[HISTORY: Adopted by the Commissioners of the City of Rehoboth Beach 7-9-1982
by Ord. No. 782-1; amended in its entirety 6-9-1995
by Ord. No. 695-1. Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Businesses generally — See Ch. 120.
Unless the particular provision or the context otherwise requires, the
definitions and provisions contained in this section shall govern the construction,
meaning and application of words and phrases as used in this chapter:
The Board of Health appointed pursuant to Section 20, Chapter 197,
Volume 54, Laws of Delaware, as amended.
Piercing of the skin for the express intention of the insertion of
any object, including but not limited to jewelry; provided, however, that
the piercing of the lobes of the ears shall be specifically excluded from
the purview of this chapter.
The written approval from the Board of Health or its designated representative
that the tattooing establishment has been inspected and meets all the requirements
of this chapter relating to physical facilities, equipment and layout for
the operation of a tattoo and body piercing establishment.
Any person over 18 years of age, other than an operator who renders
any service in connection with the operation of a tattoo and body piercing
establishments and receives compensation from the operator of the business
or its patrons.
Any individual, firm, company, corporation or association that owns
or operates an establishment where tattooing and body piercing is performed,
and any individual who performs or practices the art of tattooing and body
piercing on the person of another.
Includes any person authorized to practice osteopathic medicine pursuant
to the laws of the State of Delaware.
Any person over 16 years of age who receives a tattoo under such
circumstances that it is reasonably expected that he or she will pay money
or give any other consideration therefor.
Includes any person authorized to practice medicine pursuant to the
laws of the State of Delaware.
Refers to any method of placing designs, letters, scrolls, figures,
symbols or any other marks upon or under the skin with ink or any other substance
resulting in the coloration of the skin by the aid of needles or any other
instruments designed to puncture the skin.
[Amended 6-18-2001 by Ord. No. 601-1]
A.
No person shall engage in or carry on the business of
operating a tattoo or body piercing establishment unless he has a valid diploma
and is authorized to practice medicine or osteopathic medicine pursuant to
the laws of the State of Delaware and has a valid permit issued by the city
pursuant to the provisions of this chapter for each and every separate office
or place of business conducted by such person within the city.
B.
No person shall tattoo the body of any other person or
practice the art of tattooing upon the person of another or engage in body
piercing upon the person of another unless it is done by a physician or osteopath
or by a person in the presence and under the direction of a physician or osteopath.
Any person desiring a permit to operate a tattoo or body piercing establishment
shall file a written application with the City Manager on a form to be furnished
by the City Manager. The applicant shall accompany the application with a
tender of the correct permit fee, as hereinafter provided, and shall, in addition,
furnish the following:
A.
The type of ownership of the business, i.e., whether
individual, partnership, corporation or otherwise.
B.
The name, style and designation under which the business
or practice is to be conducted.
C.
The business address and all telephone numbers of the
business to be conducted.
D.
The following personal information concerning the applicant,
if an individual, and concerning each stockholder holding more than 10% of
the stock of the corporation, each officer and each director, if the applicant
is a corporation, and concerning the partners, including limited partners,
if the applicant is a partnership, and concerning the manager or other person
principally in charge of the operation of the business:
(1)
Name, complete residence address and residence telephone
number.
(2)
The two previous addresses immediately prior to the present
address of the applicant.
(3)
Written proof of age.
(4)
Height, weight and color of hair and eyes.
(5)
Diploma, certificate or other written proof of graduation
from a recognized medical school by the person who shall be directly responsible
for the operation and management of the tattoo or body piercing establishments.
(6)
Certificate or other written proof that the physician
or osteopath is authorized to practice medicine or osteopathic medicine, as
the case may be, within the State of Delaware.
E.
Authorization for the city, its agents and employees
to seek information and conduct an investigation into the truth of the statements
set forth in the application on the qualifications of the applicant for the
permit.
F.
The names and addresses of three adult residents of the
county who will serve as character references. These references must be persons
other than relatives and business associates.
G.
Written declaration by the applicant, under penalty of
perjury, that the information contained in the application is true and correct,
with said declaration being duly dated and signed in the city.
Any person desiring a permit to do tattoos or engage in body piercing
shall file a written application with the City Manager on a form to be furnished
by the City Manager. The applicant shall tender with the application the correct
permit fee, as hereinafter provided, and shall, in addition, furnish the following:
A.
The business address and all telephone numbers where
the tattoo or body piercing establishment is to be operated.
B.
The following personal information concerning the applicant:
(1)
Name, complete residence address and residence telephone
numbers.
(2)
The two previous addresses immediately prior to the present
address of the applicant.
(3)
Written proof of age.
(4)
Height, weight and color of hair and eyes.
(5)
Name, complete residence address and residence and all
office telephone numbers of the physician or osteopath who is to be in charge
of the tattoo or body piercing establishment.
