Bill Text: NY A06156 | 2021-2022 | General Assembly | Amended
Bill Title: Relates to licensing laser hair removal technicians; establishes laser hair removal rules, regulations and standards.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-05-24 - print number 6156a [A06156 Detail]
Download: New_York-2021-A06156-Amended.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 6156--A 2021-2022 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY March 10, 2021 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. PAULIN -- read once and referred to the Committee on Economic Development -- recommitted to the Committee on Environ- mental Conservation in accordance with Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to licensing of laser hair removal technicians The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 400 of the general business law is amended by 2 adding two new subdivisions 12 and 13 to read as follows: 3 12. The practice of "laser hair removal" means the use of a laser or 4 pulsed light device in a hair removal procedure that does not remove the 5 epidermis. 6 13. "Laser hair removal technician" means a person licensed by the 7 secretary who practices laser hair removal as defined in subdivision 8 twelve of this section. 9 § 2. Subdivisions 1 and 3 of section 401 of the general business law, 10 subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 80 of the laws of 2015 and subdivi- 11 sion 3 as amended by chapter 341 of the laws of 1998, are amended to 12 read as follows: 13 1. No person shall engage in the practice of nail specialty, waxing, 14 natural hair styling, esthetics [or], cosmetology or laser hair removal, 15 as defined in section four hundred of this article, without having 16 received a license to engage in such practice in the manner prescribed 17 in this article. No person shall act as a trainee or perform any service 18 as such unless he or she has obtained a certificate of registration 19 pursuant to this article. 20 3. A person licensed by any other state or country to practice nail 21 specialty, waxing, natural hair styling, esthetics [or], cosmetology or 22 laser hair removal shall be allowed to practice in New York state for EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD08602-02-2A. 6156--A 2 1 three months or less within any calendar year for the purpose of giving 2 to, or receiving from, persons who are licensed under this article 3 training in current styles, techniques or materials, provided however, 4 that no such unlicensed person may provide services to the public for 5 any fee, or other compensation, whether direct or indirect. 6 § 3. Subdivision 1 of section 403 of the general business law, as 7 amended by chapter 339 of the laws of 2017, is amended to read as 8 follows: 9 1. There shall be established within the department an advisory 10 committee which shall consist of [nine] ten members broadly represen- 11 tative of the appearance enhancement industry; including one person 12 engaged in the practice of either nail specialty or waxing; two persons 13 engaged in natural hair styling; one of whom shall be knowledgeable in 14 the practice of styling techniques which place tension on the hair 15 roots, and one of whom shall ensure strict adherence to quality services 16 for all clients of all hair types, including, but not limited to, curl 17 pattern, hair strand thickness, and volume of hair; one person engaged 18 in esthetics; one person engaged in laser hair removal; two persons 19 engaged in cosmetology; two persons engaged in training of persons for 20 such practices and one person licensed as a dermatologist. The secretary 21 shall appoint such persons to serve on the advisory committee, provided, 22 that two shall be appointed by the secretary on the recommendation of 23 the temporary president of the senate and two shall be appointed by the 24 secretary on the recommendation of the speaker of the assembly. Each 25 member of the committee shall be appointed for terms of two years. Any 26 member may be reappointed for additional terms. The secretary shall 27 designate from among the members of the committee a chairperson who 28 shall serve at the pleasure of the secretary. 29 § 4. Section 404 of the general business law, as amended by chapter 80 30 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as follows: 31 § 404. Rules and regulations. The secretary shall promulgate rules and 32 regulations which establish standards for practice and operation by 33 licensees and trainees under this article in order to ensure the health, 34 safety and welfare of the public including licensees and trainees when 35 they are working within such establishments. Such rules and regulations 36 shall include, but not be limited to, the sanitary conditions and proce- 37 dures required to be maintained, a minimum standard of training appro- 38 priate to the duties of nail specialists, trainees, waxers, natural hair 39 stylists, estheticians, [and], cosmetologists, and laser hair removal 40 technicians and the provision of service by nail specialists, trainees, 41 waxers, natural hair stylists, estheticians [or], cosmetologists or 42 laser hair removal technicians at remote locations other than the 43 licensee's home provided that such practitioner holds an appearance 44 enhancement business license to operate at a fixed location or is 45 employed by the holder of an appearance enhancement business license. 