Authority of Commissioner

  1. Law
  2. Tennessee Code
  3. Health, Safety and Environmental Protection
  4. Hotels, Food Service Establishments and Swimming Pools
  5. Tennessee Food Safety Act
  6. Authority of Commissioner

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The commissioner is authorized to:

  1. Carry out or cause to be carried out all provisions of this part;
  2. Collect all fees established pursuant to this part and apply the fees in accordance with the procedures of the department of finance and administration to the necessary and incidental costs of the administration of this part. Nothing in this subdivision (2) shall be construed to prohibit the department from receiving by way of general appropriation such sums as may be required to fund adequately the implementation of this part, as recommended in the annual budget by the governor to the general assembly;
  3. Prescribe rules and regulations, including emergency rules, governing the alteration, construction, sanitation, safety of food and operation of food service establishments as may be necessary to protect the health and safety of the public, and require food service establishments to comply with these rules and regulations. A non-elected body of any municipality, county, or metropolitan government shall not enact any ordinance or issue any rule or regulation pertaining to food safety or the provision of nutritional information related to food or drink, or otherwise regulate menus at food service establishments. If, upon July 1, 2015, the federal government takes action regarding the provision of food nutritional information at food service establishments, and the federal action specifically authorizes state agencies to enforce such action, then the department of health shall be the department that is primarily responsible for the implementation and supervision of any new requirements and shall have the authority to promulgate rules and regulations, pursuant to the Uniform Administrative Procedures Act, compiled in title 4, chapter 5, as are necessary to effectuate the purposes of such requirements. The rules and regulations prohibiting live animals in the presence of dining facilities shall be waived if an adequately engineered forced air exhaust system is installed for the permitted facility. The rules and regulations requiring that food be obtained from sources that comply with all laws relating to food and food labeling shall be waived for churches, temples, synagogues and other religious institutions, civic, fraternal or veterans' organizations, if the food is served only to the homeless and the food is prepared in a church, temple, synagogue or other religious institution, civic, fraternal, or veterans' organization or in a private home or homes by persons who have successfully completed a training course of at least two (2) hours, conducted by the department, and the consumer is informed by a clearly visible placard, readily understandable to the average person, stating that the food may have been prepared in a facility that is not subject to regulation or inspection by the department. The commissioner shall not prescribe any such rules and regulations in conflict with the minimum statewide building construction standards established by the state fire marshal pursuant to § 68-120-101. The rules with respect to food temperature shall be specific with respect to the types of food prepared and the risks presented by those foods. Except as specifically provided herein, the commissioner may adopt, by rule and regulation, all or part of the Food Code;
  4. Inspect or cause to be inspected as often as the commissioner, in the commissioner's discretion, may deem necessary, every food service establishment in the state as authorized by this part, with the exception of those food service establishments licensed by the department of mental health, to determine compliance with this part and with rules and regulations;
  5. Issue or cause to be issued, suspend, and revoke permits to operate food service establishments as provided in this part;
  6. Notify the owner, proprietor, or agent of any food service establishment of such changes or alterations as may be necessary to effect complete compliance with this part and with rules and regulations governing the construction, alteration, and operation of the facilities, and close the facilities for failure to comply within specified times as provided in this part and rules and regulations;
  7. Enter into agreements or contracts with county health departments for the departments to implement this part or its equivalent in their areas of jurisdiction, if the commissioner deems it to be appropriate; provided, that the following conditions shall apply:
    1. State reporting requirements shall be met by the county health department or departments;
    2. The county health department program standards shall be identical to those of the state law and to rules and regulations;
    3. The commissioner shall retain the right to exercise oversight and evaluation of performance of the county health department or departments and terminate the agreement or contract for cause immediately or otherwise upon reasonable notice;
    4. The commissioner may set such other fiscal, administrative, or program requirements as the commissioner deems necessary to maintain consistency and integrity of the statewide program;
    5. Staffing and resources shall be adequate to implement and enforce the program in the local jurisdiction; and
    6. Contract county health departments that collect the applicable permit fees from food establishments located within the county shall retain one hundred percent (100%) of the permit fees and penalty fees. Contract counties that utilize the services of the department for the collection of permit fees shall receive ninety-five percent (95%) of permit fees collected within a contract county pursuant to §§ 68-14-705 — 68-14-707. This amount shall be calculated based upon fees collected in the contract county during the state's fiscal year multiplied by ninety-five percent (95%);
    1. Upon the application of a food service establishment for a variance based on a showing of good cause and an affirmative demonstration that the risks to the public attendant to the limited activities have been mitigated, the commissioner shall grant the establishment a variance from the limitations in the Food Code regarding restrictions pertaining to bare hand contact. A request for a variance shall be granted or denied within sixty (60) days of the commissioner's receipt of the application for variance. A request for a variance shall include the following information:
      1. A listing of the specific ready-to-eat foods that are touched by bare hands;
      2. Diagrams and other information showing that hand washing facilities are located and equipped as prescribed by the applicable provisions of the Food Code;
      3. An employee health policy documenting that the food service establishment complies with:
  1. The person in charge requirements; and
  2. Requirements for monitoring the health of food service employees;
  3. Proper fingernail maintenance;
  4. Prohibition on jewelry;
  5. Good hygienic practices; and

Documentation that food service employees have received training on the:

Risks of contacting ready-to-eat foods with bare hands;

Proper hand washing;

Documentation that food employees contacting ready-to-eat foods with bare hands used two (2) or more of the following control measures:

Double hand washing;

Nail brushes;

A hand antiseptic after hand washing;

Incentive programs that assist or encourage food service employees not to work when they are ill; or

Other control measures approved by the commissioner; and

Notwithstanding any provision of the Food Code to the contrary, the commissioner shall not require any further documentation for the granting of a variance other than those contained in this section.


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