The Washington State Department of Health (Department) was formed in 1989 to promote and protect public health, monitor health care costs, maintain standards for quality health care delivery, and plan activities related to the health of Washington citizens.  The Washington State Board of Health (Board) is an independent entity housed within the Department that establishes minimum standards for the prevention and control of foodborne illnesses.  Local jurisdictions may adopt more stringent standards.  The Board's rules direct food service establishments in the areas of food supplies, food protection, public health labeling, food preparation, temperature control, personal hygiene, garbage and litter, sanitary equipment, and pest control.  The Board considers the most recent version of the United States Food and Drug Administration's Food Code when adopting rules for food service.

The Board is directed to develop and begin a pilot program to allow for microenterprise home kitchen operations (MHKO).  Beginning July 1, 2024, local health jurisdictions may permit up to 100 MHKOs in the first year and may permit up to 200 additional MHKOs in each year thereafter.  The number of permits that may be issued by counties during the first and second year of the pilot program is specified based on population.  The Board must complete required rulemaking by July 1, 2026.  The Department must submit a report to the Legislature reviewing the program and provide recommendations for necessary legislation regarding the program by July 1, 2026, and must compile and maintain publicly accessible statistics related to the number and distribution of MHKOs permitted.

"Microenterprise home kitchen operation" means a food facility that is operated by a person in the person's primary domestic residence where food is stored, handled, and prepared for consumers.  An MHKO may sell food products to be consumed at a location other than the premises of the MHKO, whether delivered directly to the consumer by the MHKO or by an intermediary, and cater a specific menu and amount of food which is prepared on the premises of the MHKO for service to a customer at a different location.

Rules adopted by the Board must provide for the following restrictions on MHKOs:

• Food preparation may not involve processes that require a hazard analysis critical control point plan; the production, service, or sale of raw milk or raw milk products; curing of meats; or the service or sale of raw oysters or other shellfish.
• The MHKO may sell no more than 20 individual meals per day and no more than 100 individual meals per week.
• The operation may not engage in indirect sales to consumers.
• Food products prepared in an MHKO may not be delivered outside of the state by the operator of the MHKO unless allowed in the state of delivery.
• Food produced in an MHKO may not be delivered by a third-party delivery service.
• An internet food service intermediary must conspicuously post any fees associated with their digital network, offer or provide liability insurance, and notify MHKO operators in writing 30 days in advance of any fee change exceeding a 2 percent increase.
• The MHKO is required to be covered by a liability insurance policy in an amount not less than $500,000 that would cover any incidents arising from the sale or consumption of food, including protection for consumers for injuries arising from a foodborne illness.
• Food produced in an MHKO may not be held hot for more than two hours, and may not be held overnight.

The MHKO must post any inspection scores, grades, or other evaluation records required by the local health jurisdiction at the entry of the operation during business hours and on any internet page or internet food service intermediary that is offering the operation's food for sale.

Additional requirements for an MHKO include the application for and renewal of permits; inspections; sanitary procedures; facility, equipment, and utensil requirements; labeling procedures; requirements for clean water sources and waste and wastewater disposal; and requirements for washing and other hygienic practices.  The MHKOs are exempt from a number of provisions in the food services code and modified requirements are provided.

The Department must develop a sample permit and form for permit applications.  An MHKO must obtain a permit from the local health jurisdiction that may be required to be renewed annually.  The application must include the MHKO's standard operating procedures such as food types that will be prepared, handling procedures, cleaning plans, refuse disposal processes, food storage, and days and times the MHKO may be operated.

The application must be accompanied by an inspection fee.  The MHKO must be inspected before initial permitting and may be inspected up to once per year after the initial permitting, and at any time in response to a foodborne outbreak or other public health emergency when the permit holder or permit holder's agent grants access, by appointment, or pursuant to a search warrant.  Nonemergency inspections may occur only when the permit holder or permit holder's agent is present and only during the normal business hours of operation with reasonable advance notice, by appointment, or pursuant to a search warrant.  The name and information of the inspector entering the home must be provided.  Absent a search warrant, the local health inspector may not enter a home when only minors are present.  The inspection must document the findings and those findings must be kept by the local health jurisdiction.  The inspection protocol includes basic standards the MHKO must follow while preparing, handling, or storing food in the MHKO.

An MHKO operating without a valid permit and any MHKO operating in violation of any of the requirements may be subject to sanctions.  For the first violation within a two-year period, the local health jurisdiction must hold an administrative conference with the operator of the MHKO, which may include an offer of technical assistance.  For the second or subsequent violation within a two-year period, the local health jurisdiction may issue a warning, place the MHKO on probation, issue a fine, suspend or revoke the permit, issue fees to cover the cost of inspection prior to the MHKO preparing food after suspension or revocation, or a combination of those sanctions.

A local health jurisdiction may deny, suspend, or revoke a permit after conducting a hearing at which it is determined that the permittee has failed to comply with the rules or refused the local health jurisdiction access to a permitted area or records required to be kept.  A local health jurisdiction may also suspend or halt a permit issued if the health officer finds that an MHKO is operating under conditions constituting an immediate danger to public health.

The obligation of local governments to comply with certain requirements of the act is contingent on the provision of state funding for the specific purpose of complying with those requirements.