Retail food safety: nonlatex gloves.

Existing law, the California Retail Food Code, establishes uniform health and sanitation standards for retail food facilities and delegates the enforcement of those standards to the State Department of Public Health and local health agencies. Existing law requires that food employees minimize bare hand and arm contact with nonprepackaged food that is in a ready-to-eat form. Existing law requires food employees to use utensils, including gloves, in certain situations, such as assembling ready-to-eat food. Existing law requires food employees to wear single-use gloves when contacting food and food-contact surfaces under certain conditions, including if an employee has cuts, sores, or rashes. A violation of these provisions is punishable by a fine of at least $25 and up to $1,000, or by imprisonment in a county jail for up to 6 months, or both. This bill would prohibit the use of latex gloves in food facilities and retail food establishments and require food employees to use nonlatex utensils, including nonlatex gloves. The bill would make related findings and declarations. By revising the standards enforced by local health agencies and changing the scope of an existing crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above.