Wichita Falls narrows local body-art rules, keeps individual licensing and adds enforcement teeth

Wichita Falls City Council on June 3 approved an updated body-art ordinance that removes a local studio establishment permit requirement, retains individual operator licensing and tightens enforcement measures while modestly raising fees.

The ordinance rewrite, presented by Samantha Blair, environmental health administrator, is intended to align local rules with state law while keeping public-health protections for individual artists that stakeholders requested. "We are one of only four jurisdictions in the entire state of Texas that do anything related to body art," Blair said, noting state and federal rules already govern many aspects of the industry.

The health department began the rewrite after the previous substantial update in 2006 and minor changes in 2017. Staff said they surveyed local artists and studios before drafting and convened stakeholder meetings; Blair said the department hand-delivered QR-coded surveys to about 120 local artists and received 24 responses. The top concerns raised, she said, were that the local individual licensing test was out of date, the program duplicated state requirements, and fees were high.

The final ordinance removes the local requirement for a body-art establishment permit because the state issues studio permits and performs routine inspections; it keeps local operator licensing at the request of stakeholders and preserves a local apprenticeship framework, but reduces some of the apprenticeship restrictions that staff said made it hard to become a tattoo artist locally. Blair said the ordinance keeps individual-focused public-health protections such as bloodborne-pathogen training and hepatitis B vaccination or informed refusal documentation.

Blair also said enforcement language was strengthened after stakeholders asked for clearer consequences for violations; the draft clarifies suspension and revocation procedures and adds enforcement options such as moratoriums for repeat violators. Fee changes are modest: the proposed operator license is $540 initial, $110 renewal, and the initial test fee $110 (includes two test attempts); subsequent exam attempts cost $55. Staff said the full fee schedule will be included in the citywide fee ordinance in September and the body-art fees will not be updated again at that time.

Council opened the public hearing on the ordinance and, after brief council discussion, approved the ordinance and a companion fee-schedule amendment. City staff told the council the Board of Health had voted unanimously to support the draft and that the Health District had briefed stakeholders multiple times during the year-long process.

City staff said the rewrite is intended to reduce redundant local regulation while preserving targeted protections that stakeholders and the health department consider important for public safety. The ordinance takes effect as provided in the approved text; staff said the fee schedule finalization will follow the citywide ordinance schedule.