OLYMPIA – Efforts to regulate body piercing failed Thursday when a bill that would impose legal standards on the state’s body piercers didn’t reach the House floor before the bill cutoff deadline.
Legislators and body-piercing artists were disappointed that time ran out for House Bill 2090, which would have set restrictions and sanitation requirements for body piercers.
A similar bill also died in the Senate.
The bill was unanimously voted out of committee without opposition and was expected to pass in the full House until it was removed from the calendar.
Rep. Sherry Appleton, D-Poulsbo, the bill’s prime sponsor, said she would continue to push for industry regulations.
Although most shops have voluntary piercing policies, professional body piercers worry that unsafe practices will continue without a law.
Washington is one of 16 states where it is legal for minors to get body piercings without a parent’s permission.
“Because body piercing can affect your health, parents should have to be present for the procedure,” said Leslie Mikler, 21, a body piercer at Painless Steel in Everett. “If there’s a body piercer out there that will overlook that, it makes me wonder what else they’re willing to overlook.”
The state Department of Health established requirements for the sterilization of needles by tattoo artists, but no similar rules to prevent the spread of disease apply to piercers.
Michael Gardner, manager of Painless Steel, said the bill’s failure puts the weight of supervising body piercing on parents of minors. He said he hopes legislators will introduce the bill again next year.
“It’s going to take work from everyone to keep this a current issue,” he said. “Hopefully, awareness will stay up, and we’ll have a better shot next year.”
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