Helena tattoo artist Jim Stafford says he's always made it a point to protect himself and his customers from the possible health risks associated with his trade.

And given the recent surge in interest in permanent body art and body piercings, he thinks it's particularly important for men and women in the profession to work under a uniform set of guidelines to ensure the safety of everyone involved.

That's exactly what tattoo artists and piercing professionals will gather at a public hearing on Oct. 25 in Helena to discuss with state officials who recently released a set of proposed regulations for the industry.

According to Ruth Piccone, body art program manager with the Department of Public Health and Human Services, regulations for tattoo establishments have been on the books for several years.

However, they came under scrutiny in 2005 when a Montana lawmaker proposed legislation that would require owners of tattoo and body piercing businesses to obtain an annual, renewable license and subject the businesses to state inspections and regulations as authorized by DPHHS.

Piccone was charged with the task of collaborating with body art and piercing professionals, health officials and others to develop those rules, and she believes she's come up with a comprehensive, workable document.

"We've taken the time to make sure these rules are reasonable," she said. "The rules need to work for the industry, the regulators, and they need to provide standards for the protection of public health."

According to Piccone, the main problems with the previous regulations for tattooing were that there was no provision for a licensing program, enforcement was difficult, and the regulations lacked training requirements.

Under the proposed rules, businesses will be required to purchase licenses for $135, and renew those annually.

In order to qualify for those licenses, tattoo artists and body piercing professionals must perform a number of tasks including attending annual training on subjects such as the control of blood-borne pathogens, passing regular health inspections and more.

Under the proposed rules, officials with DPHHS must inspect licensed businesses on an annual basis. The department will be able to impose a fee of $150 for a third or subsequent follow-up inspection if a violation is identified during the first inspection and is not remedied by the second visit.

Ultimately, the department can refuse to issue licenses to businesses that don't comply with the requirements, and they can cancel them.

According to Piccone, the fees collected for licensing and for follow-up inspections will flow back into the body-art program to help pay for the increased services prompted by the heightened level of regulation.

"Right now, this is a one-person program," she said, explaining that it's difficult for state programs to garner funding necessary for increases in manpower. Despite that, she says she's confident she can make the program work.

Piccone estimates the annual revenue attached to the licensing and training programs to be about $17,500. She said the expenses associated with the first year of implementing the licensing program - including database development, travel and training - will total about that same amount. Thus, the net impact to the state's general fund is expected to be nothing.

Brand-new to the regulations are sections regarding sterilization techniques and other issues associated with body piercing.

Piccone said businesses that pierce only ear lobes are exempt from some of the sections contained in the regulations, but must comply with equipment and jewelry sterility and hand hygiene elements.

Stafford - who owns and operates Mind's Eye Tattooing - anticipates that the hearing on the regulations will involve some back and forth conversation among tattoo artists and state officials about minor issues like what type of gloves should be worn, or how often they should change them.

However, he doesn't think too many professional artists will oppose the proposed regulations.

"For the most part, it's everything we were doing anyway," Stafford said. "Any reliable or reputable tattoo shop is in support of this."

Stafford's partner in the business, Bridgette Tielking, said she supports the regulations overall, and is especially pleased to see body piercing included in the documents.

However, she said she would be happier if state officials were less willing to provide exemptions to businesses that pierce ear lobes. She explains that infection can still be an issue.

Tielking and Stafford added that while they support the state involvement, they want to make sure that the rules are consistently enforced.

"If we need to pay for (the licenses), we want to make sure we get our money's worth," Tielking said.

According to Piccone, written comments and information collected at Wednesday's hearing will be considered by department officials and appropriate changes will be made to the regulation document over the next couple of months.

She says she hopes the rules will go into effect by Jan. 1, 2007.