254.61(4)
(4) "Public health and safety" means the highest degree of protection against infection, contagion or disease and freedom from the danger of fire or accident that can be reasonably maintained in the operation of a hotel, restaurant, tourist rooming house, bed and breakfast establishment, vending machine or vending machine commissary.
254.61(5)
(5) "Restaurant" means any building, room or place where meals are prepared or served or sold to transients or the general public, and all places used in connection with it and includes any public or private school lunchroom for which food service is provided by contract. "Meals" does not include soft drinks, ice cream, milk, milk drinks, ices and confections. "Restaurant" does not include:
254.61(5)(a)
(a) Taverns that serve free lunches consisting of popcorn, cheese, crackers, pretzels, cold sausage, cured fish or bread and butter.
254.61(5)(b)
(b) Churches, religious, fraternal, youths' or patriotic organizations, service clubs and civic organizations which occasionally prepare, serve or sell meals to transients or the general public.
254.61(5)(c)
(c) Any public or private school lunchroom for which food service is directly provided by the school, or a private individual selling foods from a movable or temporary stand at public farm sales.
254.61(5)(d)
(d) Any bed and breakfast establishment that serves breakfasts only to its lodgers.
254.61(5)(e)
(e) The serving of food or beverage through a licensed vending machine.
254.61(5)(f)
(f) Any college campus, as defined in
s. 36.05 (6m), institution as defined in
s. 36.51 (1) (b) or technical college that serves meals only to the students enrolled in the college campus, institution or school or to authorized elderly persons under
s. 36.51 or
38.36.
254.61(5)(g)
(g) A concession stand at a locally sponsored sporting event, such as a little league game.
254.61(5m)
(5m) "Temporary restaurant" means a restaurant that operates at a fixed location in conjunction with a single event such as a fair, carnival, circus, public exhibition, anniversary sale or occasional sales promotion.
254.61(5r)
(5r) "Tourist or transient" means a person who travels from place to place away from his or her permanent residence for vacation, pleasure, recreation, culture, business or employment.
254.61(6)
(6) "Tourist rooming house" means any lodging place or tourist cabin or cottage where sleeping accommodations are offered for pay to tourists or transients. "Tourist rooming house" does not include:
254.61(6)(a)
(a) A private boarding or rooming house, ordinarily conducted as such, not accommodating tourists or transients.
254.61(7)
(7) "Vending machine" means any self-service device offered for public use which, upon insertion of a coin or token, or by other means, dispenses unit servings of food or beverage either in bulk or in package, without the necessity of replenishing the device between each vending operation. "Vending machine" does not include a device which dispenses only bottled, prepackaged or canned soft drinks, a one cent vending device, a vending machine dispensing only candy, gum, nuts, nut meats, cookies or crackers or a vending machine dispensing only prepackaged Grade A pasteurized milk or milk products.
254.61(8)
(8) "Vending machine commissary" means any building, room or place where the food, beverage, ingredients, containers, transport equipment or supplies for vending machines are kept, handled, prepared or stored by a vending machine operator. "Vending machine commissary" does not mean any place at which the operator is licensed to manufacture, distribute or sell food products under
ch. 97.
254.61(9)
(9) "Vending machine location" means the room, enclosure, space or area where one or more vending machines are installed and operated.
254.61(10)
(10) "Vending machine operator" means the person maintaining a place of business in the state and responsible for the operation of one or more vending machines.
254.61 Annotation
A city health department may inspect and license public school lunchrooms pursuant to a specific ordinance even though s. 50.50 (3), 1981 stats. [now sub. (5)] excludes public school lunchrooms from state regulation as restaurants. The authority in the department of public instruction under s. 115.33 to ensure a sanitary facility is not precluded by sub. (3). 65 Atty. Gen. 54.
254.62
254.62
Coordination; certification. 254.62(1)
(1) The department shall enter into memoranda of understanding with other state agencies to establish food protection measures.
254.62(2)
(2) The department shall promulgate rules that establish a food sanitation manager certification program.
254.62 History
History: 1993 a. 27.
254.63
254.63
Motels. Upon the written request of the hotel operator made on forms furnished by the department, the department may classify a hotel as a "motel", if the operator of the hotel furnishes on-premises parking facilities for the motor vehicles of the hotel guests as a part of the room charge, without extra cost.
254.63 History
History: 1983 a. 203 ss.
3,
5;
1983 a. 538 s.
67;
1993 a. 27 s.
66; Stats. 1993 s. 254.63.
