SALEM — Legislation outlawing minors from using tanning beds without a doctor’s note passed the state House on Thursday.

House Bill 2896 passed on 38-18 vote and now moves to the Senate.

Those in favor of the bill emphasized the danger of ultraviolet rays seeping into young people’s skin, which could lead to skin cancer.

Rep. Mark Johnson, R-Hood River, said he was pushing the bill not because he wanted to “meddle or intrude in the private sector,” but because he felt the bill was a “common-sense fix” to stop unnecessary medical problems.

“Metastatic melanoma is nothing anyone wants to contract,” Johnson said. Metastatic melanoma is when skin cancer has spread to other places in the body.

Johnson said there would not be a lot of regulation and the tanning salons would not be fined for allowing minors. He also said many other states have passed similar laws.

Many who were against the idea argued not about the merits of the bill, but more about the process and whether businesses had enough time to weigh in on the idea.

Rep. Julie Parrish, R-West Linn, said she was not “fundamentally opposed to the concepts of the bill,” but there was not enough time, she said, for business owners to testify on its merits.

“It should be on us to make sure we are properly inviting people to the table … if we are going to do something to impact their business,” Parrish said.

She also raised concerns about the state overreaching.

“The state of Oregon should not be in the position to tell me how to raise my children,” she said.

Rep. Tim Freeman, R-Roseburg, told a story of a small-business owner in his district who recently opened a tanning salon. Decisions made in Salem, he said, too often negatively impact businesses without lawmakers thinking about if there is a better way.

“Why didn’t we stop and talk to the small business (owners) around the state and say, ‘How is this going to affect you?’” he said.

Rep. Carolyn Tomei, D-Milwaukie, said she believes the legislation was “very important” and suggested going a step further.

“It seems there should be warning signs if this does cause cancer, as it seems to be the case,” Tomei said.

Vote in Salem — House Bill 2896 would prohibit minors from using tanning beds at places of business without a doctor’s note.

Passed 38-18: How your representatives voted:

Conger (R) Y

Huffman (R) N

McLane (R) N

Whisnant (R) N

What’s next: The bill now goes to the Senate.

Check its status online: Visit www.leg.state.or.us and click on the Oregon Legislative Information System image.