78R3900 JTS-D
By: Noriega H.B. No. 1162
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the regulation of tattoo studios; providing a criminal
penalty.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 146, Health and Safety Code, is amended
by adding Sections 146.0041, 146.0042, and 146.0043 to read as
follows:
Sec. 146.0041. PREMISES INELIGIBLE FOR TATTOO STUDIO
LICENSE. If an order suspending a tattoo studio license is pending
or unexpired, or if the department has initiated action to suspend
or revoke a tattoo studio license, the department may not issue or
transfer a tattoo studio license for the same licensed premises.
Sec. 146.0042. GENERAL GROUNDS FOR REFUSAL. (a) The
department may refuse to issue an original or renewal tattoo studio
license with or without a hearing if it has reasonable grounds to
believe and finds that any of the following circumstances exists:
(1) the applicant has been convicted of a violation of
this chapter during the two years immediately preceding the filing
of the application;
(2) three years have not elapsed since the
termination, by pardon or otherwise, of a sentence imposed on the
applicant for the conviction of a felony;
(3) the applicant violated or caused to be violated a
provision of this chapter or a rule of the department adopted under
this chapter involving moral turpitude during the six months
immediately preceding the filing of the application;
(4) the applicant failed to answer or falsely or
incorrectly answered a question in an original or renewal
application;
(5) the applicant is indebted to the state for a fee or
penalty imposed by this chapter or by rule of the department adopted
under this chapter;
(6) the applicant is not of good moral character or the
applicant's reputation for being a peaceable, law-abiding resident
in the community where the applicant resides is bad;
(7) the applicant is a minor;
(8) the place or manner in which the applicant may
conduct business warrants the refusal of a license based on the
general welfare, health, peace, morals, and safety of the people
and on the public sense of decency;
(9) the applicant is in the habit of using alcoholic
beverages to excess or is physically or mentally incapacitated;
(10) the applicant does not provide an adequate
building available at the address for which the license is sought
before conducting any activity authorized by the license;
(11) the applicant is residentially domiciled with a
person whose tattoo studio license has been revoked for cause
during the 12 months immediately preceding the date the application
is filed;
(12) the applicant has failed or refused to furnish a
true copy of the application to the department following a request
by the department; or
(13) during the six months immediately preceding the
filing of the application the premises for which the license is
sought have been operated, used, or frequented for a purpose or in a
manner that is lewd, immoral, or offensive to public decency.
(b) The department shall refuse to issue an original tattoo
studio license unless the applicant for the license files with the
application a certificate issued by the comptroller stating that
the applicant holds, or has applied for and satisfies all legal
requirements for the issuance of, a sales tax permit, if required,
for the place of business for which the license is sought.
(c) The department shall refuse to issue for a period of one
year after revocation a tattoo studio license for a premises where a
tattoo studio license has been revoked during the preceding 12
months as a result of a shooting, stabbing, or other violent act, or
as a result of an offense involving drugs.
Sec. 146.0043. REVOCATION OR SUSPENSION OF TATTOO STUDIO
LICENSE. (a) In Subsection (b), "license holder" also includes
each member of a partnership or association and, with respect to a
corporation, each officer and the owner or owners of a majority of
the corporate stock.
(b) The department may suspend for not more than 60 days or
revoke an original or renewal tattoo studio license if it is found,
after notice and hearing, that any of the following is true:
(1) the license holder has been finally convicted of a
violation of this chapter;
(2) the license holder violated a provision of this
chapter or a rule of the department adopted under this chapter;
(3) the license holder was finally convicted of a
felony while holding an original or renewal tattoo studio license;
(4) the license holder made a false or misleading
statement in connection with the original or renewal application,
either in the formal application itself or in any other written
instrument relating to the application submitted to the department;
(5) the license holder is indebted to the state for
fees or payment of penalties imposed by this chapter or by a rule of
the department adopted under this chapter;
(6) the license holder is not of good moral character
or the license holder's reputation for being a peaceable and
law-abiding resident in the community where the license holder
resides is bad;
(7) the place or manner in which the license holder
conducts business warrants the suspension or revocation of the
license based on the general welfare, health, peace, morals, and
safety of the people and on the public sense of decency;
(8) the license holder maintains a noisy, lewd,
disorderly, or unsanitary establishment;
(9) the license holder is insolvent or mentally or
physically unable to carry on the management of the tattoo studio;
(10) the license holder is in the habit of using
alcoholic beverages to excess;
(11) the license holder knowingly misrepresented to a
customer or the public any tattoo sold by the license holder;
(12) the license holder was intoxicated on the
licensed premises;
(13) the license holder is residentially domiciled
with a person whose tattoo studio license was revoked for cause
during the 12 months preceding the filing of the applicant's
application; or
(14) the license holder failed to promptly report to
the department a breach of the peace occurring on the licensed
premises.