254.64(1)(a)(a) No person may conduct, maintain, manage or operate a hotel, restaurant, temporary restaurant, tourist rooming house, vending machine commissary or vending machine if the person has not been issued an annual permit by the department or by a local health department that is granted agent status under
s. 254.69 (2).
254.64(1)(b)
(b) No person may maintain, manage or operate a bed and breakfast establishment for more than 10 nights in a year without having first obtained a biennial permit from the department.
254.64(1)(c)
(c) Except as provided in
s. 250.041, no permit may be issued under this section until all applicable fees have been paid. If the payment is by check or other draft drawn upon an account containing insufficient funds, the permit applicant shall, within 15 days after receipt of notice from the department of the insufficiency, pay by cashier's check or other certified draft, money order or cash the fees, late fees and processing charges that are specified by rules promulgated by the department. If the permit applicant fails to pay all applicable fees, late fees and processing charges within 15 days after the applicant receives notice of the insufficiency, the permit is void. In an appeal concerning voiding of a permit under this paragraph, the burden is on the permit applicant to show that the entire applicable fees, late fees and processing charges have been paid. During any appeal process concerning payment dispute, operation of the establishment in question is deemed to be operation without a permit.
254.64(1)(d)
(d) If a person or establishment licensed under
ch. 97 is incidentally engaged in an activity for which a permit is required under this section, the department may, by rule, exempt the person or establishment from the permit requirement under this section. Rules under this paragraph shall conform to a memorandum of understanding between the department and the department of agriculture, trade and consumer protection.
254.64(1m)
(1m) No county, city, village or town may require any permit of, or impose any permit or inspection fee on, a vending machine operator, vending machine commissary or vending machine permitted under this subchapter.
254.64(1p)
(1p) Except as provided in
s. 250.041, the department may condition the initial issuance, renewal or continued validity of a permit issued under this section on correction by the permittee of a violation of this subchapter, rules promulgated by the department under this subchapter or ordinances or regulations adopted under
s. 254.69 (2) (g), within a specified period of time. If the permittee fails to meet the condition within the specified period of time, the permit is void.
254.64(2)
(2) Except as provided in
sub. (3), a separate permit is required for each establishment.
254.64(3)(a)(a) A bulk milk dispenser may be operated in a restaurant without a vending machine or vending machine operator permit.
254.64(3)(b)
(b) A restaurant may operate as a vending machine commissary without a vending machine commissary permit.
254.64(4)(a)(a) In this subsection "immediate family member" means one of the following:
254.64(4)(a)2.
2. A grandparent, parent, sibling, child, stepchild or grandchild.
254.64(4)(b)
(b) Except as provided in
pars. (c) and
(d), no permit is transferable from one premises to another or from one person to another.
254.64(4)(c)
(c) A permit for a temporary restaurant may be transferred to a premises other than that for which it was issued if, prior to operation of the temporary restaurant at the new premises, approval of the new premises is secured from a department representative or, if the new premises is located in the jurisdictional area of a local health department that has been granted agent status for the premises under
s. 254.69 (2), from the local health department.
254.64(4)(d)
(d) The holder of a permit issued under this section may transfer the permit to an individual who is an immediate family member if the holder is transferring operation of the establishment or vending machine to the immediate family member.
254.64(5)
(5) All permits expire on June 30, except that permits initially issued during the period beginning on April 1 and ending on June 30 expire on June 30 of the following year.
254.64 History
History: 1975 c. 413 ss.
13,
18; Stats. 1975 s. 50.51;
1983 a. 163,
203;
1987 a. 27,
81,
399;
1989 a. 31;
1993 a. 16 ss.
1491,
1492;
1993 a. 27 s.
67; Stats. 1993 s. 254.64;
1993 a. 183,
491;
1997 a. 191.
254.65(1)(1) The department or a local health department granted agent status under
s. 254.69 (2) may not grant a permit to a person intending to operate a new hotel, tourist rooming house, bed and breakfast establishment, restaurant or vending machine commissary or to a person intending to be the new operator of an existing hotel, tourist rooming house, bed and breakfast establishment, restaurant or vending machine commissary without a preinspection. This section does not apply to a temporary restaurant or when a permit is transferred under
s. 254.64 (4) (d).
254.65(2)
(2) Agents designated by the department under
s. 254.69 (1) shall make preinspections of vending machine commissaries as required under this subsection and shall be reimbursed for those services at the rate of 80% of the preinspection fee designated in this subsection. Agents designated by the department under
s. 254.69 (2) shall make preinspections of hotels, restaurants and tourist rooming houses and establish and collect preinspection fees under
s. 254.69 (2) (d).
