81-2,270. Food establishment, food processing plant, or salvage operation; permits; application; contents; fees; late fee; exemptions.

(1) No person shall operate: (a) A food establishment; (b) a food processing plant; or (c) a salvage operation, without a valid permit which sets forth the types of operation occurring within the establishment.

(2) Application for a permit shall be made to the director on forms prescribed and furnished by the department. Such application shall include the applicant's full name and mailing address, the names and addresses of any partners, members, or corporate officers, the name and address of the person authorized by the applicant to receive the notices and orders of the department as provided in the Nebraska Pure Food Act, whether the applicant is an individual, partnership, limited liability company, corporation, or other legal entity, the location and type of proposed establishment or operation, and the signature of the applicant. Application for a permit shall be made prior to the operation of a food establishment, food processing plant, or salvage operation. The application shall be accompanied by an initial permit fee and an initial inspection fee in the same amount as the annual inspection fee if inspections are required to be done by the department. If the food establishment, food processing plant, or salvage operation has been in operation prior to applying for a permit or notifying the regulatory authority, the applicant shall pay an additional fee of sixty dollars.

(3) Payment of the initial permit fee, the initial inspection fee, and the fee for failing to apply for a permit prior to operation shall not preclude payment of the annual inspection fees due on August 1 of each year. Except as provided in subsections (7) through (10) of this section and subsection (2) of section 81-2,281, a permitholder shall pay annual inspection fees on or before August 1 of each year regardless of when the initial permit was obtained.

(4)(a) The director shall set the initial permit fee and the annual inspection fees on or before July 1 of each fiscal year to meet the criteria in this subsection. The director may raise or lower the fees each year, but the fees shall not exceed the maximum fees listed in subdivision (4)(b) of this section. The director shall determine the fees based on estimated annual revenue and fiscal year-end cash fund balance as follows:

(i) The estimated annual revenue shall not be greater than one hundred seven percent of program cash fund appropriations allocated for the Nebraska Pure Food Act;

(ii) The estimated fiscal year-end cash fund balance shall not be greater than seventeen percent of program cash fund appropriations allocated for the act; and

(iii) All fee increases or decreases shall be equally distributed between all categories.

(b) The maximum fees are:

(5) If a food establishment is engaged in more than one food handling activity listed in subsection (4) of this section, the inspection fee charged shall be based upon the primary activity conducted within the food establishment as determined by the department and any fees assessed for each additional food preparation area within the primary establishment as determined by the department.

(6) If a person fails to pay the inspection fee for more than one month after the fee is due, such person shall pay a late fee equal to fifty percent of the total fee for the first month that the fee is late and one hundred percent for the second month that the fee is late. The purpose of the late fee is to cover the administrative costs associated with collecting fees. All money collected as a late fee shall be remitted to the State Treasurer for credit to the Pure Food Cash Fund.

(7) An educational institution, health care facility, nursing home, or governmental organization operating any type of food establishment, other than a mobile food unit or pushcart, is exempt from the requirements in subsections (1) through (6) of this section.

(8) A food establishment which produces eggs and only stores, packages, sells, delivers, or otherwise provides for human consumption the eggs it produces, or only stores, packages, sells, delivers, or otherwise provides for human consumption eggs produced from no more than four producers at the same time, is exempt from the requirements of subsections (1) through (6) of this section. Any food establishment with a valid egg handler license and for which all fees have been paid prior to August 24, 2017, is exempt from the permit and inspection fee requirements of the Nebraska Pure Food Act until August 1, 2018.

(9) A food establishment or food processing plant holding a permit under the Nebraska Milk Act is exempt from the requirements of subsections (1) through (6) of this section.

(10) A single event food vendor or a religious, charitable, or fraternal organization operating any type of temporary food establishment, mobile food unit, or pushcart is exempt from the requirements of subsections (1) through (6) of this section. Any such organization operating any nontemporary food establishment prior to July 1, 1985, is exempt from the requirements of subsection (2) of this section.

Source

Cross References