Public Act 102-0862
 
SB3838 EnrolledLRB102 24488 CPF 33722 b

    AN ACT concerning health.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The Food Handling Regulation Enforcement Act is
amended by changing Section 3.3 as follows:
 
    (410 ILCS 625/3.3)
    Sec. 3.3. Farmers' markets.
    (a) The General Assembly finds as follows:
        (1) Farmers' markets, as defined in subsection (b) of
    this Section, provide not only a valuable marketplace for
    farmers and food artisans to sell their products directly
    to consumers, but also a place for consumers to access
    fresh fruits, vegetables, and other agricultural products.
        (2) Farmers' markets serve as a stimulator for local
    economies and for thousands of new businesses every year,
    allowing farmers to sell directly to consumers and capture
    the full retail value of their products. They have become
    important community institutions and have figured in the
    revitalization of downtown districts and rural
    communities.
        (3) Since 1999, the number of farmers' markets has
    tripled and new ones are being established every year.
    There is a lack of consistent regulation from one county
    to the next, resulting in confusion and discrepancies
    between counties regarding how products may be sold. There
    continue to be inconsistencies, confusion, and lack of
    awareness by consumers, farmers, markets, and local health
    authorities of required guidelines affecting farmers'
    markets from county to county.
        (4) (Blank).
        (5) (Blank).
        (6) Recognizing that farmers' markets serve as small
    business incubators and that farmers' profit margins
    frequently are narrow, even in direct-to-consumer retail,
    protecting farmers from costs of regulation that are
    disproportionate to their profits will help ensure the
    continued viability of these local farms and small
    businesses.
    (b) For the purposes of this Section:
    "Department" means the Department of Public Health.
    "Director" means the Director of Public Health.
    "Farmer" means an individual who is a resident of Illinois
and owns or leases land in Illinois that is used as a farm, as
that term is defined in Section 1-60 of the Property Tax Code,
or that individual's employee.
    "Farmers' market" means a common facility or area where
the primary purpose is for farmers to gather to sell a variety
of fresh fruits and vegetables and other locally produced farm
and food products directly to consumers.
    "Licensed or permitted processing facility" means a
facility that has been inspected, approved, and permitted or
licensed by the Department of Agriculture, the Department of
Public Health, or a local health department.
    "Local health department" means a State-certified health
department of a unit of local government.
    "Main ingredient" means an agricultural product that is
the defining or distinctive ingredient in a product, though
not necessarily by predominance of weight.
    (c) (Blank).
    (d) This Section does not intend and shall not be
construed to limit the power of counties, municipalities, and
other local government units to regulate farmers' markets for
the protection of the public health, safety, morals, and
welfare, including, but not limited to, licensing requirements
and time, place, and manner restrictions, except as specified
in this Act. This Section provides for a statewide scheme for
the orderly and consistent regulation interpretation of the
Department's administrative rules pertaining to the safety of
food and food products sold at farmers' markets.
    (e) (Blank).
    (f) (Blank).
    (g) (Blank).
    (h) (Blank).
    (i) (Blank).
    (j) (Blank).
    (k) (Blank).
    (l) (Blank).
    (m) The following provisions shall apply concerning
statewide retail sale of farm products at farmers' markets
farmers' market food safety guidelines:
        (1) (Blank). The Director, in accordance with this
    Section, shall adopt administrative rules (as provided by
    the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act) for foods found
    at farmers' markets.
        (2) Local health departments may conduct enforcement
    actions under and pursuant to this Section. The rules and
    regulations described in this Section shall be
    consistently enforced by local health authorities
    throughout the State.
        (2.5) Notwithstanding any other provision of law
    except as provided in this Section, local public health
    departments and all other units of local government are
    prohibited from creating sanitation guidelines, rules, or
    regulations for farmers' markets that are more stringent
    than those farmers' market sanitation regulations
    contained in this Section. the administrative rules
    adopted by the Department for the purposes of implementing
    this Section and Sections 3.4, 3.5, and 4 of this Act.
