9-34-17.   Tattooing and body piercing. Any municipality may regulate the practice of tattooing and body piercing by licensing tattoo artists and practitioners of body piercing, inspecting tattoo and body piercing establishments, and establishing standards for sanitation that are at least as stringent as those adopted by the Department of Health pursuant to § 34-1-17. The term "tattoo" means to make permanent marks or designs on the skin by puncturing it and inserting indelible colors. The term "body piercing" means to place a permanent or temporary foreign object in a person's body such as ears, nose, lips, genitals, nipples, or parts thereof for a decorative or other nonmedical purpose by a person not directly under the supervision of a licensed physician as defined by § 36-4-11.

Source: SL 1985, ch 216, §§ 1, 2; SL 1992, ch 239, § 13; SL 1995, ch 189, § 1.

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