81R11441 CS-D
By: Gattis H.B. No. 3282
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to cottage food production operations.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 437.001, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by adding Subdivisions (2-a), (3-a), (5), and (6) to read as
follows:
(2-a) "Cottage food production operation" means an
individual, operating out of the individual's home, who produces a
food product for sale.
(3-a) "Executive commissioner" means the executive
commissioner of the Health and Human Services Commission.
(5) "Home" means a primary residence that is occupied
by the individual who operates a cottage food production operation
and that contains a kitchen and appliances designed for common
residential usage.
(6) "Potentially hazardous food" has the meaning
assigned by rules adopted by the executive commissioner under this
chapter.
SECTION 2. Chapter 437, Health and Safety Code, is amended
by adding Sections 437.022, 437.023, and 437.024 to read as
follows:
Sec. 437.022. REGISTRATION OF COTTAGE FOOD PRODUCTION
OPERATIONS. (a) A cottage food production operation that is
registered under this section is not a food service establishment
for purposes of this chapter. A cottage food production operation
is not eligible for registration under this section if the
operation produces potentially hazardous food.
(b) The executive commissioner shall adopt rules for
regulation of a cottage food production operation that does not
produce potentially hazardous food to protect the public health and
ensure a safe food supply. Rules adopted under this section must
provide for:
(1) the registration of cottage food production
operations under this section; and
(2) the labeling of products from a cottage food
production operation as "Home Produced."
(c) Rules adopted under Subsection (b) may require that a
registered cottage food production operation comply with
provisions of this chapter that the executive commissioner
determines are appropriate and consistent with this section.
(d) The executive commissioner by rule may require an
inspection of a cottage food production operation:
(1) before issuing a registration for the cottage food
production operation; or
(2) if the department has reason to believe that the
cottage food production operation is operating:
(A) in violation of this section or a rule
adopted under this section; or
(B) in an unsanitary manner.
(e) The executive commissioner may not require as a
condition of registration under this section:
(1) the use of commercial grade surfaces;
(2) the use of commercial grade appliances;
(3) a separate kitchen for conducting the cottage food
production operation; or
(4) the submission of plans and specifications before
the construction or remodel of a cottage food production operation.
(f) Before beginning operations as a cottage food
production operation that does not produce potentially hazardous
food, the operator of a cottage food production operation must:
(1) register with the department as a cottage food
production operation; and
(2) successfully complete a food manager's
certification course accredited by the department.
(g) The department shall issue a registration to an
applicant for a cottage food production operation if the applicant:
(1) passes any inspection required under Subsection
(d)(1);
(2) pays registration fees required by the department;
and
(3) meets the other requirements of this section.
(h) A local health department:
(1) may not regulate the production of food at a
cottage food production operation conducting business in
compliance with this section that does not offer products to the
public for consumption on the premises of the operation; and
(2) may investigate a cottage food production
operation as a part of an investigation into the source of a
food-borne illness outbreak.
Sec. 437.023. PERMIT REQUIRED FOR COTTAGE FOOD PRODUCTION
OPERATION. (a) Subject to this section, a cottage food production
operation that sells potentially hazardous food must hold a permit
issued by a county, a public health district, or the department as
described by this chapter.
(b) The executive commissioner shall by rule exempt a
cottage food production operation from the application of a
requirement applicable to a food service establishment under this
chapter, department rule, or the requirements of counties and
public health districts that are onerous or inapplicable to a
cottage food production operation and are not necessary to ensure a
safe public food supply. The rules must address the labeling of
potentially hazardous food products sold by a cottage food
production operation.
Sec. 437.024. USE OF PRODUCT OF COTTAGE FOOD PRODUCTION
OPERATION. A food service establishment, other than a cottage food
production operation, may not use a product produced in the cottage
food production operation as an ingredient in any food that is
prepared by the food service establishment and offered by the
establishment to the public for consumption.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.