254.65 History
History: 1983 a. 203 ss.
10,
16,
19;
1983 a. 538;
1987 a. 27,
81;
1993 a. 27 s.
68; Stats. 1993 s. 254.65.
254.66
254.66
Average annual surveys. The department or a local health department granted agent status under
s. 254.69 (2) shall annually make a number of inspections of restaurants in this state that shall equal the number of restaurants for which annual permits are issued under
s. 254.64 (1) (a).
254.66 History
History: 1987 a. 27;
1993 a. 27 s.
69; Stats. 1993 s. 254.66.
254.67
254.67
Vending machine commissary outside the state. Foods, beverages and ingredients from commissaries outside the state may be sold within the state if such commissaries conform to the provisions of the food establishment sanitation rules of this state or to substantially equivalent provisions. To determine the extent of compliance with such provisions, the department may accept reports from the responsible authority in the jurisdiction where the commissaries are located.
254.67 History
History: 1975 c. 413 s.
13; Stats. 1975 s. 50.52;
1993 a. 27 s.
70; Stats. 1993 s. 254.67.
254.68
254.68
Fees. Except as provided in
s. 254.69 (2) (d) and
(e), the department shall promulgate rules that establish, for permits issued under
s. 254.64, permit fees, preinspection fees and late fees for untimely permit renewal.
254.69
254.69
Agent status for local health departments. 254.69(1)(1)
Vending operations. In the administration and enforcement of this subchapter, the department may use local health departments as its agents in making inspections and investigations of vending machine commissaries, vending machine operators and vending machines if the jurisdictional area of the local health department has a population greater than 5,000. If the designation is made and the services are furnished, the department shall reimburse the local health department furnishing the service at the rate of 80% of the net license fee per license per year issued in the jurisdictional area.
254.69(2)
(2) Hotels, restaurants, tourist rooming houses and other establishments. 254.69(2)(am)(am) In the administration of this subchapter or
s. 254.47, the department may enter into a written agreement with a local health department with a jurisdictional area that has a population greater than 5,000, which designates the local health department as the department's agent in issuing permits to and making investigations or inspections of hotels, restaurants, temporary restaurants, tourist rooming houses, bed and breakfast establishments, campgrounds and camping resorts, recreational and educational camps and public swimming pools. In a jurisdictional area of a local health department without agent status, the department of health and family services may issue permits, collect permit fees established by rule under
s. 254.68 and make investigations or inspections of hotels, restaurants, temporary restaurants, tourist rooming houses, bed and breakfast establishments, campgrounds and camping resorts, recreational and educational camps and public swimming pools. If the department designates a local health department as its agent, the department or local health department may require no permit for the same operations other than the permit issued by the local health department under this subsection. The department shall coordinate the designation of agents under this subsection with the department of agriculture, trade and consumer protection to ensure that, to the extent feasible, the same local health department is granted agent status under this subsection and under
s. 97.41. Except as otherwise provided by the department, a local health department granted agent status shall regulate all types of establishments for which this subchapter permits the department of health and family services to delegate regulatory authority.
254.69(2)(b)
(b) A local health department granted agent status under this subsection shall meet standards promulgated, by rule, by the department of health and family services. The department shall annually evaluate the licensing, investigation and inspection program of each local health department granted agent status. If, at any time, a local health department granted agent status fails to meet the standards, the department of health and family services may revoke its agent status.
254.69(2)(c)
(c) The department shall provide education and training to agents designated under this subsection to ensure uniformity in the enforcement of this subchapter,
s. 254.47 and rules promulgated under this subchapter and
s. 254.47.
254.69(2)(d)
(d) Except as provided in
par. (dm), a local health department granted agent status under this subsection shall establish and collect the permit fee for each type of establishment. The local health department may establish separate fees for preinspections of new establishments, for preinspections of existing establishments for which a person intends to be the new operator or for the issuance of duplicate permits. No fee may exceed the local health department's reasonable costs of issuing permits to, making investigations and inspections of, and providing education, training and technical assistance to the establishments, plus the state fee established under
par. (e). A local health department granted agent status under this subsection or under
s. 97.41 may issue a single permit and establish and collect a single fee which authorizes the operation on the same premises of more than one type of establishment for which it is granted agent status under this subsection or under
s. 97.41.
