BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 1513
Page 1
GOVERNOR'S VETO
AB 1513 (Allen)
As Amended August 15, 2012
2/3 vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |49-26|(May 14, 2012) |SENATE: |25-12|(August 21, |
| | | | | |2012) |
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|ASSEMBLY: |51-25|(August 24, | | | |
| | |2012) | | | |
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Original Committee Reference: HEALTH
SUMMARY : Revises the California Retail Food Code (CRFC), which
governs all aspects of retail food safety and sanitation in
California, to include sanitation and safety requirements for
indoor and outdoor playgrounds on the premises of retail food
facilities.
The Senate amendments reinstate current law defining playgrounds
as outdoor play areas and make other minor technical changes.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill was substantially similar
to the version approved by the Senate.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs.
COMMENTS : The author states that indoor playgrounds offered by
restaurants can pose unique challenges for cleanliness and
safety due to their close proximity to food. The author
maintains that current law governing food safety and sanitation,
the CRFC, lacks clarity with respect to ensuring that
playgrounds that are a part of food establishments are
sufficiently clean and safe for use by California's children.
According to the author, this bill is intended to bring more
specificity to state and local regulation of the nonfood areas
AB 1513
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in food facilities by clarifying that indoor and outdoor
playgrounds are to be treated as part of a food facility's
premises that must be kept clean, fully operative, and in good
repair; and, requiring a food facility with an indoor playground
to develop a plan to keep the playground areas clean and free of
hazards to children, including cracked or broken play
structures.
According to the author, a group called Kids Play Safe was
founded by two mothers, one of whom is a child development
professor and the other a microbiologist, to raise awareness of
the potential health and safety risks that indoor play areas in
restaurants pose to children. The author notes that these women
have visited dozens of restaurants with playgrounds in 11
states, including California, in recent months to test them for
cleanliness. The author states that their visits and the
results from lab analyses of samples they collected have
revealed the widespread presence of an array of pathogens, from
coliform (fecal) bacteria to staphylococcus, at levels that
indicate these playgrounds are not disinfected as frequently as
necessary.
The Consumer Federation of California writes in support that
adding indoor and outdoor food facility playgrounds to current
law requiring the premises to be kept clean, fully operative,
and in good repair will ensure that these playgrounds are safe
for use and protect children from the health and safety risks
associated with their wear and tear.
GOVERNOR'S VETO MESSAGE :
"Current law requires all premises of a food facility to be kept
'clean, fully operative, and in good repair.' Local health
jurisdictions enforce this law, as they enforce myriad other
requirements pertaining to restaurant food safety.
Until there's more evidence that the problem warrants new state
law, let's maintain the principle of subsidiarity and let the
locals enforce what can already be called a comprehensive
mandate."
AB 1513
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Analysis Prepared by : Cassie Royce / HEALTH / (916) 319-2097
FN: 0005931