A crackdown on tattoo and body piercing businesses has been launched by the Missouri Department of Economic Development. The Department is requiring inspections of new licenses and when established shops change hands. Licenses must be displayed with photo ID. Tattoo parlors will not be allowed to remove tattoos, which the state describes as a surgical procedure. Operators must inform customers of potential medical dangers and customers younger than 18 must have the permission of their parents to get a tattoo.