46 Regulations setting forth the educational requirements for nail special- 47 ists and trainees shall include education in the area of causes of 48 infection and bacteriology. Regulations related to the practice and 49 operation of licensed laser hair removal technicians shall include the 50 standards set forth in section four hundred four-d of this article. In 51 promulgating such rules and regulations the secretary shall consult with 52 the state education department, the advisory committee established 53 pursuant to this article, any other state agencies and private industry 54 representatives as may be appropriate in determining minimum training 55 requirements.A. 6156--A 3 1 § 5. The general business law is amended by adding a new section 404-d 2 to read as follows: 3 § 404-d. Laser hair removal rules and regulations. 1. The secretary 4 shall, in consultation with the appearance enhancement advisory commit- 5 tee provided for in section four hundred three of this article, promul- 6 gate rules and regulations which establish standards for the practice 7 and operation of licensed laser hair removal technicians in order to 8 ensure the health, safety and welfare of the public including licensees 9 and trainees when they are working in such establishments. Such rules 10 and regulations shall be promulgated in accordance with section four 11 hundred four of this article and shall include, but not be limited to: 12 the identification of a state approved curriculum for licensees; the 13 implementation of a registration fee for laser hair removal establish- 14 ments; a minimum age requirement for laser hair removal technicians; the 15 minimum number of hours of training a trainee must receive from a state 16 approved curriculum; training requirements specifying the minimum number 17 of procedures, specific to each part of the body, to be performed on 18 volunteers; and continued certification by a nationally accredited 19 organization acceptable to the department. 20 2. The department may, at its discretion, waive training and curric- 21 ulum requirements for currently employed licensed estheticians perform- 22 ing laser hair removal provided that the licensed esthetician satisfac- 23 torily completes the competency examination approved by the department. 24 3. The secretary shall require establishments providing laser hair 25 removal to maintain a maintenance of a minimum of one million dollars in 26 liability insurance. 27 § 6. Paragraph a of subdivision 1 of section 406 of the general busi- 28 ness law, as amended by chapter 341 of the laws of 1998, is amended to 29 read as follows: 30 a. Any person intending to practice nail specialty, waxing, natural 31 hair styling, esthetics [or], cosmetology or laser hair removal as 32 defined in this article, or to own or operate an appearance enhancement 33 business, shall first make application to the secretary for a license 34 therefor. 35 § 7. Subdivision 2 of section 406 of the general business law, as 36 amended by chapter 341 of the laws of 1998 and paragraph c as amended by 37 section 3 of part D of chapter 328 of the laws of 2014, is amended to 38 read as follows: 39 2. a. Any person seventeen years of age or older may apply to the 40 secretary for a license to practice nail specialty, waxing, natural hair 41 styling, esthetics or cosmetology. 42 b. Each such application shall also be accompanied by satisfactory 43 evidence of having taken and passed the appropriate examination or exam- 44 inations offered by the secretary pursuant to this article for the 45 license sought and evidence of the successful completion of an approved 46 course of study in nail specialty, waxing, natural hair styling, esthet- 47 ics [or], cosmetology or laser hair removal in a school duly licensed 48 pursuant to the education law. 49 c. Any applicant for a license to practice nail specialty, waxing, 50 natural hair styling, esthetics [or], cosmetology or laser hair removal 51 may submit satisfactory evidence of licensure to practice an equivalent 52 occupation issued by any other state, territory, protectorate or depend- 53 ency of the United States or any other country in lieu of the evidence 54 of schooling and examination required by this subdivision, provided that 55 such license was granted in compliance with standards which were, in the 56 judgment of the secretary, not lower than those of this state andA. 6156--A 4 1 provided that such state, territory, protectorate, dependency, or coun- 2 try extends similar reciprocity to the licensees of this state, or the 3 applicant practiced an equivalent occupation in such state, territory, 4 protectorate, dependency or country for a minimum of five years, or the 5 applicant is a member of the household of a member of the armed forces 6 of the United States, national guard or reserves and was a member of 7 such household before such member relocated to the state. 