Food and agriculture: omnibus bill.

(1) Existing law establishes fruit, nut, and vegetable standards and requires the Secretary of Food and Agriculture and county agricultural commissioners to enforce those provisions. Existing law authorizes the secretary and other specified agents of the Department of Food and Agriculture to enforce and make inspections of grade, standards of quality, and other provisions of any raw unprocessed fruit, nut, or vegetable marketing, food safety, or enforcement program adopted under state or federal authority. Existing law prohibits the disclosure of proprietary information obtained for the purpose of, or pursuant to, the produce safety program, as defined, data collected during inspections or investigations conducted under the produce safety rule, as defined, and sales data and noncompliance observations obtained during a produce safety program inspection, except when required by a court order, as specified. Existing law also prohibits making public any information that is contained in individual reports of produce safety program inspections, except as specified, and authorizes that information to be made available pursuant to a court order, as specified. This bill would authorize any information, data, or observations, including, but not limited to, proprietary information, obtained pursuant to the produce safety program to be shared with any local, state, or federal authority for the purpose of evaluating, inspecting, or investigating an imminent or potential food safety hazard or risk in order to protect public health and safety. (2) Existing law regulates rendering, which is defined as the recycling, processing, and conversion of, among other things, inedible kitchen grease, as provided. Existing law requires renderers and collection centers to be licensed and to annually pay a license fee of $100. Existing law authorizes the Department of Food and Agriculture, until July 1, 2025, to charge each licensed renderer and collection center an additional fee, up to $10,000 per year for each licensed rendering plant or collection center, to cover the reasonable costs of administering certain provisions regulating renderers, collection centers, and transporters of inedible kitchen grease. Existing law requires fees and penalties collected pursuant to these provisions to be deposited into the Department of Food and Agriculture Fund and continuously appropriates the collected funds for the purposes described above. This bill would extend the department's authorization to charge that additional fee until July 1, 2030. By extending the operation of provisions authorizing the collection of fees and penalties that are deposited into a continuously appropriated fund, this bill would make an appropriation. (3) Under existing law, it is unlawful for any person or entity to engage in the transportation of inedible kitchen grease without being registered with the Department of Food and Agriculture. Existing law defines "inedible kitchen grease" for that purpose as any fat or used cooking greases and oils obtained from any source. Existing law requires that registration to include, among other requirements, a registration fee not to exceed $250. Existing law authorizes the department, until July 1, 2025, to charge additional fees to cover the costs of administering these provisions, up to $500 per year for each vehicle that is operated to transport kitchen grease and up to $10,000 per year for each registered transporter, except as provided. Existing law requires fees and penalties collected pursuant to these provisions to be deposited into the Department of Food and Agriculture Fund and continuously appropriates those moneys for the purposes described above. This bill would extend the department's authorization to charge that additional fee until July 1, 2030. By extending the department's authority to charge that additional fee, the revenues from which are deposited into a continuously appropriated fund, the bill would make an appropriation. (4) Existing law authorizes the secretary to enter into certain cooperative agreements to develop projects or programs that are designed to improve, expand, and correlate work related to, among other things, federal-state cooperative market news services. This bill would, if a cooperative agreement related to federal-state cooperative market news services is not in effect in the state, authorize the secretary to define grape-pricing districts in the state. (5) Under existing law, any person who is found guilty of violating the above-described provisions involving renderers, collection centers, or transporters of inedible kitchen grease, or rules and regulations promulgated pursuant to those provisions, is subject to imprisonment or a fine, as specified. By extending the dates described above and therefore expanding the period over which these crimes may occur, 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 no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.