Orange County NC Website
Browse       Search
1 <br /> ORANGE COUNTY <br /> BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br /> ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT <br /> Meeting Date: June 7, 2016 <br /> Action Agenda <br /> Item No. 7-c <br /> SUBJECT: Amendment to the Orange County Code of Ordinances Regarding Massage <br /> Regulation <br /> DEPARTMENT: County Attorney <br /> Tax Administration <br /> ATTACHMENT(S): INFORMATION CONTACT: <br /> 1) DRAFT-Chapter 8 Article I I John Roberts, County Attorney, 245-2318 <br /> 2) Adopting Resolution Dwane Brinson, Tax Administrator, 245- <br /> 3) NC General Statute Chapter 90, 2726 <br /> Article 36 <br /> PURPOSE: To consider amending the Orange County Code of Ordinances related to the <br /> regulation of massage practitioners and businesses. <br /> BACKGROUND: Orange County, through Chapter 8, Article II of the Code of Ordinances, <br /> regulates the provision of massage services in Orange County and has done so since 1985. At <br /> that time there was no other regulation of this industry. In 1998 the North Carolina legislature <br /> enacted the North Carolina Massage and Bodywork Therapy Practice Act (the "Act"). This act <br /> established statewide licensing requirements applicable to individuals who engage in massage <br /> or bodywork therapy. Many of the provisions of the Act are similar to the requirements of the <br /> ordinance enacted by Orange County in 1985. <br /> The provisions of the ordinance only apply in the unincorporated areas of Orange County. The <br /> County Attorney has confirmed with the attorneys for Hillsborough, Carrboro, and Chapel Hill <br /> that the ordinance was never adopted by the town governing boards for enforcement within the <br /> towns. The County Attorney has further determined that most of those individuals and <br /> businesses that paid the fee in 2015 are not subject to the requirements of the ordinance and <br /> paid the fee under the mistaken belief that it applied to them. Much of this confusion could be <br /> eliminated by removing the fee collection requirements for massage practitioners and keeping <br /> them only for massage businesses. <br /> According to Planning Department staff, there are currently no massage businesses permitted in <br /> the unincorporated areas of the County. For this reason the proposed amendment removes <br /> licensing fees from practitioners, only requiring them to be licensed by North Carolina, and <br /> keeps the licensing provisions for massage businesses. <br /> Additionally, throughout the ordinance references are made to privilege license fees and taxes <br /> as being those fees required to be paid prior to providing massage services in Orange County. <br /> This language was adopted many years ago and was satisfactory at the time of its adoption <br /> even though the fees are regulatory license fees rather than privilege license fees. <br />