Existing law, the California Retail Food Code, establishes uniform health and sanitation standards for retail food facilities, as defined. Existing law exempts from the definition of food facility premises set aside for wine tasting, regardless of whether there is a charge for the wine tasting, if no other beverage, except for bottles of wine and prepackaged nonpotentially hazardous beverages, is offered for sale for onsite consumption and no food, except for crackers, is served. Existing law prohibits certain premises from having a food display area that exceeds 25 square feet, and subjects certain facilities or premises with a food display area of 25 square feet or less to specified provisions of the code. Existing law imposes certain enforcement duties on the State Department of Public Health, but provides that local health agencies are primarily responsible for enforcing these provisions. A person who violates any provision of the code is guilty of a misdemeanor, except as otherwise provided.

This bill would additionally exclude from the definition of food facility a premises set aside for wine tasting that offers pretzels or prepackaged nonpotentially hazardous food for sale or for onsite consumption. The bill would limit the food display area in premises set aside for wine tasting to 25 square feet and subject those premises to specified provisions of the California Retail Food Code. By imposing new duties on local health agencies, and by expanding the definition of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

Existing law, for the purposes of the California Retail Food Code, defines community event to mean an event that is of a civic, political, public, or educational nature.

This bill would limit the definition of a community event to include only an event of a civic, political, public, or educational nature conducted for not more than 25 consecutive or nonconsecutive days in a 90-day period.

Under existing law, a permanent food facility is required to provide clean toilet facilities in good repair for consumers, guests, and invitees, except that a building constructed before January 1, 2004, that has a food facility that provides space for the consumption of food on the premises may either provide clean toilet facilities in good repair or prominently post a sign in a public area stating that toilet facilities are not provided.

This bill would limit the above exemption to food facilities that have been in continuous operation since January 1, 2004.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Existing law, the California Retail Food Code, establishes uniform health and sanitation standards for retail food facilities, as defined. Existing law exempts from the definition of food facility premises set aside for wine tasting, regardless of whether there is a charge for the wine tasting, if no other beverage, except for bottles of wine and prepackaged nonpotentially hazardous beverages, is offered for sale for onsite consumption and no food, except for crackers, is served. Existing law prohibits certain premises from having a food display area that exceeds 25 square feet, and subjects certain facilities or premises with a food display area of 25 square feet or less to specified provisions of the code. Existing law imposes certain enforcement duties on the State Department of Public Health, but provides that local health agencies are primarily responsible for enforcing these provisions. A person who violates any provision of the code is guilty of a misdemeanor, except as otherwise provided.

This bill would additionally exclude from the definition of food facility a premises set aside for wine tasting that offers pretzels or prepackaged nonpotentially hazardous food for sale or for onsite consumption. The bill would limit the food display area in premises set aside for wine tasting to 25 square feet and subject those premises to specified provisions of the California Retail Food Code. By imposing new duties on local health agencies, and by expanding the definition of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

Existing law, for the purposes of the California Retail Food Code, defines community event to mean an event that is of a civic, political, public, or educational nature.

This bill would limit the definition of a community event to include only an event of a civic, political, public, or educational nature conducted for not more than 25 consecutive or nonconsecutive days in a 90-day period.

Under existing law, a permanent food facility is required to provide clean toilet facilities in good repair for consumers, guests, and invitees, except that a building constructed before January 1, 2004, that has a food facility that provides space for the consumption of food on the premises may either provide clean toilet facilities in good repair or prominently post a sign in a public area stating that toilet facilities are not provided.

This bill would limit the above exemption to food facilities that have been in continuous operation since January 1, 2004.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Existing law, the California Retail Food Code, establishes uniform health and sanitation standards for retail food facilities, as defined. Existing law exempts from the definition of food facility premises set aside for wine tasting, regardless of whether there is a charge for the wine tasting, if no other beverage, except for bottles of wine and prepackaged nonpotentially hazardous beverages, is offered for sale for onsite consumption and no food, except for crackers, is served. Existing law prohibits certain premises from having a food display area that exceeds 25 square feet, and subjects certain facilities or premises with a food display area of 25 square feet or less to specified provisions of the code. Existing law imposes certain enforcement duties on the State Department of Public Health, but provides that local health agencies are primarily responsible for enforcing these provisions. A person who violates any provision of the code is guilty of a misdemeanor, except as otherwise provided.

This bill would additionally exclude from the definition of food facility a premises set aside for wine tasting that offers pretzels or prepackaged nonpotentially hazardous food for sale or for onsite consumption. The bill would limit the food display area in premises set aside for wine tasting to 25 square feet and subject those premises to specified provisions of the California Retail Food Code. By imposing new duties on local health agencies, and by expanding the definition of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

Existing law, for the purposes of the California Retail Food Code, defines community event to mean an event that is of a civic, political, public, or educational nature.

This bill would limit the definition of a community event to include only an event of a civic, political, public, or educational nature conducted for not more than 25 consecutive or nonconsecutive days in a 90-day period.

Under existing law, a permanent food facility is required to provide clean toilet facilities in good repair for consumers, guests, and invitees, except that a building constructed before January 1, 2004, that has a food facility that provides space for the consumption of food on the premises may either provide clean toilet facilities in good repair or prominently post a sign in a public area stating that toilet facilities are not provided.

