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Read. Follow. Verify.North Carolina requires annual bloodborne pathogen training for tattoo permit applicants starting October 2025
Last action · April 7, 2025: Ref To Com On Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House (House action)Sponsors: von Haefen and 11 others
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What This Bill Would Do
North Carolina requires tattooists to complete annual bloodborne pathogen training that complies with Occupational Safety and Health Association standards to obtain or renew a tattooing permit, starting October 1, 2025.
Tattoo artists across the state must complete specific yearly safety training and prove it to local health departments to keep their business operating legally.
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Tattooists
Tattoo artists must complete annual bloodborne pathogen training and provide proof to local health departments to obtain or renew their operating permits.
Department of Health and Human Services
The Department and local health departments must verify applicant training completion, inspect premises, and issue or deny permits.
Key Facts
- Applicants for initial or renewal tattooing permits must complete annual training complying with the Occupational Safety and Health Association's bloodborne pathogens standard (29 C.F.R. § 1910.1030).
- The Department, acting through local health departments, must verify training completion and inspect premises before issuing a permit.
- Tattooing permits are valid for one year and must be renewed annually.
- Licensed physicians, physician assistants, and nurse practitioners under physician supervision performing tattooing within their normal practice are exempt.
Show all 7 facts
- Permits do not authorize the removal of tattoos from the human body.
- Compliance with this part does not bar prosecution for violations of G.S. 14-400.
- The act becomes effective October 1, 2025, and applies to permit applications received on or after that date.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who must complete the annual bloodborne pathogen training?
Are medical professionals exempt from these tattooing permit requirements?
When does this new training requirement take effect?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
3 actions- Apr 7, 2025HouseRef To Com On Rules, Calendar, and Operations of the House
- Apr 7, 2025HousePassed 1st Reading
- Apr 2, 2025HouseIntroducedFiled
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Show 7 more sponsors
Connected Entities
Sources
www.ncleg.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance50How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy10Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz20Current news / social attention level
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