8 d. Notwithstanding the educational requirements of this section and 9 the testing requirements of this section, an applicant who otherwise has 10 met the licensing requirements of this article for a nail specialist, 11 waxer, natural hair stylist, esthetician [or], cosmetologist or laser 12 hair removal technician who shall provide satisfactory evidence he or 13 she has been actively and continuously engaged in the practice of nail 14 specialty, waxing, natural hair styling, esthetics [or], cosmetology or 15 laser hair removal for at least one year prior to the effective date of 16 this article, may be issued a license for nail specialty, waxing, 17 natural hair styling, esthetics [or], cosmetology or laser hair removal 18 pursuant to this article. Notwithstanding the educational and testing 19 requirements of this section, a person licensed to practice barbering 20 under article twenty-eight of this chapter who otherwise has met the 21 licensing requirements of this article may be issued a license to prac- 22 tice natural hairstyling. Other than applicants licensed under article 23 twenty-eight of this chapter, those persons who apply after a twelve 24 month period from the effective date of this article will be required to 25 provide evidence of training and to take the examination or examinations 26 as required for other licenses pursuant to this article. 27 e. Upon acceptance by the secretary of a proper application for an 28 operator's license to practice nail [speciality] specialty, waxing, 29 natural hair styling, esthetics [or], cosmetology or laser hair removal, 30 the secretary may issue a temporary operator's license which shall 31 expire six months from issuance. Upon good cause shown, the secretary 32 may renew a temporary operator's license for one additional six-month 33 period upon filing the appropriate application and fee. 34 § 8. Subdivision 1 of section 407 of the general business law, as 35 amended by chapter 255 of the laws of 1999, is amended to read as 36 follows: 37 1. The examinations for the license to practice natural hair styling, 38 esthetics, nail specialty [and], cosmetology and laser hair removal 39 shall be practical and written. The examinations for the license to 40 practice waxing shall be limited to a written examination only. The 41 secretary shall determine reasonable standards of performance for each 42 license and shall evaluate the prospective applicants and applicants on 43 the basis of such standards. The objectives of the examinations shall be 44 to insure that prospective applicants and applicants have sufficient 45 basic skills to safeguard the health and safety of the public and to 46 insure that prospective applicants and applicants have attained adequate 47 levels of skill to competently engage in the activities authorized by 48 the license. 49 § 9. Subdivision 1 of section 409 of the general business law, as 50 amended by section 2 of part Y of chapter 60 of the laws of 2011, is 51 amended to read as follows: 52 1. The non-refundable fee for an application for a license to engage 53 in the practice of nail specialty, waxing, natural hair styling, esthet- 54 ics [or], cosmetology or laser hair removal, shall be forty dollars 55 initially and for each renewal thereof the fee shall be forty dollars; 56 the fee for a temporary license and each renewal shall be ten dollars.A. 6156--A 5 1 § 10. Paragraph a of subdivision 2 of section 410 of the general busi- 2 ness law, as amended by chapter 80 of the laws of 2015, is amended to 3 read as follows: 4 a. The secretary may issue an order directing the cessation of any 5 activity related to nail specialty, waxing, natural hair styling, 6 esthetics [or], cosmetology or laser hair removal for which a license is 7 required by this article upon a determination that a person, partner- 8 ship, limited liability company or business corporation, engaging in the 9 business or occupation of, or holding himself, herself or itself out as 10 or acted, temporarily or otherwise, as a nail specialist, natural hair 11 stylist, esthetician [or], cosmetologist or laser hair removal techni- 12 cian within this state without a valid license being in effect. The 13 secretary shall, before making such determination and order, afford such 14 person, partnership, limited liability company or business corporation 15 an opportunity to be heard in person or by counsel in reference thereto 16 in an adjudicatory proceeding held pursuant to section four hundred 17 eleven of this article as applicable. 18 § 11. Subdivision 1 of section 412 of the general business law, as 19 amended by chapter 80 of the laws of 2015, is amended to read as 20 follows: 21 1. The practice of nail specialty, waxing, natural hair styling, 22 esthetics [or], cosmetology or laser hair removal without a license or 23 while under suspension or revocation, or in violation of an order 24 directing the cessation of unlicensed activity issued by the secretary 25 pursuant to section four hundred ten or four hundred eleven of this 26 article, is a violation and is subject to a civil penalty of up to five 27 hundred dollars for the first violation; one thousand dollars for a 28 second such violation; and two thousand five hundred dollars for a third 29 violation and any subsequent violation. 30 § 12. This act shall take effect one year after it shall have become a 31 law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or repeal of any 32 rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act on its 33 effective date are authorized to be made on or before such effective 34 date.