This bill would limit the above exemption to food facilities that have been in continuous operation since January 1, 2004.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Existing law, the California Retail Food Code, establishes uniform health and sanitation standards for retail food facilities, as defined. Existing law exempts from the definition of food facility premises set aside for wine tasting, regardless of whether there is a charge for the wine tasting, if no other beverage, except for bottles of wine and prepackaged nonpotentially hazardous beverages, is offered for sale for onsite consumption and no food, except for crackers, is served. Existing law prohibits certain premises from having a food display area that exceeds 25 square feet, and subjects certain facilities or premises with a food display area of 25 square feet or less to specified provisions of the code. Existing law imposes certain enforcement duties on the State Department of Public Health, but provides that local health agencies are primarily responsible for enforcing these provisions. A person who violates any provision of the code is guilty of a misdemeanor, except as otherwise provided.

This bill would additionally exclude from the definition of food facility a premises set aside for wine tasting that offers pretzels or prepackaged nonpotentially hazardous food for onsite consumption. The bill would limit the food display area in premises set aside for wine tasting to 25 square feet and subject those premises to specified provisions of the California Retail Food Code. By imposing new duties on local health agencies, and by expanding the definition of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

Existing law, for the purposes of the California Retail Food Code, defines community event to mean an event that is of civic, political, public, or educational nature.

This bill would limit the definition of a community event to include only an event of a civic, political, public, or educational nature conducted for not more than 25 consecutive or nonconsecutive days in a 90-day period.

Under existing law, a permanent food facility is required to provide clean toilet facilities in good repair for consumers, guests, and invitees, except that a building constructed before January 1, 2004, that has a food facility that provides space for the consumption of food on the premises may either provide clean toilet facilities in good repair or prominently post a sign in a public area stating that toilet facilities are not provided.

This bill would limit the above exemption to food facilities that have been in continuous operation since January 1, 2004.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.

Existing law, the California Retail Food Code, establishes uniform health and sanitation standards for retail food facilities, as defined. Existing law exempts from the definition of food facility premises set aside for wine tasting, regardless of whether there is a charge for the wine tasting, if no other beverage, except for bottles of wine and prepackaged nonpotentially hazardous beverages, is offered for sale for onsite consumption and no food, except for crackers, is served. Existing law prohibits certain premises from having a food display area that exceeds 25 square feet, and subjects certain facilities or premises with a food display area of 25 square feet or less to specified provisions of the code. Existing law imposes certain enforcement duties on the State Department of Public Health, but provides that local health agencies are primarily responsible for enforcing these provisions. A person who violates any provision of the code is guilty of a misdemeanor, except as otherwise provided.

This bill would additionally exclude from the definition of food facility a premises set aside for wine tasting that offers pretzels or prepackaged nonpotentially hazardous food for onsite consumption. The bill would limit the food display area in premises set aside for wine tasting to 25 square feet and subject those premises to specified provisions of the California Retail Food Code. By imposing new duties on local health agencies, and by expanding the definition of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

Existing law, the California Retail Food Code, establishes uniform health and sanitation standards for retail food facilities, as defined. Existing law exempts from the definition of food facility premises set aside for wine tasting, regardless of whether there is a charge for the wine tasting, if no other beverage, except for bottles of wine and prepackaged nonpotentially hazardous beverages, is offered for sale for onsite consumption and no food, except for crackers, is served. Existing law prohibits certain premises from having a food display area that exceeds 25 square feet, and subjects certain facilities or premises with a food display area of 25 square feet or less to specified provisions of the code. Existing law provides that local health agencies are primarily responsible for enforcing these provisions. A person who violates any provision of the code is guilty of a misdemeanor, except as otherwise provided.

This bill would additionally exclude from the definition of food facility a premises set aside for wine tasting that offers pretzels or prepackaged nonpotentially hazardous food for onsite consumption. The bill would limit the food display area in premises set aside for wine tasting to 25 square feet and subject those premises to specified provisions of the California Retail Food Code. By expanding the definition of a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS

CSA1 Bill Id:AB 143

Author:(Wood)

As Amended Ver:June 15, 2015

Majority vote

Original Committee Reference: HEALTH

SUMMARY: Expands the types of pre-packaged foods a wine tasting facility can offer while still being exempt from requirements governing food facilities, providing parity between exemptions that exist for beer tasting facilities and wine tasting facilities. Contains other minor, noncontroversial changes to code governing food safety.

The Senate amendments specify that the food offered in the winery or brewery tasting room may be for general sale or for onsite consumption.

FISCAL EFFECT: According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs.

COMMENTS: According to the author, there are more than 3,500 wineries that operate in California. Most of these businesses are trying to find creative ways to attract new customers and retain loyal ones. Currently, wineries can only serve crackers to customers that come to taste wine. A winery must obtain a local food permit to serve chips, pretzels, or anything else. Additionally, wineries must obtain a food permit in order to advertise and sell prepackaged foods. This bill allows wineries to serve vacuum sealed prepackaged food in the tasting room and permits wineries to have a food display of prepackaged foods that does not exceed 25 square feet without needing a local food permit. This bill would particularly benefit small wineries throughout California. Many of these small wineries also sell olive oil, preserves, honey or other prepackaged non-hazardous items. In this highly competitive market place, this bill would help wineries differentiate themselves by eliminating unnecessary bureaucratic permits. The relief provided by this bill would allow the selling of vacuumed sealed food products to loyal consumers that want to clear their palettes between tastings and take home a small gift, such as preserves.

