Hearing on tattoo licensing Monday

The House of Representatives Committee on Health will hold an informational briefing on the licensing standards of the tattoo industry to address issues related to the health and safety of consumers. The hearing will be held Monday at 10 a.m. in conference room 329 at the State Capitol. This is an informational meeting, so no public testimony will be accepted.

Last Session, HB2283 HD1, SD1, a bill that initially sought to allow tattoo artists coming to the state for tradeshows to apply for a temporary certificate of registration, failed to pass out of the Legislature when the last draft replaced the licensure law with a registration program.

The tattoo industry opposed the measure in that form as safety is critical to practicing tattoo and body piercing artists. Careless practicing methods create a greater risk to exposure to blood borne pathogens, including but not limited to, Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDs.

Tattoos and body piercings on the list for next session

Representatives of the tattoo industry and body piercing industry visited with Rep. John Mizuno today. From left to right: Peggy Sucher, Tricia Allen, Rep. Mizuno, Sean McCready and Conor Haley.

Safety is the key to the future for those who are involved in Hawaii's tattoo industry. This past session, a bill which started off as a means to allow tattoo artists to come into the state to participate in trade shows, exempting them from state licensure requirements for 2 weeks, took a different turn when it crossed over to the Senate. The Senate draft of HB2283, introduced by Rep. John Mizuno, contained a section that eliminated the licensure procedures and requirements entirely, a move that was not supported by Rep. Mizuno or the tattoo industry. The bill was recommitted.

Today, a group of concerned tattoo and body piercing artists visited Rep. Mizuno to start planning for new legislation next session. They emphasize that safety is critically important, and that it's important that the Department of Health maintain proper licensure requirements. Also, did you know that body piercing is not regulated in the state at all?

Tattoo You

Photo: The Honolulu Advertiser

Rep. John Mizuno wants to make it clear that the bill to deregulate tattoo artists, HB2283 was not the original intention of the bill that he introduced, and even he had grave concerns over the way the Senate version inserted the deregulation language. In a statement yesterday, Mizuno said:

"I had concerns with the changes to the bill that were recommended by the Department of Health, specifically repealing the tattoo licensure procedures and requirements, and allowing someone from out of state to simply register as a tattoo artist in Hawaii without oversight."

The original intent was to allow tattoo artists to participate in and practice at state trade shows. It was not meant to deregulate the industry which, in Rep. Mizuno's mind, has serious health and safety issues. Back in March, when the bill morphed into a repeal of license requirements, Mizuno told media: "You don't have as much oversight with just registration, and there's an unintended consequence that there may be unqualified artists practicing. So, where's the oversight?"

The Senate recommitted the bill back to the Ways and Means committee, essentially killing it for this year. Rep. Mizuno wants the Department of Health to work with him and the tattoo artists on another bill for 2009.