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mattbavougian

Lincoln

Member Since 2003

Followers 93 Following 176

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Monday Aug 15, 2005

Aug 15, 2005
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Long post ahead, but I assure you it is important and worth the read.

Earlier this year, House Bill 0029 was passed through both the Illinois House and Senate. This bill does a few things.

1. It lowers the age of consent from 21 to 18 in the state of Illinois.
2. It increases the penalty from a Class C Misdemeanor to a Class A Misdemeanor to tattoo anyone under the age of consent.
3. It makes it a Class A Misdemeanor to let anybody into a shop that tattoos or pierces (other than ears) without a parent or guardian present.

Governor Rod Blagojevich instead of passing the bill as it was written, used an Amendatory Veto on the bill. This type of Veto allows him to pull the bill apart any way he sees fit. He decided to pull out the part where the state gives 18 year olds their constitutional to freedom of expression. He did however leave in the part with the stricter penalties.

This is the House Bill 0029 as it was proposed and can still be made into law with an Override in the November Veto Session:

Amends the Criminal Code of 1961. Provides that it is unlawful for a person, other than a person licensed to practice medicine in all its branches, to tattoo or offer to tattoo a person under 18 (rather than 21) years of age. Provides that the penalty for unlawfully tattooing or piercing the body of a person under 18 years of age is a Class A misdemeanor (rather than a Class C misdemeanor). Provides that it is a Class A misdemeanor for an owner or employee of those businesses to permit a person under 18 years of age to enter or remain on the premises where tattooing or body piercing is being performed unless the person under 18 years of age is accompanied by his or her parent or legal guardian. Provides that the prohibitions do not apply to a person under 18 years of age who tattoos or offers to tattoo or who pierces the body or oral cavity of another person under 18 years of age away from the premises of any business at which tattooing, body piercing, or oral cavity piercing is performed.




We need your help convincing the Senators and Representative of the State of Illinois to Override the Governors Amendatory Veto. Please write, email, fax and call you Senators and Representative. Here is how you find your Senators and Representatives:

1. Go to: http://www.ilga.gov/
2. click on: Legislator Lookup
3. Search by address
4. Type in your address and hit search
5. Click on the name of the Senator or Representative in your area to get their phone number, address and email.
6. Call, email AND write your Senator and Representative as soon as possible.

The following is a letter that you may cut and past into Word and print out. Please make enough to send to you Senators and Representatives. Feel free to send them Senators and Representatives that arent even in your district.

Dear

It has come to my attention that House Bill 0029 passed both the House and Senate over the last several months. It has also come to my attention that on August 10th 2005, Governor Rod Blagojevich struck HB 0029 with an Amendatory Veto. He feels that,

"At that age, most kids are still in high school and don't have the judgment or perspective to decide on something as permanent as tattooing your skin. Teenagers may not realize getting a tattoo is a decision they'll live with, and potentially regret, for the rest of their lives." (August 10th 2005 Chicago Tribune.)

If these are the same people that can vote for him in office and serve in the military for our country, why cant they get a tattoo in a shop that is regulated by the health department? Many people make decision that they regret such as joining the military or going to college, but we dont stop them from making those choices. All of these activities are considered to be rites of passage for many and have been ok for years. It is unfair to send a mixed message to the people of Illinois. At the age of 18 when one is a legal adult it is their choice to make. I feel in part that the Govenor's decision is based on his own fear of the industry rather than on facts. He is quoted as saying,

"As a parent, I don't want my daughters to rush to get tattoos on their 18th birthdays,"
(August 10th 2005 Chicago Tribune.)

I feel that the Governor should make his decisions based on the good of the state and not whether or not it affects him personally. We choose elected officials to help all of us not just themselves. Tattooing in this day and age is a legitimate form of art and business and therefore deserves the same freedom that a mechanic, baker, or politician enjoys.

I am writing to you in hope that you will help to overturn the Governors Amendatory Vetoed House Bill 0029. I would like the bill to be passed as it was introduced:

Amends the Criminal Code of 1961. Provides that it is unlawful for a person, other than a person licensed to practice medicine in all its branches, to tattoo or offer to tattoo a person under 18 (rather than 21) years of age. Provides that the penalty for unlawfully tattooing or piercing the body of a person under 18 years of age is a Class A misdemeanor (rather than a Class C misdemeanor). Provides that it is a Class A misdemeanor for an owner or employee of those businesses to permit a person under 18 years of age to enter or remain on the premises where tattooing or body piercing is being performed unless the person under 18 years of age is accompanied by his or her parent or legal guardian. Provides that the prohibitions do not apply to a person under 18 years of age who tattoos or offers to tattoo or who pierces the body or oral cavity of another person under 18 years of age away from the premises of any business at which tattooing, body piercing, or oral cavity piercing is performed.

The Governor removed the part of the bill that allows the age of consent for a tattoo to be 18 as opposed to 21. In the United States, Illinois is one of two states that does not allow people of 18 years of age to get tattooed. All this does is force 18, 19 and 20 year olds across the border into neighboring states or force them into basement shop with untrained tattooists in an unregulated environment. These young adults crossing the border and going to back room shops is also a financial burden to the tattooing and body piercing community. Please remember that a regulated industry is a safe industry.

I would like your help in overturning the Governors Amendatory Veto of House Bill 0029. I would like to see that House Bill 0029 passes as originally proposed in order to insure that all adults are given their full constitutional rights to freedom of expression and to help insure the safety of both clients of the tattoo industry as well as the tattoo industry itself.

Thank you for your time and I hope to see you working toward passing an unaltered version of House Bill 0029.

Sincerely,


Thank you very much for taking the time to read this post. Thank you even more if you take the time to contact your Senators and Representative.

Matt
VIEW 16 of 16 COMMENTS
ohcrapimdying:
...so someone i work with told me that you called our shop to ask me some things(a while back, but some people suck at giving me messages), i'll be here all day today, tomorrow and saturday if u needed anything.

~brian

[Edited on Sep 29, 2005 2:43PM]
Sep 29, 2005
hotcurry:
Just stopped by to look at your arm in that avatar photo. Mmmmmm... sexy.
Sep 30, 2005

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