    Except as provided for in Sections 3.4 and 4 of this Act,
    this Section does not intend and shall not be construed to
    limit the power of local health departments and other
    government units from requiring licensing and permits for
    the sale of commercial food products, processed food
    products, prepared foods, and potentially hazardous foods
    at farmers' markets or conducting related inspections and
    enforcement activities, so long as those permits and
    licenses do not include unreasonable fees or sanitation
    provisions and rules that are more stringent than those
    laid out in the administrative rules adopted by the
    Department for the purposes of implementing this Section
    and Sections 3.4, 3.5, and 4 of this Act.
        (2.10) A farmer who engages in the sale of any of the
    following products shall obtain a Farmers' Market Permit
    from each local health department that chooses to require
    a Farmers' Market Permit for each unit of local government
    in which a sales takes place:
            (A) Frozen, potentially hazardous foods that are
        prepackaged at a licensed or permitted processing
        facility but have the main ingredient grown or raised
        on the farmer's farm.
            (B) Meat, poultry, dairy, and eggs raised or grown
        on the farm of the farmer selling the food product.
        Nothing in this paragraph shall alter any obligation
    under the Grade A Pasteurized Milk and Milk Products Act.
        (2.15) As part of the permitting process for a
    Farmers' Market Permit, a local health department may
    require the applicant to perform the following:
            (A) Provide the address of the applicant's farm
        and his or her contact information.
            (B) Provide a list of products intended for sale.
            (C) Provide a thermometer for each refrigeration
        unit, including, but not limited to, a refrigerator,
        fridge, freezer, or cooler, that is accurate to plus
        or minus 3 degrees Fahrenheit.
            (D) Maintain in good condition all equipment,
        utensils, and the like, meaning that there are no
        chips, pitting, or other similar wear.
            (E) Provide effective means to maintain cold food
        temperatures below 41 degrees Fahrenheit and frozen
        foods below 32 degrees Fahrenheit.
            (F) For meat, dairy, or poultry products that do
        not require refrigeration, provide a product hazard
        analysis and critical control point (HACCP) or food
        safety plan from a licensed facility as evidence of
        product safety at specific temperatures for the
        specified duration that they are not refrigerated.
            (G) The name, address, and contact information of
        the licensed or permitted processing facility at which
        products were processed.
            (H) If selling eggs, provide an Illinois Egg
        License issued by the Department of Agriculture.
            (I) At least one annual inspection. Inspections
        may occur on site at the farmers market, or a local
        health department may require once annually that the
        farmer applicant go to an alternate location to
        conduct the inspection.
        (2.20) A Farmers' Market Permit shall be valid for one
    year. The fee for obtaining a Farmers' Market Permit shall
    not exceed the following:
            (A) $75 for a limited egg Farmers' Market Permit
        covering only the sale of eggs.
            (B) $175 for a full Farmers' Market Permit
        covering any combination of meat, poultry, dairy,
        eggs, and frozen foods grown, raised, or produced on
        or in a licensed or permitted processing facility.
        The fee limits imposed under this paragraph shall be
    increased by 10% on January 1, 2026 and on January 1 of
    every third year thereafter.
        (2.25) A local health department shall meet the
    following requirements in creating, setting, or amending
    the fee required for a Farmers' Market Permit under this
    subsection:
            (A) A local health department shall solicit public
        input in determining the initial fee or fees for a
        Farmers' Market Permit, and also at any time a fee
        increase is proposed by the local health department,
        by one or all of the following means:
                (i) Convene at least one public meeting to
            allow verbal and written public input regarding
            the intent to create, set, or amend a fee. Before
            the public meeting, all farmers' market operators
            in the local health department's jurisdiction and
            all existing Farmers' Market Permit holders that
            are permitted in the local health department's
            jurisdiction shall be notified using the best
            efforts of the local health department.
                (ii) Provide public notice and solicit written
            comments from the public regarding the intent to
            create, set, or amend a fee. Before the comment
            period, all farmers' market operators in the
            jurisdiction and all existing Farmers' Market
            Permit holders that are permitted in the local
            health department's jurisdiction shall be notified
            using the best efforts of the local health
            department.