In addition to the exemption for wineries, this bill contains two provisions that were included at the request of the California Retail Food Safety Coalition (CRFSC), which represents a wide cross-section of organizations involved in retail food safety, ranging from regulatory agencies to restaurants and grocers. One of these provisions limits community events to a maximum of 25 days in a 90-day period, for purposes of temporary food facility requirements. In support of this provision, the CRFSC states that when the current California Retail Food Code was drafted, the time a temporary food facility could operate was removed in anticipation that local zoning codes would limit how long, and the frequency by which, a community event could operate within a city. However, some zoning departments have incurred significant budget and staff deficits and are not regulating community events as they once have, resulting in a lack of uniformity from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. In addition, the structural and operations requirements for a temporary food facility are consistent with the transient nature of such an event. By adding back the time into the definition, this provision establishes boundaries that would preserve and define a community event.

The second provision added at the request of the CRFSC clarifies that for purposes of provisions of law requiring toilet facilities to be available, that a food facility had to be in continuous operation since January 1, 2004, in order to be exempt from certain toilet availability requirements. Currently, this provision is worded so that any building constructed before January 1, 2004, is exempt from this requirement, which could mean that a brand-new restaurant could avoid being required to have toilet facilities if they are located in a building built before January 1, 2004.

This bill is sponsored by the Wine Institute, which states in support that under existing law, wineries do not needs a local food facility permit as long as they only provide crackers and bottled beverages like water to patrons. The Wine Institute notes that legislation enacted last year expands this permit exemption to breweries as long as they only serve pretzels in addition to crackers and they have for sale prepackaged foods, like olive oil and preserves, in a display area no greater than 25 square feet. Consistent with last year's law, this bill would provide the same expanded exemption to wineries. Family Winemakers of California (FWC) states in support that this bill merely equalizes the treatment between beer tasting rooms and wine tasting rooms. FWC states that sales of prepackaged food also allow a person to pair food with wine.

There is no opposition to this bill.

Analysis Prepared by: Dharia McGrew / HEALTH / (916) 319-2097 FN: 0001122

CONSENT  

Bill No: AB 143

Author: Wood (D)

Amended: 6/15/15 in Senate

Vote: 21

SENATE HEALTH COMMITTEE: 9-0, 6/10/15

AYES: Hernandez, Nguyen, Hall, Mitchell, Monning, Nielsen, Pan, Roth, Wolk

SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: Senate Rule 28.8

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 77-0, 5/7/15 - See last page for vote

SUBJECT: Food facilities

SOURCE: The Wine Institute

DIGEST: This bill extends an exemption from food facility regulation, that currently exists for breweries, to enable wineries to offer prepackaged non-potentially hazardous food.

ANALYSIS:

Existing law:

1. Establishes the California Retail Food Code (CalCode), which establishes health and sanitation standards for retail food facilities, as defined. Makes the Department of Public Health responsible for the adoption of regulations to implement and administer CalCode, and vests local enforcement agencies with primary responsibility for enforcement of CalCode.

2. Defines a food facility as an operation that stores, prepares, packages, serves, vends, or otherwise provides food for human consumption, on or off the premises, regardless of whether there is a charge, at the retail level. Food facilities include, but are not limited to, permanent and non-permanent facilities, public and private school cafeterias, restricted food service facilities, licensed health care facilities, commissaries, mobile food facilities, mobile support units, temporary food facilities, vending machines, certified farmers’ markets, as specified, and farm stands, as specified.

3. Exempts from the definition of a food facility and from the provisions of CalCode premises set aside for wine tasting, that comply with glassware cleaning provisions, regardless of whether there is a charge for the wine tasting, if no other beverage, except for bottles of wine and prepackaged non-potentially hazardous beverages, is offered for sale for onsite consumption, and no food, except for crackers, is served.

4. Exempts from the definition of a food facility, and from the provisions of CalCode, premises set aside by a beer manufacturer, as defined, for the purposes of beer tasting, regardless of whether there is a charge for the beer tasting, if no other beverage, except for beer and prepackaged non-potentially hazardous beverages, is offered for sale for onsite consumption, and no food, except for crackers or pretzels, is served.

5. Defines “temporary food facility” as an approved food facility that operates at a fixed location for the duration of an approved community event or at a swap meet and only as part of the community event or swap meet. Defines “community event,” for this purpose, as an event that is of civic, political, public, or educational nature, including state and county fairs, city festivals, circuses, and other public gathering events approved by the local enforcement agency.

6. Requires premises set aside by a beer manufacturer for the purposes of beer tasting, where prepackaged non--potentially hazardous is offered for onsite consumption, to be subject to food safety requirements related to food storage and ensuring food is free from adulteration and spoilage, and that gives local enforcement officers the ability to enforce these requirements.

This bill:

1. Expands an exemption from the definition of “food facility,” for purposes of regulation by local health officers, that currently exists for premises set aside for wine tasting as long as no food other than crackers is served, by also allowing pretzels or prepackaged food that is not potentially hazardous to be offered for sale or onsite consumption (this expanded exemption already exists for beer tasting premises).