(c) The department may refuse to renew or, after notice and
hearing, suspend for not more than 60 days or revoke a tattoo studio
license if the department finds that the license holder:
(1) no longer holds a sales tax permit, if required,
for the place of business covered by the license; or
(2) is shown on the records of the comptroller as being
subject to a final determination of taxes due and payable under
Chapter 151, Tax Code, or is shown on the records of the comptroller
as being subject to a final determination of taxes due and payable
under Chapter 321, Tax Code.
(d) The department without a hearing may for investigative
purposes summarily suspend a tattoo studio license for not more
than seven days if the department finds that a shooting, stabbing,
or murder has occurred on the licensed premises that is likely to
result in a subsequent act of violence. The department shall notify
the license holder of the order suspending the license before the
expiration of 24 hours after the time the violent act occurs. If
the license holder cannot be located, the department shall provide
notice by posting a copy of the order on the front door of the
licensed premises.
(e) The department shall revoke an original or renewal
tattoo studio license if it is found, after notice and hearing, that
the license holder knowingly allowed a person to possess a firearm
in a building on the licensed premises. This subsection does not
apply if the person possessing the firearm:
(1) holds a security officer commission issued under
Chapter 1702, Occupations Code, if:
(A) the person is engaged in the performance of
the person's duties as a security officer;
(B) the person is wearing a distinctive uniform;
and
(C) the weapon is in plain view;
(2) is a peace officer;
(3) is a license holder or an employee of a license
holder if the person is supervising the operation of the premises;
or
(4) lawfully possesses a concealed handgun of the same
category the person is licensed to carry under Subchapter H,
Chapter 411, Government Code, unless the person is on the premises
of a business described by Section 46.035(b)(1), Penal Code.
SECTION 2. Section 146.012, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 146.012. TATTOOS PROHIBITED FOR CERTAIN PERSONS. (a)
A tattooist may not tattoo:
(1) a person younger than 18 years of age without
consent from the person's [individual's] parent or guardian [who
determines it to be in the best interest to cover a tattoo which
contains:
[(A) obscene or offensive language or symbols;
[(B) gang-related names, symbols, or markings;
[(C) drug-related names, symbols, or pictures;
or
[(D) some other type of words, symbols, or
markings that the court considers would be in the best interest of
the minor to cover]; or
(2) a person who [whom] the tattooist suspects is
under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
(b) The consent required by Subsection (a) may be satisfied
by[:
[(1) written and notarized consent by the individual's
parent or guardian; or
[(2)] the individual's parent or guardian:
(1) [(A)] being physically present at the tattoo
studio at the time the tattooing is performed;
(2) [(B)] executing an affidavit stating that the
person is the parent or guardian of the individual on whom the
tattooing is to be performed;
(3) [(C)] presenting evidence of the person's identity
to the person who will perform the tattooing; and
(4) [(D)] presenting evidence of the person's status
as parent or guardian of the individual who will receive the tattoo.
(c) A [If a] parent or guardian of a person younger than 18
years of age may seek an order from a district court or a court with
jurisdiction of a civil proceeding brought under Title 3, 4, or 5,
Family Code, to compel the minor to cover a tattoo. The court shall
issue the order if the court determines that covering the tattoo is
in the minor's best interest and that the tattoo contains:
(1) obscene or offensive language or symbols;
(2) gang-related names, symbols, or markings;
(3) drug-related names, symbols, or pictures; or
(4) some other type of words, symbols, or markings
that the court considers would be in the best interest of the child
to cover [the minor and the minor agree to the covering of a tattoo
described by Subsection (a), a justice court may issue the order. If
the parent or guardian and the minor do not agree, the order must be
issued by a district court or other court with jurisdiction of a
suit affecting the parent-child relationship or a civil proceeding
brought under Title 3 or 4, Family Code].
(d) A person younger than 18 years of age commits an offense
if the person falsely states that the person is 18 years of age or
older or presents any document that indicates that the person is 18
years of age or older to a person engaged in the operation of a
tattoo studio. An offense under this subsection is a Class B
misdemeanor. [The consent required by Subsection (a) must indicate
the location on the person's body at which the tattoo may be
placed.]
SECTION 3. (a) This Act takes effect September 1, 2003.
(b) The change in law made by this Act to Section 146.012,
Health and Safety Code, applies only to an offense committed on or
after the effective date of this Act. For purposes of this section,
an offense is committed before the effective date if any element of
the offense occurs before the effective date.
(c) An offense committed before the effective date of this
Act is governed by the law in effect when the offense was committed,
and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.