Irvine Municipal Code Ch. 13 Tattooing Establishments

Unless the particular provisions or context otherwise requires, the definitions and provision contained in this section shall govern the construction, meaning, and application of words and phrases used in this chapter:

Health Officer means that person or office designated by order of the City Council of the City of Irvine or by contract approved by the said Council as the person or office having responsibility for the enforcement of the provisions of this chapter.

Owner means any of the following: (1) a person whose name appears on the health permit, business license, property deed, or rental agreement of a tattooing establishment; (2) a person, acting as a principal of a corporation or partnership, who employs practitioners to perform tattooing; or (3) a person having general control and management over the conduct of business at a tattooing establishment, whether or not such person is the legal owner of the premises or the business.

Practitioner means any person, whether the proprietor or another person, administering a tattoo to any customer of a tattooing establishment.

Tattoo means the insertion of pigment in human skin tissue by piercing with a needle.

Tattooing establishment means premises used for the business of marking or coloring the skin with tattoos, and all furnishings, equipment, instruments, dyes and inks, and other facilities maintained therein incidental to such use.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2301), 6-11-96)

A. All tattooing establishments shall be equipped with running hot and cold water, with adequate toilet facilities and with all such appliances, furnishings and materials as may be necessary to enable persons employed in and about such establishments to comply with the requirements of this chapter and all applicable State laws.

B. The floors, furnishings and equipment of tattooing establishments shall be kept clean at all times during business hours. For purposes of this paragraph, a floor shall not be considered clean if it has not been swept and mopped within the preceding 24-hour period.

C. All operating tables in tattooing establishments shall be constructed of metal with white enamel or porcelain finish, or stainless steel.

D. Each tattooing establishment shall have adequate lighting and ventilation. For purposes of this paragraph, lighting or ventilation shall be considered inadequate if it fails to comply with a standard prescribed by the Health Officer or by State law.

E. A tattooing establishment shall not be used as a sleeping room or dormitory.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2302), 6-11-96)

A. Owners of tattooing establishments shall, on request of the Health Officer, submit in writing to the Health Officer the source of all dyes or inks retained for use in tattooing operations, and thereafter shall notify the Health Officer in writing of any dyes or inks obtained for use in tattooing operations from any source other than those previously submitted.

B. No dyes or inks from any sources which have been disapproved by the Health Officer shall be retained for use in tattooing operations.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2303), 6-11-96)

No pigments, dyes, or equipment shall be retained for use in tattooing operations unless cleaned and sterilized as provided in this section and applicable State law. For purposes of the section, equipment means any nonmedical application device used in performing body art, including, but not limited to, needles, needle tubes, towels, razors, razor blades, blade holders, wiping cloths, paper towels and napkins, charcoal, gauze bandages (unless purchased in individual sterile packages), and all similar items.

A. All equipment shall be thoroughly cleaned before being sterilized. Instruments shall be cleaned with soap or detergent by use of a brush. The interior of needle barrels shall be brushed. After cleaning, equipment shall be thoroughly rinsed under running fresh tap water.

B. All equipment shall be sterilized by autoclaving. Each piece of equipment shall be individually wrapped with paper in an approved method for autoclaving. Metal foil may not be used. Tattooing needles shall be threaded through the metal tube that attaches to the tattooing vibrator and shall be placed in a glass (or autoclavable plastic test tube) with a cotton plug for autoclaving. Wiping tissues shall be sterilized in a single pack to be used for one tattoo and then shall be discarded. All packs shall be marked with temperature recording tape or labels.

C. Dyes or inks shall be used from containers with a cap that completely covers the opening and is attached to the neck of the dye container, sterilized in an autoclave after first being filled with the dye. Dye shall be handled utilizing aseptic techniques and the dye containers filled with dye shall be autoclaved at least once a week or more often if necessary to keep the dye in a sterile condition. The dyes may be placed in Teflon squeeze bottles that will withstand autoclaving.

D. Steam sterilization of the above listed equipment shall be accomplished in an autoclave with at least 15 pounds of pressure per square inch (251 degrees Fahrenheit) for at least 30 minutes. Other means of sterilization may be approved by the Health Officer.

E. All sterilized dyes, pigments and equipment shall be stored in a manner which will ensure sterility at the time of use.

F. Owners shall maintain sufficient sterilized equipment available at the beginning of each workday to allow completion of such workday without requiring resterilization of such equipment.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2304), 6-11-96)

All stencils used in tattooing establishments shall be single use and discarded into a waste container at the end of the procedure unless the product can be disinfected for reuse in accordance with the following procedures:

A. Each stencil must be precleaned by being scrubbed with soap and brush to the extent necessary to remove all accumulations of carbon and petroleum jelly in the etched grooves of the stencil.