2. Adds wine tasting premises, as defined, to a provision of law which limits the size of the food display to no more than 25 square feet at beer tasting premises where crackers, pretzels, or prepackaged food that is not potentially hazardous food is offered for sale or onsite consumption, and which requires the premises to comply with food safety requirements related to food storage and ensuring food is free from adulteration and spoilage, and that gives local enforcement officers the ability to enforce these requirements.

3. Revises the definition of “community event,” for purposes of provisions of law regulating temporary food facilities, by limiting community events to those conducted for no more than 25 consecutive or non-consecutive days in a 90-day period.

4. Revises a provision of law that requires buildings with a food facility that were built before January 1, 2004 to either provide toilet facilities or prominently post a sign stating that toilet facilities are not provided, by limiting this provision to food facilities that have been in continuous operation since January 1, 2004.

Comments

1. Author’s statement. According to the author, there are more than 3,500 wineries that operate in California. Most of these businesses are trying to find creative ways to attract new customers and retain loyal ones. Currently, wineries can only serve crackers to customers that come to taste wine. A winery must obtain a local food permit to serve chips, pretzels, or anything else. Additionally, wineries must obtain a food permit in order to advertise and sell prepackaged foods. This bill allows wineries to serve vacuum sealed prepackaged food in the tasting room and permits wineries to have a food display of prepackaged foods that does not exceed twenty-five square feet without needing a local food permit. This bill would particularly benefit small wineries throughout California. Many of these small wineries also sell olive oil, preserves, honey or other prepackaged non-hazardous items. In this highly competitive market place, AB 143 would help wineries differentiate themselves by eliminating unnecessary bureaucratic permits. The relief provided by this bill would allow the selling of vacuumed sealed food products to loyal consumers that want to clear their palettes between tastings and take home a small gift, such as preserves.

2. Clean-up provisions. In addition to the exemption for wineries, this bill contains two provisions that were included at the request of the California Retail Food Safety Coalition (CRFSC), which represents a wide cross-section of organizations involved in retail food safety, ranging from regulatory agencies to restaurants and grocers. One of these provisions limits community events to a maximum of 25 days in a 90 day period, for purposes of temporary food facility requirements. In support of this provision, the CRFSC states that when the current California Retail Food Code was drafted, the time a temporary food facility could operate was removed in anticipation that local zoning codes would limit how long, and the frequency by which, a community event could operate within a city. However, some zoning departments have incurred significant budget and staff deficits and are not regulating community events as they once have, resulting in a lack of uniformity from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. In addition, the structural and operations requirements for a temporary food facility are consistent with the transient nature of such an event. By adding back the time into the definition, this provision establishes boundaries that would preserve and define a community event.
   
   The second provision added at the request of the CRFSC clarifies that for purposes of provisions of law requiring toilet facilities to be available, that a food facility had to be in continuous operation since January 1, 2004, in order to be exempt from certain toilet availability requirements. Currently, this provision is worded so that any building constructed before January 1, 2004, is exempt from this requirement, which could mean that a brand-new restaurant could avoid being required to have toilet facilities if they are located in a building built before January 1, 2004.

Prior Legislation

SB 1235 (Knight, Chapter 927, Statutes of 2014), expanded an exemption from the definition of a “food facility” to allow beer tasting premises to serve pretzels and prepackaged non-potentially hazardous food, in addition to crackers, and required beer tasting premises to comply with specified provisions of law relating to food safety, and limited the food display area to less than 25 square feet.

AB 1014 (Fletcher, Chapter 159, Statutes of 2011), exempted premises set aside by a beer manufacturer, as defined, for beer tasting, from the definition of a food facility, thereby, exempting beer tasting premises from the provisions of the CalCode.

SB 241 (Runner, Chapter 571, Statutes of 2009), among other things, clarified the exemption for premises set aside for wine tasting to apply regardless of whether there is a charge for the wine tasting.

SB 144 (Runner, Chapter 23, Statutes of 2006), established the CalCode in order to create uniformity between California's retail food safety laws and those of other states, as well as to enhance food safety laws based on the best available science.

AB 1778 (Areias, Chapter 1065, Statutes of 1985), excluded premises set aside for wine tasting if no other beverage, except for bottles of wine and prepackaged non-potentially hazardous beverages, is offered for sale for onsite consumption and no food, except for crackers, is served, from the definition of a food facility.

FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes Local: Yes

SUPPORT: (Verified 6/29/15)

The Wine Institute (source)

California Retail Food Safety Coalition

Family Winemakers of California

OPPOSITION: (Verified 6/29/15)

None received

ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: This bill is sponsored by the Wine Institute, which states in support that under existing law, wineries do not needs a local food facility permit as long as they only provide crackers and bottled beverages like water to patrons. The Wine Institute notes that legislation enacted last year expands this permit exemption to breweries as long as they only serve pretzels in addition to crackers and they have for sale prepackaged foods, like olive oil and preserves, in a display area no greater than 25 square feet. Consistent with last year’s law, this bill would provide the same expanded exemption to wineries. Family Winemakers of California (FWC) states in support that this bill merely equalizes the treatment between beer tasting rooms and wine tasting rooms. FWC states that sales of prepackaged food also allow a person to pair food with wine.

ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 77-0, 5/7/15

AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Chang, Chau, Chávez, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd, Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina Garcia, Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray, Grove, Hadley, Harper, Holden, Irwin, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low, Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin, Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen, Patterson, Perea, Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber, Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins

NO VOTE RECORDED: Campos, Roger Hernández, Steinorth

Prepared by: Vince Marchand / HEALTH /

7/1/15 12:56:00

**** END ****

SENATE COMMITTEE ON HEALTH

Senator Ed Hernandez, O.D., Chair

BILL NO: AB 143

SUBJECT: Food facilities.

SUMMARY:

Extends an exemption from food facility regulation, that currently exists for breweries, to enable wineries to offer prepackaged non-potentially hazardous food.

Existing law:

1. Establishes the California Retail Food Code (CalCode), which establishes health and sanitation standards for retail food facilities, as defined. Makes the Department of Public Health responsible for the adoption of regulations to implement and administer CalCode, and vests local enforcement agencies with primary responsibility for enforcement of CalCode.

2. Defines a food facility as an operation that stores, prepares, packages, serves, vends, or otherwise provides food for human consumption, on or off the premises, regardless of whether there is a charge, at the retail level. Food facilities include, but are not limited to, permanent and non-permanent facilities, public and private school cafeterias, restricted food service facilities, licensed health care facilities, commissaries, mobile food facilities, mobile support units, temporary food facilities, vending machines, certified farmers’ markets, as specified, and farm stands, as specified.

3. Exempts from the definition of a food facility and from the provisions of CalCode premises set aside for wine tasting, that comply with glassware cleaning provisions, regardless of whether there is a charge for the wine tasting, if no other beverage, except for bottles of wine and prepackaged non-potentially hazardous beverages, is offered for sale for onsite consumption, and no food, except for crackers, is served.

4. Exempts from the definition of a food facility, and from the provisions of CalCode, premises set aside by a beer manufacturer, as defined, for the purposes of beer tasting, regardless of whether there is a charge for the beer tasting, if no other beverage, except for beer and prepackaged non-potentially hazardous beverages, is offered for sale for onsite consumption, and no food, except for crackers or pretzels, is served.

5. Defines “temporary food facility” as an approved food facility that operates at a fixed location for the duration of an approved community event or at a swap meet and only as part of the community event or swap meet. Defines “community event,” for this purpose, as an event that is of civic, political, public, or educational nature, including state and county fairs, city festivals, circuses, and other public gathering events approved by the local enforcement agency.

6. Requires premises set aside by a beer manufacturer for the purposes of beer tasting, where prepackaged non--potentially hazardous is offered for onsite consumption, to be subject to food safety requirements related to food storage and ensuring food is free from adulteration and spoilage, and that gives local enforcement officers the ability to enforce these requirements.

This bill:

1. Expands an exemption from the definition of “food facility,” for purposes of regulation by local health officers, that currently exists for premises set aside for wine tasting as long as no food other than crackers is served, by also allowing pretzels or prepackaged food that is not potentially hazardous to be offered for onsite consumption (this expanded exemption already exists for beer tasting premises).

2. Adds wine tasting premises, as defined, to a provision of law which limits the size of the food display to no more than 25 square feet at beer tasting premises where crackers, pretzels, or prepackaged food that is not potentially hazardous food is offered for onsite consumption, and which requires the premises to comply with food safety requirements related to food storage and ensuring food is free from adulteration and spoilage, and that gives local enforcement officers the ability to enforce these requirements.

3. Revises the definition of “community event,” for purposes of provisions of law regulating temporary food facilities, by limiting community events to those conducted for no more than 25 consecutive or non-consecutive days in a 90-day period.

4. Revises a provision of law that requires buildings with a food facility that were built before January 1, 2004 to either provide toilet facilities or prominently post a sign stating that toilet facilities are not provided, by limiting this provision to food facilities that have been in continuous operation since January 1, 2004.

FISCAL EFFECT:

According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee, this bill would have negligible state fiscal effect.

PRIOR VOTES:

COMMENTS:

1. Author’s statement. According to the author, there are more than 3,500 wineries that operate in California. Most of these businesses are trying to find creative ways to attract new customers and retain loyal ones. Currently, wineries can only serve crackers to customers that come to taste wine. A winery must obtain a local food permit to serve chips, pretzels, or anything else. Additionally, wineries must obtain a food permit in order to advertise and sell prepackaged foods. This bill allows wineries to serve vacuum sealed prepackaged food in the tasting room and permits wineries to have a food display of prepackaged foods that does not exceed twenty-five square feet without needing a local food permit. This bill would particularly benefit small wineries throughout California. Many of these small wineries also sell olive oil, preserves, honey or other prepackaged non-hazardous items. In this highly competitive market place, AB 143 would help wineries differentiate themselves by eliminating unnecessary bureaucratic permits. The relief provided by this bill would allow the selling of vacuumed sealed food products to loyal consumers that want to clear their palettes between tastings and take home a small gift, such as preserves.

