Photo by AWard Tour.

As we reported yesterday, the District remains one of the few places in the country where tattooing and piercing are unlicensed and largely unregulated, a libertarian reality that seems to buck the city’s reputation for being heavy on government regulations. That could change as early as this fall.

Legislation was introduced in the D.C. Council in April that would allow the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs to license and regulate tattooing and piercing, likely through the Board of Barber and Cosmetology.

The legislation, which is sponsored by Councilmembers Yvette Alexander (D-Ward 7), Marion Barry (D-Ward 8), Muriel Bowser (D-Ward 4), Michael Brown (I-At Large), Phil Mendelson (D-At Large), Harry Thomas, Jr. (D-Ward 5), Mary Cheh (D-Ward 3) and D.C. Council Chair Kwame Brown, states:

The Department shall regulate the occupations of tattoo artists and body piercing artists in order to protect public health, safety and welfare, and to assure the public that persons engaged in these occupations have the specialized skills, education and training required to perform the services offered. Any person performing tattooing and body piercing services shall be licensed by and registered with the Department to operate in the District of Columbia.

Should it pass, DCRA would be mandated to set minimum health standards for anyone working in a tattoo or piercing parlor, tattooing and body piercing on anyone under 18 would be prohibited (though most places already stick to this due to liability concerns) and all artists and parlors would have to be licensed.

According to Victor A. Bonnett, committee director of the Committee on Public Services and Consumer Affairs, a hearing on the legislation is being planned for the fall.