Bill Text: GA HB883 | 2009-2010 | Regular Session | Comm Sub
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Sanitary Activity for Food-Processing Enterprises (SAFE) Act; enact
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Republican 6-1)
Status: (Passed) 2010-05-25 - Effective Date [HB883 Detail]
Download: Georgia-2009-HB883-Comm_Sub.html
Bill Title: Sanitary Activity for Food-Processing Enterprises (SAFE) Act; enact
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Republican 6-1)
Status: (Passed) 2010-05-25 - Effective Date [HB883 Detail]
Download: Georgia-2009-HB883-Comm_Sub.html
10 LC 29
4140S
The
House Committee on Agriculture and Consumer Affairs offers the following
substitute to HB 883:
A
BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
AN ACT
To
amend Code Section 26-2-27.1 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating
to written food safety plans, so as to provide the Commissioner of Agriculture
with certain authority regarding safety plans; to provide a short title; to
mandate certain written safety plans; to provide for civil and criminal
penalties; to provide for related matters; to provide an effective date; to
repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION
1.
This
Act shall be known and may be cited as the "Sanitary Activity for
Food-Processing Enterprises (SAFE) Act."
SECTION
2.
Code
Section 26-2-27.1 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to written
food safety plans, is amended by revising subsection (b) as
follows:
"(b)(1)(A)
In order to protect the public health, safety, and welfare and ensure compliance
with this article, the Commissioner shall by rule or regulation establish
requirements for regular testing of samples or specimens of foods and
ingredients by food processing plants for the presence of poisonous or
deleterious substances or other contaminants rendering such foods or ingredients
injurious to health. Such rules or regulations shall identify the specific
classes or types of food processing plants, foods, ingredients, and poisonous or
deleterious substances or other contaminants that shall be subject to such
testing requirements and the frequency with which such tests shall be performed
by food processing plants.
(B)
The Commissioner shall also promulgate rules and regulations establishing
minimum standards and requirements for a written food safety plan, such as a
hazard analysis critical control point plan, that may be submitted by an
operator of a food processing plant to document and describe the procedures used
at such plant to prevent the presence of hazards such as poisonous or
deleterious substances or other contaminants that would render finished foods or
finished ingredients as manufactured at such plant injurious to health,
including preventive controls, monitoring to ensure the effectiveness of such
controls, and records of corrective actions, including actions taken in response
to the presence of known hazards. If an operator of a food processing plant, in
its discretion, submits to the department a written food safety plan for such
plant and such plan conforms to rules and regulations promulgated for purposes
of this subparagraph, then such food processing plant shall comply with the
requirements of such written food safety plan,
including,
but not limited
to,
any test regimen provided by such plan, in lieu of complying with a test regimen
established by rules or regulations promulgated by the Commissioner pursuant to
subparagraph (A) of this paragraph.
(C)
A food processing plant that fails to comply with the provisions of
subparagraph (B) of this paragraph shall be punished by the fine of a
$5,000.00 civil penalty and shall submit to the Commissioner a written plan,
pursuant to subparagraph (B) of this paragraph, within 30 days of the
determination by the Commissioner that such violation has occurred; provided,
however, that for a second or subsequent violation of subparagraph (B) of this
paragraph within five years, as measured from the date of the violation for
which a civil penalty is imposed pursuant to this subparagraph, such food
processing plant shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated
nature.
(2)
In addition to any regular tests required pursuant to paragraph (1) of this
subsection, the Commissioner may order any food processing plant to have samples
or specimens of its foods and ingredients tested for the presence of any
poisonous or deleterious substances or other contaminants whenever in his or her
determination there are reasonable grounds to suspect that such foods or
ingredients may be injurious to health."
SECTION
3.
Said
Code section is further amended by revising subsections (e) and (f) as
follows:
"(e)(1)
Whenever any person or firm that operates a food processing plant in this state
obtains information from testing of samples or specimens of finished foods or
finished food ingredients as manufactured at such food processing plant which,
based on a confirmed positive test result, indicates the presence of a substance
that would cause a manufactured food bearing or containing the same to be
adulterated within the meaning of paragraph (1) of Code Section 26-2-26, such
person or firm shall report such test result to the department within 24 hours
after obtaining such information.
(2)
Any person who fails to make the report required by paragraph (1) of this
subsection shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. The punishment provided for in
this subsection shall be supplemental to any other applicable provisions of
law.
(f)
Records of the results of any tests required pursuant to this Code section shall
be kept by a food processing plant and made available to the department for
inspection for a period of not less than two years from the date the results
were reported by the laboratory.
Any person who
violates this subsection shall be guilty of a misdemeanor. The punishment
provided for in this subsection shall be supplemental to any other applicable
provisions of law."
SECTION
4.
Said
Code section is further amended by adding a new subsection to read as
follows:
"(h)
Any person who knowingly introduces into commerce finished foods or finished
food ingredients as manufactured at a food processing plant containing a
substance that would cause a manufactured food bearing or containing the same to
be adulterated within the meaning of paragraph (1) of Code Section 26-2-26 shall
be guilty of a felony, and, upon conviction, shall be punished by imprisonment
for not less than one nor more than 20 years, a fine not to exceed $20,000.00,
or both. The punishment provided for in this subsection shall be supplemental
to any other applicable provisions of
law."
SECTION
5.
This
Act shall become effective upon its approval by the Governor or upon its
becoming law without such approval.
SECTION
6.
All
laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.