2. Clean-up provisions. In addition to the exemption for wineries, this bill contains two provisions that were included at the request of the California Retail Food Safety Coalition (CRFSC), which represents a wide cross-section of organizations involved in retail food safety, ranging from regulatory agencies to restaurants and grocers. One of these provisions limits community events to a maximum of 25 days in a 90 day period, for purposes of temporary food facility requirements. In support of this provision, the CRFSC states that when the current California Retail Food Code was drafted, the time a temporary food facility could operate was removed in anticipation that local zoning codes would limit how long, and the frequency by which, a community event could operate within a city. However, some zoning departments have incurred significant budget and staff deficits and are not regulating community events as they once have, resulting in a lack of uniformity from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. In addition, the structural and operations requirements for a temporary food facility are consistent with the transient nature of such an event. By adding back the time into the definition, this provision establishes boundaries that would preserve and define a community event.
   
   The second provision added at the request of the CRFSC clarifies that for purposes of provisions of law requiring toilet facilities to be available, that a food facility had to be in continuous operation since January 1, 2004, in order to be exempt from certain toilet availability requirements. Currently, this provision is worded so that any building constructed before January 1, 2004, is exempt from this requirement, which could mean that a brand-new restaurant could avoid being required to have toilet facilities if they are located in a building built before January 1, 2004.

3. Prior legislation. SB 1235 (Knight, Chapter 927, Statutes of 2014), expanded an exemption from the definition of a “food facility” to allow beer tasting premises to serve pretzels and prepackaged non-potentially hazardous food, in addition to crackers, and required beer tasting premises to comply with specified provisions of law relating to food safety, and limited the food display area to less than 25 square feet.
   
   AB 1014 (Fletcher, Chapter 159, Statutes of 2011), exempts premises set aside by a beer manufacturer, as defined, for beer tasting, from the definition of a food facility, thereby, exempting beer tasting premises from the provisions of the CalCode.

SB 241 (Runner, Chapter 571, Statutes of 2009), among other things, clarifies the exemption for premises set aside for wine tasting to apply regardless of whether there is a charge for the wine tasting.

SB 144 (Runner, Chapter 23, Statutes of 2006), established the CalCode in order to create uniformity between California's retail food safety laws and those of other states, as well as to enhance food safety laws based on the best available science.

AB 1778 (Areias, Chapter 1065, Statutes of 1985), excludes premises set aside for wine tasting if no other beverage, except for bottles of wine and prepackaged non-potentially hazardous beverages, is offered for sale for onsite consumption and no food, except for crackers, is served, from the definition of a food facility.

4. Support. This bill is sponsored by the Wine Institute, which states in support that under existing law, wineries do not needs a local food facility permit as long as they only provide crackers and bottled beverages like water to patrons. The Wine Institute notes that legislation enacted last year expands this permit exemption to breweries as long as they only serve pretzels in addition to crackers and they have for sale prepackaged foods, like olive oil and preserves, in a display area no greater than 25 square feet. Consistent with last year’s law, this bill would provide the same expanded exemption to wineries. Family Winemakers of California (FWC) states in support that this bill merely equalizes the treatment between beer tasting rooms and wine tasting rooms. FWC states that sales of prepackaged food also allow a person to pair food with wine.

5. Clarifying amendments needed. According to the author, part of the intent of this bill is to permit wineries to sell prepackaged foods, as long as the display area is no more than 25 square feet. However, the way the relevant provisions are drafted, it only permits prepackaged food that is not potentially hazardous to be “offered for onsite consumption.” To accomplish the author’s objective, the author may wish to consider amending the bill to make more explicit that the winery (or brewery) is permitted to “sell” prepackaged food, and to eliminate the requirement that the food be consumed onsite at the premises.

SUPPORT AND OPPOSITION:

Support: The Wine Institute (sponsor)
California Retail Food Safety Coalition
Family Winemakers of California

Oppose: None received

-- END --

Date of Hearing: April 29, 2015

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS

Jimmy Gomez, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 143

Author:(Wood) – As Amended Ver:April 16, 2015

Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program: Yes Reimbursable: No

SUMMARY:

This bill:

1. Expands the types of pre-packaged foods a wine tasting facility can offer while still being exempt from requirements governing food facilities, providing parity between exemptions that exist for beer tasting facilities and wine tasting facilities.

2. Contains other minor, noncontroversial changes to code governing food safety.

FISCAL EFFECT:

Negligible state fiscal effect.

COMMENTS:

1. Purpose. According to the author, this bill would benefit thousands of small independent wineries in California by eliminating the expense of obtaining a local food permit for wineries that serve nonhazardous food items and/or have small retail food displays. In addition, it makes minor changes in the California Retail Food Code (CRFC) to promote statewide consistency.

2. Background. Food facilities are governed by the California Retail Food Code (CRFC), which establishes statewide standards. CRFC rules are enforced by local environmental health agencies, which charge fees to food facilities for local regulatory oversight. Current law exempts certain facility types from the definition of "food facility" and corresponding oversight, including, for example, private homes, cottage food operations, institutional facilities that are regulated by other entities, and wine and beer tasting premises that meet certain criteria.

3. Related Legislation.

1. AB 226 (Atkins), also being heard today in this committee, creates fishermen's markets as a type of nonpermanent food facility.
   
   
   

2. AB 234 (Gordon), pending on the Assembly Floor, allows a “community food producer” to sell whole uncut fruits or vegetables, or unrefrigerated shell eggs, to any licensed food facility if the community food producer follows certain requirements.
   
   
   

3. AB 724 (Dodd), pending in Assembly Health, revises the definition of community event to include a district fair, and requires a temporary food facility that meets certain criteria to be granted a permit to operate at a community event.
   
