Opinion ID: 175055
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Tattooing Regulations

Text: Because of the potential health concerns implicated by tattooing, the State of California requires [e]very person engaged in the business of tattooing . . . [to] register. . . with the county health department of the county in which that business is conducted, CAL. HEALTH & SAFETY CODE § 119303(a), and requires these county health departments to inspect the registered tattoo parlors, id. § 119304. A person engaged in a tattooing business who fails to register as provided by Section 119303 . . . [is] subject to a civil penalty of five hundred dollars ($500) per violation. Id. § 119306. Moreover, California makes it illegal to tattoo[ ] or offer[ ] to tattoo a person under the age of 18 years. CAL. PENAL CODE § 653. The City of Hermosa Beach lies within the County of Los Angeles (the County). According to a declaration by Claro Cartagena, an inspector of tattoo establishments for the County, there are nearly 300 tattoo establishments in the County and over 850 tattooists. However, Cartagena is the only inspector in the County monitoring the parlors. Many tattoo parlors have never been inspected and are subject to no regulations other than the requirement to register with the County. Thus, it is largely up to the owner of the tattoo establishment to sterilize his equipment and follow sterilization procedures. According to Cartagena, While most tattoo establishments are clean and sanitary, others are not. . . . As in any field, there are those practitioners that are unscrupulous or incompetent and do not follow the proper sterilization processes strictly. This poses a risk for infection. Cartagena has also received complaints about illegal underage tattooing. Although Los Angeles County generally permits tattooing businesses, the City of Hermosa Beach does not. Hermosa Beach Municipal Code § 17.06.070 provides: Except as provided in this title, no building shall be erected, reconstructed or structurally altered, nor shall any building or land be used for any purpose except as hereinafter specifically provided and allowed in the same zone in which such building and land is located. The Code provides zoning for a wide variety of commercial uses, including movie theaters, restaurants, adult businesses, bars, fortune tellers, gun shops, and youth hostels. HERMOSA BEACH MUN. CODE § 17.26.030. No provision of the zoning code, however, permits tattoo parlors, and as a result, these facilities are banned from Hermosa Beach under section 17.060.070. Indeed, on November 20, 2007, the City's Planning Commission adopted a resolution against amending the Code to permit tattoo parlors.