Tattoo shop owners fight new regulations
Courts: A final hearing to decide on the challenged provisions is set for 9 a.m. Tuesday
Tattoo shop owners fight new regulations

By Jay F. Marks
Published: April 29, 2007

Tony Garcia is committed to practicing his craft in Oklahoma.

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The veteran tattoo artist was arrested three times before Oklahoma became the last state to legalize tattooing. Now he is part of a lawsuit challenging two state Health Department regulations tattoo shop owners say are unfair.

Shop owners say the laws are meant to limit their numbers in the state.

"I never give up for what I believe in,” Garcia said.

Garcia said he taught himself to create body art by watching a friend who used homemade equipment. He started working on himself almost 16 years ago.

Now he boasts 42 tattoos. He inked all but a dozen with his own hands.

Putting ink on skin is his passion, albeit one that is threatened by two provisions required for a license to operate his tattoo shop, A Different Image in Midwest City.

Garcia and nearly a dozen other shop owners are fighting those provisions in Oklahoma County District Court.

A judge granted an injunction in March to the provision that requires shop owners to obtain a $100,000 surety bond, but did not rule on the regulation that prevents them from being within 1,000 feet of a school, church or park.

A final hearing on the issues is set for 9 a.m.Tuesday before Oklahoma County Judge Dan Owens.

State's view
Health Department officials say the provisions are necessary to regulate the state's fledgling tattoo industry. They contend the challenged provisions, which originated in the Legislature, were enacted for a reason.

The surety bond was meant to protect customers in case a tattoo shop goes out of business before their tattoos are completed or ensure owners can pay fines levied by the Health Department, according to court papers filed last month by Health Department attorneys.

Agency officials say the bond amount is not unreasonable and the only reason some shop owners have had trouble obtaining one is poor credit ratings.

"For applicants with good credit ratings, the cost of insurance falls somewhere between $500 and $2,500,” according to court papers.

The proximity requirement apparently was intended to "avoid disruption of religious or educational activities,” attorneys wrote.

The same restriction applies to piercing shops that have sought licenses since November.

Similar restrictions apply to micropigmentologists, medical professionals who apply permanent color for cosmetic purposes, according to the Health Department.

They can only practice in doctors' offices.

The restrictions have not stopped 39 tattoo shops from obtaining state licenses, agency officials said. There are 121 licensed tattoo artists in Oklahoma.

Artists' views
Garcia and other tattoo artists who are members of the Association of Body Art argue the provisions are meant to limit the number of shops that open now that the practice is legal.

Their attorneys have challenged the regulations on constitutional grounds, alleging the state is trying to stifle their right to artistic expression

"These two challenged restrictions have made it excessively difficult if not downright impossible to own and operate this particular type of business in Oklahoma,” attorneys wrote in court papers. "No other legal business in Oklahoma is required to either carry a $100,000 penalty bond or be located more than 1,000 feet from a school, church or playground.

"This includes ‘vice' industries such as adult entertainment establishments, which must only be 500 feet from a school, church or playground, or bars, which are only subject to a 300-foot setback.”

Garcia said tattoo artists are being treated like criminals, comparing the distance restriction to those imposed on pedophiles and drug dealers.

Garcia has been denied a license for the shop he opened in April 2006 because it is too close to an elementary school, even though students don't come by the shop.

"It's not like we're taking their lunch money and giving them tattoos,” he said.

Garcia said there are two bars just as close to the school as his shop, but no one seems to be worried about that.

As for the surety bond, Garcia said it is a pointless requirement because it does not benefit the customer.

It does not cover any medical costs that might arise from a botched tattoo like liability insurance does, he said.

Garcia also rejected the notion that a bond would protect customers in case a shop goes out of business before a complex tattoo is completed.

"It's a pay-as-you-go deal,” he said, so that is a moot point.


 

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