Temporary food facilities: permitting: farmers' markets and night markets.

Existing law, the California Retail Food Code, establishes uniform health and sanitation standards for temporary food facilities, and defines a temporary food facility to mean a food facility approved by an enforcement officer to operate at a fixed location for the duration of a community event, as specified. Existing law defines a community event as an event conducted for not more than 25 consecutive or nonconsecutive days in a 90-day period and that is of a 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. Existing law prohibits a temporary food facility from being open for business without a valid permit. Existing law requires an enforcement agency to issue a permit when investigation has determined a proposed facility meets the specifications of approved plans or conforms to the requirements of the California Retail Food Code. Existing law provides that a permit is only valid for the person, location, type of food sales, or distribution activity and, unless suspended or revoked for cause, for the time period indicated. A violation of the California Retail Food Code is a misdemeanor. This bill would include in the definition of a community event a farmers' market or night market conducted for not more than 90 consecutive or nonconsecutive days in a 12-month period. The bill would require a permit issued for a temporary food facility that operates at a farmers' market or night market to be valid for all locations of that community event. The bill would designate a permit issued pursuant to these provisions as a farmers' market or night market temporary food facility permit. By creating a new type of permit to be issued, thereby imposing duties on local enforcement agencies, and by changing 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 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.