BILL ANALYSIS
SB 173
Page 1
Date of Hearing: August 19, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Kevin De Leon, Chair
SB 173 (Florez) - As Amended: July 6, 2009
Policy Committee: AgricultureVote:
5 - 2
Health 14 - 1
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
No Reimbursable:
SUMMARY
This bill authorizes the Department of Public Health (DPH) to
adopt regulations for the voluntary recall of food that could
transmit an illness or cause death in humans.
FISCAL EFFECT
Annual general fund costs of approximately $90,000 for two years
for DPH to develop the regulation package and promulgate
regulations.
COMMENTS
1)Rationale . This bill allows DPH to adopt regulations governing
the appropriate actions to take during a food-borne illness
recall and empowers public health officials to act quickly to
improve the safety of the state's food supply.
2)Food Safety . The federal Centers for Disease Control estimates
that 76 million Americans get sick, 300,000 are hospitalized,
and 5,000 die from food-borne illnesses each year. In 2006,
spinach from California tainted with E.coli bacteria was
identified as the source of food-borne contamination,
resulting in 204 cases of illness, 104 hospitalizations, and
three deaths across 26 impacted states. Over the course of
the investigation, the source of the bacteria was traced to
four fields in Monterey and San Benito counties. In addition,
the Salinas Valley area of California has also been the source
of at least seven confirmed cases of E.coli bacteria found in
leafy greens.
SB 173
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3)Policy Committee Concerns . A prior version of this bill
provided DPH with mandatory recall authority. Since a
voluntary recall by its nature requires the recalling firm to
be responsible for the protection of public health, a more
effective state enforcement mechanism may be to provide DPH
with the authority to issue a mandatory recall.
4)Related Legislation . In this session, AB 1372 (Feuer) would
have required specified FPEs to adopt and implement a Hazard
Analysis and Critical Control Point plan; conduct regular
testing of ingredient and product samples or specimens; and,
report any test result that is positive for poisonous or
deleterious substances to DPH within 24 hours, as specified.
AB 1372 was held on this committee's suspense file.
SB 200 (Florez) of 2008 would have authorized the State PHO to
adopt recall, quarantine, and sanitary regulations necessary
to prevent or eliminate conditions where produce or food
processed from produce may carry an illness, infection,
pathogen, contagion, toxin, or condition that could kill or
seriously affect the health of humans. However, this bill was
gutted and amended to, among other things, prohibit the
serving of food from downed cattle, as defined, to students as
part of a school meal program and revise notification
requirements for meat- or poultry-related recalls. SB 200
failed passage in the Assembly Agriculture Committee.
Analysis Prepared by : Julie Salley-Gray / APPR. / (916)
319-2081