(6)
A statement, in writing, from a licensed physician, other
than the physician or osteopath who is to be in charge of the tattoo or body
piercing establishment, that he has examined the applicant within 30 days
of the date of the application and believes the applicant to be free of all
communicable diseases.
C.
Authorization for the city, its agents and employees
to seek information and conduct an investigation into the truth of the statements
set forth in the application and the qualifications of the applicant for the
permit.
D.
Written declaration by the applicant, under penalty of
perjury, that the information contained in the application is true and correct,
with said application being duly dated and signed in the city.
A.
Upon receiving the application for a tattoo or body piercing
establishment or for a permit to do tattooing or body piercing, the City Manager
shall review the application.
B.
In the case of applications for a tattoo or body piercing
establishment permit, the City Manager shall conduct or cause to be conducted
an investigation of the premises where the tattoo or body piercing establishment
is to be conducted, by the Board of Health, for the purpose of assuring that
the premises comply with all the sanitation requirements set forth in this
chapter and with the regulations of public health, safety and welfare.
C.
Before any permit shall be issued under this chapter,
the City Manager shall first sign his approval of the application.
The City Manager shall issue a tattoo or body piercing establishment
permit within 45 days of receipt of the application, unless he finds that:
A.
The correct permit fee has not been tendered to the city
and, in the case of a check or bank draft, honored with payment upon presentation.
B.
The operation, as proposed by the applicant, if permitted,
would not comply with all applicable laws, including but not limited to the
city's building, zoning and health regulations.
C.
The applicant has knowingly made any false, misleading
or fraudulent statement of fact in the application for the permit or in any
document required by the city in connection therewith.
D.
The applicant has operated a tattoo or body piercing
establishment and has had a license denied, revoked or suspended for any of
the above causes by the city or any other state or local agency within two
years prior to the date of the application.
E.
The applicant, if an individual, or any of the officers
and directors, if the applicant is a corporation, or any of the partners,
including limited partners, if the applicant is a partnership, and the manager
or other person principally in charge of the operation of the business is
not over the age of 21 years.
F.
The manager or other person principally in charge of
the operation of the tattoo or body piercing establishment is not a physician
or osteopath licensed to practice medicine or osteopathic medicine, as the
case may be, pursuant to the laws of the State of Delaware.
The tattoo or body piercing establishment permittee shall display his
permit and that of each and every person employed in the establishment in
an open and conspicuous place on the premises of the tattoo or body piercing
establishment.
The permit fee for a tattoo or body piercing establishment shall be
$250 per year or any part thereof. The permit fee for each person employed
on the premises who will do tattooing or body piercing under the direction
of a physician or osteopath shall be $70 or any part thereof. If a premises
has both body piercing and tattooing, there shall be a separate fee for body
piercing as well as tattooing.
Any permit issued pursuant to this chapter shall be subject to suspension
or revocation by the City Manager for violation of any provision of this chapter
or for any grounds that would warrant the denial or issuance of such permit
in the first place. The City Manager, upon such revocation or suspension,
shall state his reasons in writing, specifying the particular grounds for
such revocation or suspension.
No tattoo or body piercing establishment permit shall be transferable,
separable or divisible, and such authority as a permit confers shall be conferred
only on the permittee named therein.
Each tattoo or body piercing establishment shall comply with the following
requirements:
A.
The room in which tattooing or body piercing is done
shall have an area of not less than 100 square feet. The walls, floors and
ceilings shall have an impervious, smooth and washable surface.
B.
A water closet shall be located in the establishment
and shall be accessible at all times that the tattoo or body piercing establishment
is open for business. The lavatory shall be supplied with hot and cold running
water, soap and sanitary towels.
C.
All tables and other equipment shall be constructed of
easily cleanable material, shall be painted or finished in a light color with
a smooth, washable finish and shall be separated from waiting customers or
observers by a panel at least six feet or 1.83 meters high or by a door.
D.
The entire premises and equipment shall be maintained
in a clean, sanitary condition and in good repair.
E.
The physician or osteopath who shall apply the tattoo
or perform the body piercing or the person working under the direction of
a physician or osteopath who shall apply the tattoo or perform the body piercing
shall wash his hands thoroughly with soap and water before starting to tattoo
or body pierce. The hands shall be dried with individual, single-use towels.
F.
No tattooing or body piercing shall be done on any skin
surface that has a rash, pimples, boils or infections or manifests any evidence
of any other unhealthy condition.
G.
No skin area shall be penetrated, abraded or treated
with chemicals for the purpose of removing, camouflaging or altering any blemish,
birthmark, scar or tattoo.
H.
Safety razors with a new, single-surface blade for each
customer or patron or a straight-edged razor may be used and shall be thoroughly
cleaned and sterilized before use on each customer or patron.
I.
The area to be tattooed or body pierced shall first be
thoroughly washed for a period of two minutes with warm water to which has
been added an antiseptic liquid soap. A sterile, single-use sponge shall be
used to scrub the area. After shaving and before tattooing has begun, a solution
of seventy-percent alcohol shall be applied to the area with a single-use
sponge used and applied with a sterile instrument.