B. Each stencil, after being precleaned and dried, must be disinfected by being soaked, design-cut side down, in a closed container of 70 percent alcohol for not less than 30 minutes at room temperature.

C. Each stencil, after being disinfected, shall be air dried for not less than 30 minutes by being suspended in a manner exposing both sides to the air, and thereafter shall be stored for next use in a clean envelope.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2305), 6-11-96)

No tattooing operation shall be performed on skin surface areas containing any rash, pimples, boils, or infection or otherwise manifesting any evidence of unhealthy conditions.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2306), 6-11-96)

The owner of a tattooing establishment shall provide written information as required by the Health Officer about blood-borne diseases and their transmission to all tattoo practitioners and maintain records to verify practitioner receipt of this information. All tattoo practitioners shall inform customers of any potential health risks involved whenever the skin is violated as required by the Health Officer.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2307), 6-11-96)

No tattooing operations shall be performed unless the practitioner is free of communicable disease and pustular skin lesions.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2308), 6-11-96)

No practitioner shall smoke while performing a tattooing operation.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2309), 6-11-96)

The practitioner must wear a clean, light-colored, short-sleeved smock while performing the tattooing operation.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2310), 6-11-96)

A. No practitioner shall perform a tattooing operation with unclean hands. For purposes of this paragraph, hands shall be considered unclean unless they have been thoroughly washed with soap from a single service dispenser and warm water by vigorously rubbing all surfaces of lathered hands for at least 10 seconds, followed by thorough rinsing under a stream of water. Hands shall be dried using single service towels from a dispenser or hot air blower. If a liquid soap is used, the dispenser shall be cleaned and filled with fresh soap only when empty.

B. Tattoo practitioners shall wear protective gloves while handling needles or blades, or doing any procedure that may cause bleeding. Gloves shall be discarded between each customer.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2311), 6-11-96)

No tattooing operations involving shaving shall be performed unless the skin is washed with soap and warm water prior to the shaving and a single-use, disposable razor is used to shave the procedure site and then discarded into a sharps container.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2312), 6-11-96)

No tattooing operation shall be performed unless the skin is adequately prepared prior to the operation. For purposes of this paragraph, skin shall be considered properly prepared if it is thoroughly washed with soap following shaving and thereafter scrubbed gently three times with 70 percent isopropyl alcohol, using a separate sterile gauze pad each such time; and no alternate method of skin preparation shall be considered adequate unless approved in writing by the Health Officer.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2313), 6-11-96)

No tattooing operation involving the use of stencils shall be performed unless all of the following requirements have been complied with:

A. Each stencil must be precleaned pursuant to Section 2-10-1305.

B. Each stencil, having been precleaned, must be wiped with sterile gauze soaked in 70 percent alcohol and air dried immediately prior to its use in the tattooing operation.

C. Petroleum jelly used for stencils must be obtained from a collapsible tube which has not previously been used in any tattooing operation and must be applied to the skin with a sterile gauze which has not previously been used.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2314), 6-11-96)

No tattooing operations shall be performed using dyes or inks of a type that has been disapproved for use by the Health Officer pursuant to Section 2-10-1303.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2315), 6-11-96)

No tattooing operation shall be performed unless the following requirements have been complied with:

A. The dye or ink used for the tattoo shall be obtained from presterilized dye or ink bottles prior to the tattooing operations and aseptically transferred from such bottles into sterile paper cups which have not previously been used in any tattooing operation. No refilling of the dye cup is permitted.

B. No dye or ink shall be used in which needles have been dipped that have been used on another person.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2316), 6-11-96)

No tattooing operation shall be performed using equipment that has not been cleaned and sterilized in the manner set forth in Section 2-10-1304.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2317), 6-11-96)

Operators shall discard the following items immediately after use in any tattooing operation:

A. Blades used in shaving.

B. Tubes and gauze used in application of petroleum jelly used for stencils.

C. Paper cups used for dye or ink.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2318), 6-11-96)

The County Health Officer shall periodically make inspections of tattooing establishments located in the City of Irvine to determine whether the owner(s) and practitioner(s) of such establishments are complying with the provisions of this chapter. The County shall, by annual board resolution, adopt health service fees to be paid by the owner(s) or practitioner(s) of the tattoo establishment. Such fees shall be paid directly to the County Health Officer and retained by the County to cover the cost of services related to this chapter.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2319), 6-11-96)

Any violation of a provisions of this chapter shall constitute a criminal misdemeanor, with each day that a violation exists constituting a separate offense.

(Ord. No. 96-09, § 2(II.M-2320), 6-11-96)