloration, or the producing of scars, upon or under human skin through puncturing by use of a needle or other instrument or equipment, or by any other means or method.
"§ 130A-284. Tattooing regulated.
(a)	No person shall engage in the business, practice, or art of tattooing upon the body of another human being without first obtaining a valid permit from the Department.  Individuals licensed to practice medicine, and licensed physician assistants and nurse practitioners, working under the supervision of a licensed physician, who perform tattooing within the normal course of their professional practice are exempt from the requirements of this Part.
(b)	The Commission shall adopt rules governing the sanitation of premises, utensils, equipment, and procedures used by applicants for tattoo permits.
(c)	Upon receipt of an application for issuance or renewal of a permit to engage in the business, practice, or art of tattooing, the Department shall inspect the premises, instruments, utensils, equipment, and procedures of the applicant to ensure compliance with rules adopted by the Commission governing tattooing.
(d)	After inspection and upon determining that the applicant for a permit under this Part has complied with the rules of the Commission governing tattooing, the Department shall issue a permit to the applicant which shall be valid for not more than one year, and shall be renewable annually, thereafter.
(e)	If during the permit period or upon application for renewal, the Department determines upon inspection that tattooing is being performed in violation of Commission rules governing tattooing, the Department may suspend, revoke, or refuse to renew the permit until such time as the applicant has complied with the Commission rules.
"§ 130A-285. Limitations.
(a)	Compliance with this Part shall not be a bar to prosecution for violation of G.S. 14-400.
(b)	A permit issued pursuant to this Part does not authorize a person to remove a tattoo from the body of a human being."
Sec. 2. G.S. 130A-39(g) reads as rewritten:
"(g)	A local board of health may impose a fee for services to be rendered by a local health department, except where the imposition of a fee is prohibited by statute or where an employee of the local health department is performing the services as an agent of the State. Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, a local board of health may impose cost-related fees for services performed pursuant to Article 11 of this Chapter, 'Wastewater Systems,' for services performed pursuant to Part 10, Article 8 of this Chapter, 'Public Swimming "Pools', and for services performed pursuant to Part 11, Article 8 of this Chapter, 'Tattooing'. Fees shall be based upon a plan recommended by the local health director and approved by the local board of health and the appropriate county board or boards of commissioners. The fees collected under the authority of this subsection are to be deposited to the account of the local health department so that they may be expended for public health purposes in accordance with the provisions of the Local Government Budget and Fiscal Control Act."
Sec. 3.  This act becomes effective January 1, 1994.