J.
Only petroleum jelly in collapsible metal or plastic
tubes, or its equivalent, as approved by the Board of Health, shall be used
on the area to be tattooed, and it shall be applied with sterile gauze.
K.
The use of styptic pencils, alum blocks or other solid
styptics to check the flow of blood is prohibited.
L.
Inquiry shall be made, and anyone giving a history of
recent jaundice or hepatitis shall not be tattooed or body pierced.
M.
Single-service or individual containers of dye or ink
shall be used for each patron, and the container therefor shall be discarded
immediately after completing work on a patron, and any dye in which the needles
were dipped shall not be used on another person. Excess dye or ink shall be
removed from the skin with an individual sterile sponge or a disposable paper
tissue which shall be used only on one person and then immediately discarded.
After completing work on any person, the tattooed area shall be washed with
sterile gauze and saturated with an antiseptic soap solution approved by the
Board of Health or a seventy-percent alcohol solution. The tattooed area shall
be allowed to dry, and petroleum jelly from a collapsible or plastic tube
shall be applied, using sterile gauze. A sterile gauze dressing shall then
be fastened to the tattooed area with adhesive.
N.
All clean and ready-to-use needles and instruments shall
be kept in a closed glass or metal case or storage cabinet when not in use.
Such cabinets shall be maintained in a sanitary manner at all times.
O.
A steam sterilizer (autoclave) shall be provided for
sterilizing all needles and similar instruments before use on any patron.
Alternate sterilizing procedures may only be used when specifically approved
by the Board of Health in writing. Sterilization of equipment shall be accomplished
by exposure to live steam for at least 30 minutes at a minimum pressure of
15 pounds per square inch at a temperature of 240° F. or 116° C.
P.
The needles and instruments required to be sterilized
shall be so used, handled and temporarily placed during tattooing or body
piercing that they will not be contaminated.
Q.
Gloves shall be worn with any procedure that involves
contact with a patron's blood.
R.
No body piercing or tattooing of the tongue shall be
permitted.
S.
Immediately after piercing or tattooing, the patron shall
be advised on the care of the site so body pierced or tattooed and to consult
a physician at the first sign of infection.
T.
Forceps, accessory equipment and jewelry must be disinfected
with a chemical disinfectant registered by the environmental protection agency
as being tuberculocidal when used at recommended dilutions.
U.
Needles shall not be bent or broken prior to disposal.
Operator shall take precautions to prevent injuries from contaminated needles.
V.
Needles shall be disposed of directly into a solid puncture-resistant
container.
W.
Needles as well as gloves, gauze and other materials
saturated with blood shall be discarded in a plastic bag and placed into a
cardboard box prior to off-site disposal. A written agreement for disposal
of such waste shall be with an authorized service for disposal of medical
waste.
Each tattoo or body piercing establishment shall maintain permanent
records for each patron. Before the tattooing or body piercing operation begins,
the patron shall be required personally to enter on a record form provided
for such establishments, the date, his or her name, his or her address, his
or her age and his or her signature. The records shall also provide that the
patron does not have any jaundice or hepatitis and if so, the date of such
jaundice or hepatitis. Such records shall be maintained in the tattoo or body
piercing establishment and shall be available for examination by the Board
of Health or its authorized representative. Such records shall be maintained
by the tattoo or body piercing establishment for a period of not less than
two years.
No patron having any skin infection or any disease of the skin or any
communicable disease whatsoever shall be tattooed. All infections resulting
from the practice of tattooing or body piercing which become known to the
tattooing or body piercing establishment shall be promptly reported to the
Board of Health by the operator of the tattoo or body piercing establishment,
and the infected patron shall be referred immediately to a physician.
All pigments, dyes, colors and any other material used in tattooing
shall be sterile and free from bacteria, virus particles and noxious agents
and substances, and the pigments, dyes and colors used from stock solutions
for each patron shall be placed in a single-service receptacle, and such receptacle
and remaining solution shall be discarded after use on each patron.
All bandages and surgical dressings used in connection with the tattooing
or body piercing of a person shall be sterile.
Each tattoo or body piercing establishment shall have on the premises
when open for business a doctor or osteopath.
No tattoo or body piercing establishment shall permit any person under
the age of 16 years to come or remain on the premises of any tattoo or body
piercing establishments, unless such person is on the premises on lawful business.
No person shall sell, give, dispense, provide or keep or cause to be
sold, given, dispensed, provided or kept any alcoholic beverage on the premises
of any tattoo or body piercing establishments.
Any person, firm or corporation violating any of the provisions of this
chapter shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof,
shall be fined not less than $50 nor more than $200 for each offense, and
for the purposes of this chapter, a separate offense shall be deemed to be
committed on each day during or on which a violation occurs or continues.