   
   

4. AB 1076 (Mayes), pending in Assembly Health, exempts from the definition of a food facility, a snack bar operated by a charitable nonprofit organization and authorizes snack bars to undertake limited food preparation, as defined.
   
   
   

5. SB 746 (Wolk), pending on the Senate Floor, exempts, beginning January 1, 2018, grain milled and sold at the Bale Grist Mill State Historic Park from registration and other requirements applicable to retail food facilities if certain conditions are met.

4. Prior Legislation.

1. SB 1235 (Knight), Chapter 927, Statutes of 2014 established exemptions similar to those in this bill for beer tasting facilities.

2. AB 1014 (Fletcher), Chapter 159, Statutes of 2011, exempts premises set aside by a beer manufacturer, as defined, for beer tasting, from the definition of a food facility, thereby, exempting beer tasting premises from the provisions of the CRFC.

Analysis Prepared by: Lisa Murawski / APPR. / (916) 319-2081

Date of Hearing: April 14, 2015

ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON HEALTH

Bonta, Chair

ABPCA Bill Id:AB 143

Author:(Wood) – As Amended Ver:April 6, 2015

SUBJECT:

Food facilities.

SUMMARY: Expands an exemption in the California Retail Food Code (CRFC) to allow wine tasting rooms to serve pretzels or prepackaged non-potentially hazardous foods. Specifically, this bill:

1. Expands the exemption from the definition of a food facility a premises set aside by a wine manufacturer for the purposes of wine tasting that currently serves crackers only, to also offer pretzels or prepackaged food that is not potentially hazardous for onsite consumption, provided the food display is no more the 25 square feet.
   
   
   

2. Makes wine tasting facilities that serve prepackaged, non-potentially hazardous food subject to general provisions of the CRFC relating to proper storage of food, inspection, and enforcement provisions, penalties, and owner/operator responsibilities.
   
   
   

3. Specifies that a community event may run for a period of time not to exceed 25 consecutive or nonconsecutive days in any 90-day period.
   
   
   

4. Makes technical changes and clarifies that a food facility built prior to, and in continuous operation since, January 1, 2004, is exempt from the requirement for on-site bathroom facilities.

EXISTING LAW:

1. Establishes the CRFC, which establishes health and sanitation standards for retail food facilities, as defined. Makes the Department of Public Health responsible for the adoption of regulations to implement and administer CRFC, and vests local enforcement agencies with primary responsibility for enforcement of CRFC.
   

2. Defines a food facility as an operation that stores, prepares, packages, serves, vends, or otherwise provides food for human consumption, on or off the premises, regardless of whether there is a charge, at the retail level. Food facilities include, but are not limited to, permanent and nonpermanent facilities, public and private school cafeterias, restricted food service facilities, licensed health care facilities, commissaries, mobile food facilities, mobile support units, temporary food facilities, vending machines, certified farmers’ markets, and farm stands.
   
   

3. Exempts from the definition of a food facility, and therefore from the provisions of CRFC, premises set aside for wine tasting if no other beverage, except for bottles of wine and prepackaged non-potentially hazardous beverages, is offered for sale for onsite consumption, and no food, except for crackers, is served.
   
   

4. Exempts from the definition of a food facility, and from the provisions of CRFC, premises set aside by a beer manufacturer, as defined, for the purposes of beer tasting, if no other beverage, except for beer and prepackaged non-potentially hazardous beverages, is offered for sale for onsite consumption, and no food, except for crackers or pretzels or other prepackaged nonpotentially hazardous food, is served.

5. Establishes a tiered statewide standard to permit non-grocery retailers with limited food display areas to sell prepackaged, non-potentially hazardous food products. Requires compliance with general provisions of the CRFC and definitions. Requires varying compliance - depending on the square footage of the food display area of the facility - with CRFC provisions relating to proper storage of food, inspection and enforcement provisions, impoundment of food, penalties, and owner/operator responsibilities. Specifies that a beer tasting room that maintains less than 25 square feet of prepackaged nonpotentially hazardous foods is subject to these general provisions and definitions.
   
   

FISCAL EFFECT:

This bill has not been analyzed by a fiscal committee.

COMMENTS:

1. PURPOSE OF THIS BILL. According to the author, this bill would benefit thousands of small independent wineries in California by eliminating the expense of obtaining a local food permit for wineries that serve pretzels, or other prepackaged non-hazardous food items, in addition to crackers. This bill would also eliminate the need for wineries to obtain a local food permit if they maintain no more than 25 square foot retail display of prepackaged foods. The author states that this would benefit small business by allowing them additional ways to differentiate themselves in a highly competitive market.
   
   According to the California Retail Food Safety Coalition (CRFSC), two technical changes are needed within the CRFC. First, the CRFSC states that a time frame for limiting community events is necessary. The time frame was previously removed to allow more local control, but due to the economic downturn some zoning departments have incurred significant budget and staff deficits and are not regulating community events as they once have, resulting in lack of uniformity from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. In addition, the structural and operational requirements for a temporary food facility are consistent with the transient nature of such an event. By adding back the time into the definition, we would preserve and define a “community event” by establishing boundaries for its safe operation.
   
