Commissioners give initial approve to ordinance regulating operation of tattoo and body piercing facilities

Tattoo parlors and body-piercing businesses in Bartholomew County may soon be required to pay annual fees, pass regular inspections, and have all employees or proprietors undergo specialized training.

An ordinance that regulates the safe and sanitary operation of tattoo and body piercing facilities received unanimous support Monday in its first reading by the Bartholomew County commissioners. The second and final reading could take place as early as Aug. 12.

“There exists a very real and distinct possibility of the transmission of serious infectious diseases and infection from the tattooing or body piercing of a person, if a tattoo artist or body piercer is not sufficiently skilled and knowledgeable of the dangers associated with said activities,” according to language found in the proposed ordinance.

If the proposed local regulations receive second and final approval, each of the roughly eight local businesses specializing in tattoos and/or body piercings will have to pay $250 for an annual license, Bartholomew County Director of Environmental Health Link Fulp said.

In addition, each individual tattoo artist and body piercer would have to show proof of having received the Hepatitis B vaccine or show proof of having declined the vaccination by signing a waiver, the ordinance states. Those workers will also be required to have a minimum level of specified training, as well as pay $25 a year for the same permit, Fulp said.

While the commissioners all expressed approval, the county’s executive board has little choice but to pass this type of ordinance because the state of Indiana will only appropriate full funding to counties that opt into the Health First Indiana program.

“This is not the result of complaints or expressed concerns,” Commissioner Tony London said in regard to the ordinance.

While Bartholomew County received $400,000 through Health First Indiana last year for environmental health services only, Fulp said his health department will receive $1.8 million this year for both nursing and environmental health.

But to get the money, each county must report required metrics on core public health service areas including maternal and child health, trauma and injury prevention, chronic disease prevention and more, the Health First Indiana website states.

The Bartholomew County Health Department already complies with all program requirements, except the inspection of tattoo parlors and body piercing businesses, Fulp said.

The proposed ordinance also prohibits the application of a tattoo or body piercing to a minor without lawful consent.

According to Fulp, regulations and inspections of a tattoo business are necessary to provide for the enforcement of the ordinance, as well as to affix penalties.

“We have followed guidance from the current state law, as well as similar ordinances from other Indiana counties like Delaware, Johnson, Marion and Jackson,” Fulp told the commissioners. “We have reviewed other counties’ fees for services in order to come up with a fair fee for additional health department employee time, training and supplies.”

While the ordinance is likely to receive final passage as early as next week, Fulp said he doesn’t anticipate implementing the measures for approximately a year.

“There’s a big introduction slow-roll to get this done,” Fulp said. “We look for a time period when all the players can get together and comment. When approved, our office will develop the processes and reach out to our community partners to maximize education with a timeline for introducing the program.”

A key reason that state lawmakers created the Health First Indiana program is to benefit smaller counties that may only have one nurse employed by the health department, he said.

“We’re trying to track down who needs the services more than others,” Fulp said.