The current structure of the State Board of Cosmetology was established in 1958. The State Board of Barbers and Cosmeticians, established in 1929 and amended in 1931, was reorganized in 1935 as two entities: the State Board of Beauty Culturist Examiners and the State Board of Barber Examiners. The Board consists of seven members, appointed by the Governor to terms of three years. Additional responsibilities include: issuing licenses setting standards for salon services, whether mobile or in a fixed location administering written and practical examinations (or contracting with a national professional organization to do so) and prescribing minimum curriculum standards for schools that train cosmetologists, aestheticians, nail technicians, hairstylists and instructors. To do this, the Board is tasked with creating and enforcing sanitary and safety standards in salons and schools, as well as within the general practice of cosmetology, aesthetics, and nail technology. The broadest goal of the Board is to protect the public from the incompetent practice of cosmetology. The Board of Cosmetology was repealed on January 1, 2022. In 2021, the Board of Barbers and the Cosmetology Board were consolidated and renamed as the Barbering and Cosmetology Board.
Regulatory rules are found at Arizona Administrative Code Title 4, Chapter 10 (A.A.C. Initially created in 1929 as the State Board of Barbers and Cosmeticians, the Board of Cosmetology was established as currently organized by Laws 1958, Chapter 101.