by John P. Ribner

Gov. Schwarzenegger Approves AB 2193

Much to the disappointment of tanning professionals in the state, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger did not say “hasta la vista, baby”to a recent tanning bill.

There’s no way that California’s Gov. Schwarzenegger didn’t know that salon pros in his state were against AB 2193. His office must have received piles of mail from the hundreds of salon owners who wrote his office, urging him to veto the bill, not to mention phone calls, e-mails and faxes pleading their case. Against all this opposition, the “Governator” approved the bill on September 27, 2004, which affects the way California salon professionals do business, and could open the door for further regulation in the state.

Still a Victory

AB 2193, known in the industry as the “anti-tanning bill,” has been creating quite a stir. Authored by Assemblyman Joe Nation, D – San Rafael, the bill bans children under 14 from utilizing a tanning salon and also maintains that those between the ages of 14 and 17 are required to have a note from their parents before they can tan. Salon owners there have good reason to obey this new law: violators could be liable for a fine of up to $2,500.

“Of course we’re disappointed that the bill was approved; but considering where it started and where it is now, this is a big victory,” said John Overstreet, ITA Executive Director. “When Nation first tried to push this bill through, it would have required a doctor’s permission to tan for any tanners between the ages of 14 and 17. We fought that bill by lobbying against it, and helping hundreds of salon pros write letters to their representatives, and it was defeated in the Senate.”

Despite the ITA’s coordinated efforts, Nation proved to be a persistent adversary. He rewrote the bill into its final configuration and got it passed in the Assembly and Senate, and the Governor then signed it into law. “We want to thank all the salon pros who worked hard to notify everyone about this bill and urged their representatives to vote against it,” Overstreet added. Nation, a melanoma survivor, said he authored the bill as a way to reduce skin cancer rates in his state.

More to Come?

As many California salon owners have said, the introduction of this new law won’t really effect their bottom line too much. “Only an extremely small percentage of my clients are under the age of 14,” said Craig Joyner, owner of Great Tan and Sorrento Sun Center in San Francisco. “The passing of this bill is an assault on our business in the eyes of the public. It makes us look like we’re doing something that’s harmful and dangerous, and that’s simply not true. This could hurt us in the future.”

Joyner and other California salon pros don’t believe that AB 2193 will be the end of tanning legislation in their state. “Nation seems so anti-tanning; we don’t believe he’ll stop with this bill,” said Rhonda Van Tassell, owner of the EuroTan salon chain of Bakersfield. “We believe that since he’s had some victory with this one, he’ll try others in the future; only this time, we’ll be ready for him.” Van Tassell, Joyner and several other California salon pros have formed the California Indoor Tanning Trade Organization (CITTO), an organization designed to protect salon owners’ interests in that state.

Organized and Ready to Fight

Although it didn’t quite end up the way he would have liked, John Overstreet says that the ITA learned a lot while fighting AB 2193. “This taught us that salon owners can accomplish a great deal when they band together,” he said. “We anticipate future legislative battles in California, and the organization and dedication of the California salon owners was very impressive and certainly helped a lot. We’re looking for the same dedication from salon owners in other states where similar regulations are sure to appear.”