254.69(2)(dm)
(dm) A local health department granted agent status under this subsection may contract with the department of health and family services for the department of health and family services to collect fees and issue permits. The department shall collect from the local health department the actual and reasonable cost of providing the services.
254.69(2)(e)
(e) The department shall establish state fees for its costs related to setting standards under this subchapter and
s. 254.47 and monitoring and evaluating the activities of, and providing education and training to, agent local health departments. Agent local health departments shall include the state fees in the permit fees established under
par. (d), collect the state fees and reimburse the department for the state fees collected. For each type of establishment, the state fee may not exceed 20% of the permit fees charged under
ss. 254.47 and
254.68.
254.69(2)(f)
(f) If, under this subsection, a local health department becomes an agent or its agent status is discontinued during a permittee's permit year, the department of health and family services and the local health department shall divide any permit fee paid by the permittee for that permit year according to the proportions of the permit year occurring before and after the local health department's agent status is granted or discontinued. No additional fee may be required during the permit year due to the change in agent status.
254.69(2)(g)
(g) A village, city or county may adopt ordinances and a local board of health may adopt regulations regarding the permittees and premises for which the local health department is the designated agent under this subsection, which are stricter than this subchapter,
s. 254.47 or rules promulgated by the department of health and family services under this subchapter or
s. 254.47. No such provision may conflict with this subchapter or with department rules.
254.69(2)(h)
(h) This subsection does not limit the authority of the department to inspect establishments in jurisdictional areas of local health departments where agent status is granted if it inspects in response to an emergency, for the purpose of monitoring and evaluating the local health department's licensing, inspection and enforcement program or at the request of the local health department.
254.69(2)(j)
(j) The department shall hold a hearing under
ch. 227 if any interested person, in lieu of proceeding under
ch. 68, appeals to the department alleging either of the following:
254.69(2)(j)1.
1. A permit fee established by a local health department granted agent status exceeds the reasonable costs described under
par. (d).
254.69(2)(j)2.
2. The person issuing, refusing to issue, suspending or revoking a permit or making an investigation or inspection of the appellant has a financial interest in a regulated establishment which may interfere with his or her ability to properly take that action.
254.70(1)(1) An applicant for a permit under this subchapter shall complete the application prepared by the department or the local health department granted agent status under
s. 254.69 (2) and provide, in writing, any additional information the department of health and family services or local health department issuing the permit requires.
254.70(2)
(2) Upon receipt of an application for a vending machine operator permit, the department may cause an investigation to be made of the applicant's commissary, servicing and transport facilities, if any, and representative machines and machine locations. The operator shall maintain at his or her place of business within this state a list of all vending machines operated by him or her and their location. This information shall be kept current and shall be made available to the department upon request. The operator shall notify the department of any change in operations involving new types of vending machines or conversion of existing machines to dispense products other than those for which such machine was originally designed and constructed.
254.70 History
History: 1975 c. 413 s.
13; Stats. 1975 s. 50.54;
1983 a. 163,
203,
538;
1987 a. 27 s.
3200 (24) (am);
1993 a. 27 s.
73; Stats. 1993 s. 254.70;
1995 a. 27 s.
9126 (19).
254.71
254.71
Certificate of food protection practices. 254.71(1)(1) After January 1, 1995, no person may conduct, maintain, manage or operate a restaurant unless the operator or manager of the restaurant holds a current, valid certificate of food protection practices issued by the department.
254.71(2)
(2) Except as provided in
s. 250.041, the department may issue a certificate of food protection practices to an individual who satisfactorily completes a written examination, approved by the department, that demonstrates the individual's basic knowledge of food protection practices or who has achieved comparable compliance.
254.71(3)
(3) Each certificate is valid for 5 years from the date of issuance and, except as provided in
s. 250.041, may be renewed by the holder of the certificate if he or she satisfactorily completes a recertification training course approved by the department.
254.71(4)
(4) The council on food protection practices shall advise the department concerning the requirements of this section.
254.71(5)
(5) The department shall conduct evaluations of the effect that the food protection practices certification program has on compliance by restaurants with requirements established under
s. 254.74 (1) and provide the evaluations, as requested, to the council on food protection practices.
Effective date note
NOTE: Sub. (5) is amended eff. 7-1-99 by
1997 Wis. Act 27 to read:
Effective date text
(5) The department shall conduct evaluations of the effect that the food protection practices certification program has on compliance by restaurants with requirements established under s. 254.74 (1).
254.71(6)
(6) The department, after consulting with the council on food protection practices, shall promulgate rules concerning all of the following:
