04/25/2002 02:35 PM Senate L&C

               HB 443-TATTOOING AND BODY PIERCING                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
CHAIRMAN STEVENS announced HB 443 to be up for consideration.                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
MS. SHARON O'DELL, Chief of Staff  for Representative Vic Kohring,                                                              
said in 2000  the legislature passed  SB 34 to address  safety and                                                              
health  issues  with the  body  piercing  and tattoo  industry  by                                                              
bringing them under the licensing  requirements of the Barbers and                                                              
Hairdressers  Board. The qualifying  application deadline  was set                                                              
in statute,  but didn't  allow the  department  any kind of  grace                                                              
period or an appeal process. Because  of that there were qualified                                                              
practitioners who  were already in  business that will have  to go                                                              
out of  business because they  missed that qualifying  application                                                              
date. The  practitioners they have talked  to are in favor  of the                                                              
regulations set  forth in  SB 34, but  even though the  department                                                              
did their  best to notify everyone  that would be affected  by the                                                              
new regulations,  some people just  got left out. They  are trying                                                              
to address  that problem with those  businesses that will  have to                                                              
otherwise  close. They  would have  to go through  the process  of                                                              
finding another practitioner  who has gotten their  license to get                                                              
them through  the training period.  It could be difficult  to even                                                              
find someone  in their area who is  willing to take them  on. This                                                              
is an  unintentional result  of the law  that went into  effect in                                                              
2000.                                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
HB 443 does two  things. It doesn't change any  of the regulations                                                              
or  the  qualifying  date set  forth  in  SB  34. It  extends  the                                                              
transitional license application  date to July 1, 2002 and extends                                                              
the  license requirement  date to  December  1, 2000.  There is  a                                                              
fiscal note  for the  renotification because  the DEC  regulations                                                              
that  have been  adopted will  go stale  in October  in this  year                                                              
requiring renotification.                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
MS. GAIL  MCCANN, Owner of  the Electrolysis Clinic  in Fairbanks,                                                              
supported  HB 443.  She is  one of  the individuals  who would  be                                                              
impacted  by the  bill not  being passed.  If it  didn't pass,  it                                                              
would  definitely  affect  her  livelihood   and  her  ability  to                                                              
continue offering her service. She  uses a tattooing technique for                                                              
permanent and  corrective cosmetics  working with burn  survivors,                                                              
as  an  example,   who  have  gone   as  far  as  they   can  with                                                              
reconstructive  surgery  and want  to  take their  improvement  in                                                              
appearance a  step farther. Many  times a burn survivor  will have                                                              
lost  their facial  hair  - eyebrows  and  eyelashes  and she  can                                                              
tattoo those features.  She said people with  surgically corrected                                                              
cleft palates were another example of clients she served.                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
MR. JOE SCHOOLCRAFT,  Two Moons Body Piercing  and Tattooing, said                                                              
the tattooing community  is small and he found it  hard to believe                                                              
that some  people didn't know about  this. He thought if  a person                                                              
missed  the deadline  that through  the  tattooing community  they                                                              
could find  someone who  could reach out  and help them.  The test                                                              
has to do with sanitation and nothing with technique.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
MR. TODD  GIPSON, Two Moons  Body Piercing and  Tattooing, opposed                                                              
HB 443. He  thought the interested  parties should keep  on top of                                                              
the laws and what's going on.                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
MR.  JEFF MARTIN,  Muttleys Tattoo  Clinic, supported  HB 443.  He                                                              
said he is in transition and somehow  missed the application time.                                                              
He has three employees who are affected as well.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
MR. ANDY  KOPCZENSKI, American  Tattoo, said he  had been  in this                                                              
business for  22 years. He  said he does  the same thing  that Ms.                                                              
McCann  does about  10 times  a week.  He opposed  this bill.  The                                                              
fiscal  note that  goes with  it comes  out of  the general  fund,                                                              
which is his money.  He didn't want to be charged  for people "not                                                              
getting their homework done."                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
MR. KOPCZENSKI  said, "This  is another way  to charge me  for the                                                              
guy next door."                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR  LEMAN moved  to pass  CSHB 443(L&C)  from committee  with                                                              
individual recommendations.  There were  no objections and  it was                                                              
so ordered.