Applicants for a license under this chapter
shall file a written sworn application, in duplicate, signed by the
applicant with the City Clerk, giving the following information:
A. The name, address (both legal and local address),
age, date and place of birth of the applicant.
B. The names and addresses of all partners, if a partnership,
and the names and addresses of all officers and stockholders, if a
corporation.
C. The location where the applicant proposes to conduct the
tattooing.
One copy of the application shall be referred
to the Chief of Police and the other copy to the State Department
of Health.
A. The Chief of Police shall provide a complete list
of all prior arrests and all convictions, whether felonies or misdemeanors,
of the applicant and of all persons having any interest in the business
of the applicant.
[Amended 12-28-2000 by Ch. No. 2586]
B. The Department of Health shall perform its own independent
inspection and determine whether the applicant has satisfied the Department's
general operational requirements as set forth in the General Laws
of the State of Rhode Island and/or the rules and regulations promulgated
by the Department of Health relative to the registration of tattoo
artists and tattoo parlors. These rules mandate an inspection of the
proposed location to determine if there is a supply of cool running
water, boiling water, alcohol and adequate means of sterilization
of equipment and also to determine that all equipment and materials
used are such as to protect the health and safety of persons tattooed.
C. No license shall be issued to any applicant unless
the application is approved by both the Chief of Police and the Department
of Health.
Each applicant, prior to being granted a license,
shall pay an annual license fee in the amount $175. Each license shall
expire annually from January 1 to December 31.
The license provided for in this chapter shall
be posted conspicuously at the location where the applicant conducts
the tattooing.
[Amended 11-8-2007 by Ch. No. 2879]
The City Council, before granting a tattoo parlor
license under this chapter, shall hold a public hearing, notice of
which shall be given by advertisement published once a week for at
least two weeks prior to the meeting of the City Council where said
license shall be considered. Said advertisement shall be published
in a daily newspaper of local circulation. Said notice shall be given
by the office of the City Clerk, and the cost thereof shall be borne
by the applicant. Said notice shall state that the remonstrants are
entitled to be heard before the granting of such license and shall
name the time and place of such hearing.
Each license issued under this chapter is subject
to the right of City Council, which is expressly reserved, to revoke
the same for any fraud, misrepresentation or false statement contained
in the application for the license, for a conviction of any crime
or misdemeanor involving moral turpitude, or of a violation of any
of the provisions of this chapter, or of failure to comply with any
rule, regulation or order issued by the Department of Health. The
applicant shall, if he or she desires, have the right to a hearing
upon such revocation, which hearing shall be held subject to such
rules and regulations as may be set by City Council, provided that
if the Department of Health orders a revocation for any reason, the
applicant shall not be entitled to a hearing prior to revocation.
Notwithstanding the holding of a license, the
following prohibitions and restrictions shall apply to all tattooing
in the city:
A. No person under the influence of alcoholic beverages
shall be tattooed.
B. No person under 18 years of age shall be tattooed
and the licensee shall require proof of age in all instances.
C. No tattooing establishment shall remain open later
than 11:00 p.m.
Any applicant for a tattoo license shall be
required to comply with the provisions of § 23-1-39 of the
Rhode Island General Laws entitled "Tattooing," as the same may be
amended, and any rules and regulations established by the Department
of Health pursuant thereto.
[Amended 2-6-2014 by Ch.
No. 3039; 10-12-2023 by Ch. No. 3283]
A. The maximum
number of tattoo businesses, commonly referred to as "tattoo parlors,"
in the City shall be 10.
B. Notwithstanding the limit in Subsection
A of this section, tattoo parlors that provide only cosmetic or permanent makeup procedures such as eye lining, lip lining, microblading, or repigmentation, as defined in the RI Department of Health's rules and regulations, shall be exempt from this maximum.