Bodily manipulation in one form or another is drawing attention in the closing days of the legislative session.

The Assembly has given final approval to a measure that would create statewide standards for tattoo artists, reflecting the increasing popularity of bodily needlework, and other forms of body piercing. The measure, Assembly Bill 223, by Assemblywoman Fiona Ma, D-San Francisco, was sent to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on a 65-6 vote.

"Manicurists have more training than tattooists or piercers," Ma said. "They need 400 hours of training before they can cut your nails, yet tattooists and piercers have no training requirements to stick a needle in you."

Legislation that would expand the quasi-public commission that oversees masseuses and masseurs by adding two law enforcement members, meanwhile, is pending in the Senate as law enforcement groups and massage parlors vie for votes.

The former want the bill, AB 1822 by Assemblyman Sandre Swanson, D-Alameda, enacted while the latter say it's insulting to their business, implying that its a nuisance.