            (B) A local health department shall consider all
        public comments received in creating, setting, or
        amending a fee.
            (C) A local health department has final discretion
        to create, set, or amend a fee, subject to the fee
        limits under subparagraph (A) of paragraph (2.20).
            (D) A local health department shall amend a fee no
        more than once per year.
            (E) All comments received under this paragraph
        shall be provided to the locally elected or appointed
        governing body of the location that the local health
        department is located at.
            (F) A local health department is not required to
        create a new process to solicit public input regarding
        the creation, setting, or amending of fees if it
        already has a process in place that meets the minimum
        requirements set forth in this paragraph.
        (2.30) A home rule unit may not regulate Farmers'
    Market Permits in a manner inconsistent with the
    regulation by the State of Farmers' Market Permits under
    this subsection. This paragraph is a limitation under
    subsection (i) of Section 6 of Article VII of the Illinois
    Constitution on the concurrent exercise by home rule units
    of powers and functions exercised by the State.
        (3) In the case of alleged noncompliance with the
    provisions described in this Section, local health
    departments shall issue written notices to vendors and
    market managers of any noncompliance issues. Citations may
    be issued to farmers who do not have or display their
    Farmers' Market Permits. Repeat violations may result in
    fines or Farmers' Market Permit suspension by a local
    health department.
        (4) (Blank). Produce and food products coming within
    the scope of the provisions of this Section shall include,
    but not be limited to, raw agricultural products,
    including fresh fruits and vegetables; popcorn, grains,
    seeds, beans, and nuts that are whole, unprocessed,
    unpackaged, and unsprouted; fresh herb sprigs and dried
    herbs in bunches; baked goods sold at farmers' markets;
    cut fruits and vegetables; milk and cheese products; ice
    cream; syrups; wild and cultivated mushrooms; apple cider
    and other fruit and vegetable juices; herb vinegar;
    garlic-in-oil; flavored oils; pickles, relishes, salsas,
    and other canned or jarred items; shell eggs; meat and
    poultry; fish; ready-to-eat foods; commercially produced
    prepackaged food products; and any additional items
    specified in the administrative rules adopted by the
    Department to implement Section 3.3 of this Act.
    (n) Local health department regulatory guidelines may be
applied to foods not often found at farmers' markets, all
other food products not regulated by the Department of
Agriculture and the Department of Public Health, as well as
live animals to be sold at farmers' markets.
    (o) (Blank).
    (p) The Department of Public Health and the Department of
Agriculture shall adopt administrative rules necessary to
implement, interpret, and make specific the provisions of this
Section, including, but not limited to, rules concerning
labels, sanitation, and food product safety according to the
realms of their jurisdiction.
    (q) The Department shall create a food sampling training
and license program as specified in Section 3.4 of this Act.
    (r) In addition to any rules adopted pursuant to
subsection (p) of this Section, the following provisions shall
be applied uniformly throughout the State, including to home
rule units, except as otherwise provided in this Act:
        (1) Farmers market vendors shall provide effective
    means to maintain potentially hazardous food, as defined
    in Section 4 of this Act, at 41 degrees Fahrenheit or
    below. As an alternative to mechanical refrigeration, an
    effectively insulated, hard-sided, cleanable container
    with sufficient ice or other cooling means that is
    intended for the storage of potentially hazardous food
    shall be used. Local health departments shall not limit
    vendors' choice of refrigeration or cooling equipment and
    shall not charge a fee for use of such equipment. Local
    health departments shall not be precluded from requiring
    an effective alternative form of cooling if a vendor is
    unable to maintain food at the appropriate temperature.
        (2) Handwashing stations may be shared by farmers'
    market vendors if handwashing stations are accessible to
    vendors.
(Source: P.A. 100-488, eff. 6-1-18; 100-805, eff. 1-1-19;
101-81, eff. 7-12-19.)