Any municipality may regulate the practice of tattooing, saline tattoo removal, and body piercing by licensing practitioners of tattooing, saline tattoo removal, or body piercing; inspecting tattoo, saline tattoo removal, and body piercing establishments; and establishing standards for sanitation that are at least as stringent as those adopted by the Department of Health under § 34-1-17. Terms used in this section mean:

1. (1) "Tattooing," to make marks or designs into the skin by puncturing it and inserting indelible colors. The term includes microblading and similar techniques used to partially or fully simulate natural hair;
2. (2) "Saline tattoo removal," inserting a saline solution in skin to lighten or remove an existing tattoo. The term does not include the use of other acids or of lasers as described in § 36-4-8.2;
3. (3) "Body piercing," to place a permanent or temporary foreign object in a person's body 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; SL 2018, ch 54 , § 1; SL 2019, ch 55 , § 1.