Tattoos: Here we go again.
Officials: Make tattoos safe
From staff and wire reports
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House Bill 1519
The bill would:
Prohibit tattooing for anyone under the age of 18.
Require tattoists and tattoo parlors to be licensed by the health department.
Require semi-annual inspections of tattoo parlors.
Limit sales of tattoo equip-ment to licensed professionals.
Allow fines of up to $5,000 for persons convicted of violating the law.
Proponents say ensuring the safety and health of people getting tattoos is the purpose of proposed legislation to legalize and regulate the tattoo industry in Oklahoma, and state health officials and a local businessman say they hope legislators pass the bill this session.
Oklahoma, the only state that outlaws tattooing, should legalize the practice to protect people from diseases transmitted through unsanitary underground tattoos, state health commissioner Dr. Mike Crutcher and other officials said at a news conference Friday.
"We are pleased to support this legislation so we can assure a protected environment for those who seek tattoos in Oklahoma," Crutcher said.
Loyd Samples owns Hellbilly, a local tattoo and piercing establishment. Samples said he agrees wholeheartedly with regulating the industry. He said it is important to ensure cleanliness and prevent disease transmission.
Samples, whose business is inspected by the health department because he is licensed for piercing, said too often people have problems with tattoos given in underground establishments.
"A lot of people come in here asking 'Can you fix this?'" he said. "And I'll say 'Where did you get it done?' and they say they went to a guy's house with a kit."
He said he would like to see laws even more stringent than proposed in the current bill.
A similar bill was killed last year on the Senate floor after narrowly passing a committee. This time the measure may face a tough test in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. It's scheduled for a committee hearing next week.
"I'm more focused on getting worker's comp and tort reform passed than I am about tattooing," said Rep. Mike Thompson, R-Oklahoma City. "Tattooing was not a big issue for me when I was out campaigning."
The popularity of tattoos boomed in the last decade and has now become commonplace with all segments of society, said Rep. Al Lindley, D-Oklahoma City, who introduced the bill.
"I think a lot of people would be surprised at the number of bankers and lawyers getting tattooed," Lindley said.
With local law enforcement agencies reluctant to use scarce resources to investigate illegal tattooing, Crutcher said some illegal tattoo artists are openly advertising their services in city phone directories.
"This lack of enforcement is not lost on those providing illegal tattooing," Crutcher said.
In 1997, Samples said, he was co-owner of the first Oklahoma shop ever raided, Freaks Mercantile of Tulsa. He said he paid a $100 fine and reopened the next day, and the law as it is written now has loopholes that make it difficult to enforce.
Tigger Liddell, an Oklahoma City native who operates several tattoo parlors in Texas, said the popularity of tattoos is forcing many people in Oklahoma to go to unsafe artists and risk getting a disease through a dirty tattoo needle.
"I know of full-blown underground tattoo studios operating in Oklahoma right now," Liddell said. "Sometimes they're clean and sometimes they're not."
Crutcher said there has been a spike in the number of new hepatitis C infections, a serious disease that can be passed through use of dirty needles. Health officials have documented about 7,000 new cases of hepatitis C cases since 2000, a jump of 78 percent. The exact cause of the increase has not been determined.
Dr. Edward Brandt Jr., a regents professor at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, said the American Medical Association and the Oklahoma State Medical Association both support regulating the practice of tattooing.
"Any time you break the skin with an unsanitary object, you run the risk of infection," Brandt said. "Our view is that regulation and the regulation of appropriate preventive measures is critical."
I took it upon myself to email the Republican controlled State House of Representatives -- the fuddy duddies who'll want to shoot this down. In the subject line I typed "Oklahomans have, can and will catch diseases from Unregulated Tattoo Parlors"
Hopefully that will strike a chord with some of them. The ban on tattooing is not only in violation of the First Amendment, it is a Health Hazard! Here's what I wrote:
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Dear Ladies and Gentlemen of the Oklahoma House of Representatives,
I've never contacted an elected official in my life, but in this case
I am compelled to do so. I understand that there is legislation being
brought up in the senate regarding the legalization and regulation of
tattoo parlors. As a taxpayer and citizen of Oklahoma, I would like
to voice my thoughts on this and I sincerely appreciate the time you
are taking to read this. Thank You.
First of all, I've known several people who have operated makeshift
(and unsanitary)
tattoo parlors out of their basements and living rooms. Illegal
tattooing is going on in Oklahoma. Hepatitis, AIDS, Syphillis --
these are diseases that can be spread by using dirty needles. Oklahoma
must legalize and regulate tattooing so that we can be sure that those
who wish get inked can do it in a clean and
safe environment. Besides, how would you feel if your child or loved
one went to a makeshift tattoo parlor and contracted AIDS from a dirty
tattoo needle? It has happened and will continue to happen without an
intervention from leaders like yourself!
If this law doesn't pass, the basement tattoo parlors will continue to
operate. Tattoo artists will still continue to fight the state in
court, costing the state taxpayers money in legal fees and I suspect
that it could eventually lead to the U.S. Supreme Court. I am no
legal expert, but personally I believe tattooing is a form of
expression and I believe it to be protected under the First Amendment.
Besides, the law we have on the books now is outdated. Tattoos can
easily be removed by lasers. That wasn't possible in the 1950's when
the ban was put into effect.
Many of my peers have left Oklahoma and I've had plenty of chances to leave as
well. People like me are leaving the state not because of the flat
terrain or the unpredictable climate or the poor schools and crumbling
roads. We're leaving Oklahoma because it is a really repressive
place to live! The law banning tattoo parlors is just a little piece
of that repressive Oklahoma mentality that is driving college educated
and even non-college educated young people out of this state!
I love my home state and I would like to see progress on many
frontiers such as Workers Compensation, Tax Reform and improved roads
and bridges. I know you all have other and bigger fish to fry, but
this issue is a health issue and must be addressed! I am also
sensitive to those of you who are opposed to tattooing on religious
grounds. However, not everyone shares those views and those folks
will still get tattooed whether you believe it to be wrong or not.
The health and safety of many Oklahomans are in your hands.
Thank You,
Keith Mooney [quote]
If we really want Oklahoma to progress, we need to change some of the ridiculous laws on our books. We are the only state in the union that outlaws tattoo parlors. Please contact your legislators and let them know that we're sick and tired of this stupid tattoo ban that makes Oklahoma the laughing stock of the country. Regardless of whether you are for or against tattooing, this is truly a health issue.
Keith Mooney
Originally Posted by Zoedith
). You see, there are many people I know that have tattoos, and some of them are Christian tattoos. I, personally, would not have a tattoo, nor would I want my kids to have one. The thing is, if they want to make tattoo's legal, I have no problem with it. I just want it to be done in sanitary conditions and according to health codes.
. I have been invited to tattoo parties but would never get one there. I go to a reputable parlor near me that is clean and inspected on a regular basis, and I visited a few of them before getting one, just to look around and see how clean they were. I have a favorite artist I use and stick with her. No they are not for everyone, and mine have meaning, although I would never get anyones name put on me. I hope Oklahoma does lift the ban. Tattoo's on a woman in the right places are very sexy, the girl I am seeing has two, one on her lower back, and one on her foot and to me they are a turn on, she likes mine as well. I guess another point, they are a good conversation starter in some cases.
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