2015 Louisiana Laws
Revised Statutes
TITLE 40 - Public Health and Safety
RS 40:5.5 - Sanitary inspections of certain restaurants; food safety certificates

§5.5. Sanitary inspections of certain restaurants; food safety certificates

A. The Department of Health and Hospitals shall charge only one sanitary inspection fee for the first two permits issued in accordance with the sanitary code for businesses that possess a valid local or state Class R permit and operate primarily as a restaurant. The fee provided for in this Subsection for the first two shall not exceed the fee assessed for the first permit according to administrative regulations in effect on September 3, 1989.

B. No person, other than a representative of the restaurant, shall be notified by the department of the time and place of the inspection prior thereto and shall be nontransferable.

C. On or after January 1, 1999, the state health officer and the office of public health of the Department of Health and Hospitals shall require, at a minimum, the owner or a designated employee of a food service establishment to hold a food safety certificate; however, the state health officer and the office of public health of the Department of Health and Hospitals shall not require more than one owner or employee per establishment to hold a food safety certificate. Provisions for the issuance and renewal of such certificate shall be made part of the state's sanitary code in accordance with the provisions of R.S. 40:4 and the following:

(1) The office shall approve training programs for applicants which impart and test knowledge of the nature, prevention, and control of food borne illness transmission and of methods for identifying and monitoring critical control points for safeguarding the production, processing, preparation, and serving of food. Such training programs shall include but not be limited to instructions in the standards set forth in the Applied Food Service Sanitation Program established by the Educational Foundation of the National Restaurant Association or other programs recognized in the food service industry. The office shall approve training programs administered or approved by another state, a political subdivision, or other jurisdiction with standards that meet or exceed those established by this Subsection.

(2) A food safety certificate shall be issued to any individual who files an application upon a form and in such a manner as prescribed by the sanitary code, provided such individual furnishes satisfactory evidence that he has completed an approved training program or has passed a written examination provided by the individual or group providing approved training programs.

(3) A fee, not to exceed twenty-five dollars, may be imposed and collected from an individual or a food service establishment for a food safety certificate to defer expenses in the administration of this Subsection.

(4) Renewal of the food safety certificate shall be required every five years.

(5) Display of a current, duly issued food safety certificate in the food service establishment shall be required.

(6) Any food service establishment whose food sales are less than one hundred twenty-five thousand dollars annually shall not be required to comply with this Subsection until July 1, 2002. However, any such establishment may apply for such certificate prior to such date.

D. No parish or municipality shall adopt or enforce any ordinance or regulation requiring a food service establishment or any of its employees to complete a food safety training program or test.

E. For purposes of this Section, "food service establishment" shall mean an establishment which meets the following criteria:

(1) The establishment prepares food for human consumption, either for individual service or for a group of people, whether consumption is on or off the premises and regardless if there is a charge for the food.

(2) The term "food establishment" does not include private homes where food is prepared or served for individual family consumption, private clubs where food is prepared and served exclusively for member consumption, religious or charitable food sales, any establishment that heats or prepares boudin or sausage for personal consumption, a bar or lounge that serves beverages only, temporary and seasonal establishments, and bed and breakfast operations.

F. "Food service establishment" as used in this Section shall not be construed to apply to nursing facilities.

G. "Food service establishment" as used in this Section shall not be construed to apply to public, private, or parochial schools.

Acts 1989, No. 732, §1; Acts 1997, No. 1206, §1; Acts 1999, No. 647, §1, eff. July 1, 1999; Acts 2001, No. 506, §1; Acts 2003, No. 370, §1; Acts 2004, No. 608, §1.