   Second, CRFSC states that a clarifying amendment is needed for food facilities that are exempt from bathroom requirements. Currently, restaurants that have on-site consumption are required to provide restrooms for patrons; however, there is an exemption for restaurants that were built before 2004. The language, as currently written, expands the exemption to “any building” regardless if it was a food facility or not, therefore, on-site restrooms would not be required. The CRFSC states that this was not the intent of the exemption; the exemption was put into code to exempt only food facilities that were in operation prior to the restroom requirement. Restaurants that were built and approved before 2004 did not have to remodel to meet the current requirements. Therefore, a technical amendment is needed to clarify that only food facilities built prior to, and in continuous operation since, January 1 2004, are exempt from the on-site bathroom requirement.

2. BACKGROUND. The CRFC is patterned after the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Food Code, which is a model for local, state, and federal jurisdictions that are responsible for ensuring food safety. According to the FDA, the Food Code represents FDA’s best advice, updated every four years, for a uniform system of provisions that address the safety and protection of food offered at retail and in food service. Forty-eight states and territories have adopted food codes patterned after the FDA Food Code, representing over 80% of the U.S. population.
   
   This bill is substantially similar to AB 1235 (Knight), Chapter 927, Statutes of 2014, that provided similar treatment for beer tasting rooms. This bill makes additional, nonsubstantive changes that combine individual exemptions for beer and wine tasting rooms into single, unified code sections, thereby removing separate treatment in the codes for these entities with respect to snack food served during tastings.
   
   

3. CRFSC. The CRFSC is an informal coalition with over 70 members representing a wide cross-section of organizations involved in retail food safety ranging from federal, state and local regulatory agencies to food car operators, fair vendors, national chain grocers, and restaurants. Since 1993, the CRFSC has been focusing on retail safety in the state by periodically sponsoring bills to update CRFC. All suggested changes to the CRFC are reached through a consensus process.
   
   

4. SUPPORT.

The Wine Institute, sponsor of this bill, writes that this bill benefits many small wineries throughout California that use food displays to provide additional sales to their customers, by removing the need for a food facility license for these displays. This bill also clarifies and allows the same types of snack foods to be provided to customers during their beer or wine tasting.

5. RELATED LEGISLATION.
   
   
   

1. AB 226 (Atkins) creates fishermen's markets as a type of nonpermanent food facility and sets up guideline and requirements for the operation of fishermen's markets. AB 226 is pending in Assembly Health Committee.
   
   
   

2. AB 234 (Gordon) allows a “community food producer” to sell whole uncut fruits or vegetables, or unrefrigerated shell eggs, to any licensed food facility if the community food producer follows certain requirements. AB 234 passed out of this Committee on April 7, 2015 on a vote of 16-1 and is now pending in Assembly Appropriations Committee.
   
   
   

3. AB 724 (Dodd) revises the definition of community event to include a district fair, and requires a temporary food facility to be granted a permit to operate at a community event if the enforcement agency makes a determination that the temporary food facility meets specified requirements and requires the permit to be issued for the entire duration of the community event. AB 724 is pending in Assembly Health Committee.
   
   
   

4. AB 1076 (Mayes) exempts from the definition of a food facility, a snack bar operated by a charitable nonprofit organization and authorizes snack bars to undertake limited food preparation, as defined. AB 1076 is pending in this Committee.
   
   
   

5. SB 746 (Wolk) exempts, beginning January 1, 2018, grain milled and sold at the Bale Grist Mill State Historic Park from registration and other requirements applicable to retail food facilities if certain conditions are met. SB 746 is pending in Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee.

6. PREVIOUS LEGISLATION.

1. AB 1235 expands an exemption from provisions of the CRFC premises set aside for a beer tasting facility to serve prepackaged, non-potentially hazardous food for onsite consumption. Requires a beer tasting facility that sells prepackaged, non-potentially hazardous foods to comply with general provisions of the CRFC and limits the food display area to less than 25 square feet.
   
   
   

2. AB 1014 (Fletcher), Chapter 159, Statutes of 2011, exempts premises set aside by a beer manufacturer, as defined, for beer tasting, from the definition of a food facility, thereby, exempting beer tasting premises from the provisions of the CRFC.
   
   
   

3. SB 241 (Runner), Chapter 571, Statutes of 2009, among other things, clarifies the exemption for premises set aside for wine tasting to apply regardless of whether there is a charge for the wine tasting.
   
   
   

4. SB 144 (Runner), Chapter 23, Statutes of 2006, establishes the CRFC in order to create uniformity between California’s retail food safety laws and those of other states, as well as to enhance food safety laws based on the best available science.
   
   
   

5. AB 1778 (Areias), Chapter 1065, Statutes of 1985, excludes premises set aside for wine tasting if no other beverage, except for bottles of wine and prepackaged nonpotentially hazardous beverages, is offered for sale for onsite consumption and no food, except for crackers, is served, from the definition of a food facility.
   
   
   

1. TECHNICAL AMENDMENT: The incorrect code section is referenced for beer tasting rooms; an amendment is needed to cite the correct code section:

“… a premises set aside for beer or wine tasting, as the term is defined in Section 25000.2 Section 23357.3 or Section 23356.1 …”.

REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:

Support

Wine Institute (sponsor)
California Retail Food Safety Coalition
Family Winemakers of California

Opposition

None on file.

Analysis Prepared by:

Dharia McGrew/HEALTH/(916) 319-2097