WSR 13-17-065 PROPOSED RULES DEPARTMENT OF EARLY LEARNING [Filed August 16, 2013, 9:02 a.m.]
Original Notice.
Preproposal statement of inquiry was filed as WSR 13-10-049.
Title of Rule and Other Identifying Information: WAC 170-297-7680 Safe food handling. Revising rules related to safe food handling to be consistent with the new food handler guide released by the department of health (DOH).
Hearing Location(s): Department of Early Learning (DEL), State Office, 1110 Jefferson Street S.E., Olympia, WA 98501, on October 2, 2013, at 12 p.m.
Date of Intended Adoption: Not sooner than October 2, 2013.
Submit Written Comments to: Rules Coordinator, P.O. Box 40970, Olympia, WA 98504-0970, e-mail rules@del.wa.gov, fax (360) 407-1962, by October 2, 2013.
Assistance for Persons with Disabilities: Contact DEL rules coordinator by September 25, 2013.
Purpose of the Proposal and Its Anticipated Effects, Including Any Changes in Existing Rules: The department is amending sections in DEL childcare licensing WAC chapters to update the provision for safe food handling. DOH has recently updated there [their] food handlers guide, and DEL needs to reflect the updated requirements. This filing amends WAC 170-297-7680 Safe food handling.
Reasons Supporting Proposal: The proposed rules update provisions of chapter 170-297 WAC to align them with recent DOH updates to their food handlers guide.
Statutory Authority for Adoption: Chapter 43.215 RCW.
Statute Being Implemented: Chapter 43.215 RCW.
Rule is not necessitated by federal law, federal or state court decision.
Name of Proponent: DEL, governmental.
Name of Agency Personnel Responsible for Drafting: Lynne Shanafelt, Licensing Administration, DEL State Office, P.O. Box 40970, Olympia, WA 98504, (360) 407-1953; Implementation and Enforcement: DEL licensing offices, statewide.
No small business economic impact statement has been prepared under chapter 19.85 RCW. The proposed rules are not expected to impose new costs on businesses that are required to comply. If the rules result in costs, those costs are not expected to be "more than minor" as defined in chapter 19.85 RCW.
A cost-benefit analysis is not required under RCW 34.05.328. DEL is not among the agencies listed as required to comply with RCW 34.05.328.
August 16, 2013
Elizabeth M. Hyde
Director
AMENDATORY SECTION (Amending WSR 12-23-057, filed 11/19/12, effective 12/20/12)
WAC 170-297-7680 Safe food handling.
(1) Program staff must follow the safe preparation, cooking, and serving guidelines in the current edition of the food workers manual prepared by the state department of health. (((a) Food must be served at temperatures of not less than one hundred thirty-five degrees Fahrenheit for hot foods and not more than forty-one degrees Fahrenheit for cold foods. (b) All opened moist foods that have not been served must be covered, dated, and maintained at a temperature of forty-one degrees Fahrenheit or lower in the refrigerator or frozen in the freezer. (c) Raw animal foods must be fully cooked to heat all parts of the food to a temperature and for a time of: (i) One hundred forty-five degrees Fahrenheit or above for fifteen seconds for fish and meat; (ii) One hundred sixty degrees Fahrenheit for fifteen seconds for chopped or ground fish, chopped or ground meat or raw eggs; or (iii) One hundred sixty-five degrees Fahrenheit or above for fifteen seconds for poultry or stuffed fish, stuffed meat, stuffed pasta, stuffed poultry, or stuffing containing fish meat or poultry. (d) Potentially hazardous cooked foods must be cooled in an uncovered container, protected from cross contamination, and in a shallow layer of three inches or less in cooling equipment maintained at an ambient temperature of forty-one degrees Fahrenheit or less. (2) Program staff must: (a) Wash their hands prior to preparing food and after handling raw meats, poultry, or fish; and (b) Not prepare food when ill with vomiting, diarrhea or infectious skin sores that cannot be covered. (3))) (2) Previously prepared food may be served if: (a) The food was not previously served; and (b) It was stored at the proper temperature for less than twenty-four hours after preparation. (((4))) (3) Leftover foods or opened foods in the refrigerator must be labeled with the date that they were opened or cooked. (((5))) (4) Each staff person preparing or handling food must maintain a current Washington state department of health food worker's permit.
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