Operation of massage parlors and massage establishments.
Gulfport Code of Ordinances § 5-199
in effectSec. 5-199. - Operation of massage parlors and massage establishments.
(a) Any massage parlor or massage establishment in operation pursuant to a license issued as required by this article shall comply with the following provisions and regulations in the conduct and operation of its business.
(b) No massage parlor or massage establishment shall be open for the business of providing massages during any day prior to 8:30 o'clock a.m. and subsequent to 12:00 midnight Central Standard Time, or such other daylight or standard time as may be applicable to the geographical territory of the city.
(c) The door to each room in which massages are administered shall be removed or not closed or a clear glass panel not less than ten (10) inches by twelve (12) inches or one (1) observation device having an angle of view of at least sixty (60) degrees into the room in which massages are administered if the door is closed. The view through the clear glass shall not be obscured by any means.
(d) It shall be the duty of every person conducting or operating a massage parlor or a massage establishment to keep the same at all times in a clean and sanitary condition. All instruments and mechanical, therapeutic, or bathing devices, or parts thereof, that come into contact with the human body shall be sterilized by a modern and approved method of sterilization before initial use, and any such instruments and devices, or parts thereof, after having been used upon one (1) patron, shall be sterilized before using the same upon another. No towels and linens shall be furnished for use of another until thoroughly laundered. All massagists shall wash their hands thoroughly before administering a massage to each patron accommodated. No person suffering from an infectious or communicable disease shall work or be employed in a massage establishment. No person shall be accommodated as a patron within a massage establishment when, to the knowledge of the owner, person in control, or any employee, such person is suffering from an infectious or communicable disease.
(e) No person shall receive a massage unless such patron is covered by nontransparent material such as a towel or shorts covering the hips, genitals, and anal areas. No massagist shall touch in any manner or by any device the genitals or anal area of any patron, or the breast if the patron is a female, nor shall a patron touch in any manner or by any device the genitals or anal area of a massagist, and if the massagist is a female, the prohibited area shall include the breast.
(f) No massage shall be administered to any person who is a minor as defined by state law.
(g) In the administration of any massage the provisions of subsections (e) and (f) shall not be applicable to any person for whom a massage is ordered upon the written certificate of a licensed physician, osteopath or chiropractor, provided that such certificate shall be signed by such physician, osteopath, or chiropractor, be dated, shall specifically state the number of treatments, not to exceed ten (10), and the specific type of treatment recommended therein, and further, that the date and hours of each treatment given pursuant to such certificate, the name of the massagist giving such treatment, and the name of the patron receiving such treatment shall be maintained in a record to be preserved by the owner or operator of the massage parlor or massage establishment for a period of two (2) years and shall be available for inspection by the city or its designated representative, including the chief of police or any duly commissioned law official or deputy.
(h) No massage parlor or massage establishment nor any massagist shall either arrange for or conduct the administration of a massage under the license applicable to such party except upon the premises of the massage establishment and at the location specified in the application for such license.
(i) Every massage parlor or massage establishment shall post in a conspicuous place available for observation by all patrons a printed list of all services performed or available as provided by the massage parlor or massage establishment and the price therefor in bold printing with lettering not less than one (1) inch high for each character and such notice shall specify whether or not the payment of any gratuity to any massagist or other employee of the massage parlor or massage establishment is permitted.
(Code 1963, § 16½-4)
Source: City of Gulfport, Mississippi, Code of Ordinances (Municode Library, library.municode.com)URL: https://library.municode.com/ms/gulfport/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=PTIICOOR_CH5LIBURE_ARTVIIIMAPAES_S5-199OPMAPAMAESFetched: 11/1/2026