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Department of Environmental Health
Consumer Protection Division
Frequently Asked Questions - New Fee Schedule


  1. Why are the fees changing?

    2. To comply with a recent public initiative to ensure fairness and equity in government fees, the Department of Environmental Health conducted an extensive study to realign service fees with the full cost of providing related services and activities. The study showed that the Consumer Protection Division was not recovering full costs for services, and permit fees did not accurately reflect the time spent overseeing specific program areas.

  2. Will my fees increase?

    3. Some fees will go up, while others will decrease.

  3. Do the new fees impact me or my business?

    4. All permitted facilities in the Consumer Protection Division will see a change in their fees. The increase or decrease in your total fees depends upon the size and public health risk of your operation(s).   Please refer to the proposed fee schedule below for details.

  4. Why do I have to pay fees?

    5. The Consumer Protection Division implements State-mandated and local programs to protect human health, safety, and the environment. Those programs are designed to protect public health, and provide valuable compliance information for businesses receiving services. Costs for providing the services are not subsidized by the State or County General Fund. Operating Permit and Service fees are necessary to cover the cost of implementing the food, pool, land use, water, and plan check programs.

  5. What do I get for those fees?

    6. We perform a variety of activities and services including, but not limited to:

    • Routine, follow-up and complaint inspections
    • Plan Check Construction plan reviews, correspondence, revisions, inspections
    • Foodborne Illness Investigations
    • Food recall notifications
    • Public information and outreach
    • Training
    • Enforcement against unpermitted and non-compliant facilities
    • Customer assurance; cleanliness, sanitation and food safety

  6. When do the proposed fees go into effect?

    7. The fees will become effective July 1, 2012.

  7. What does Risk Category mean for my food facility and how do I know what category I’m in?

    8. The Risk Category designation for food facilities was developed by the Federal Food and Drug Administration, after extensive research on illnesses was conducted nationwide, and is based on the complexity food preparation (i.e., the risk of foodborne illness) of those foods being offered for sale. The permit fee for a facility depends on two criteria: SIZE and COMPLEXITY of operations, as defined by “Risk Category.” The simpler the food operation is, the lower the risk of foodborne illness. The goal is to focus the Department’s limited resources on the areas of our operations that present the highest risk of foodborne and waterborne illness.

    FOOD PREPARATION

    Risk Category

    Description

    1
    • Preparation with no Cook Step or production of PHF *
    • Examples include most convenience stores, bars, bakeries (with only bread products), ice cream parlors, coffee, frozen yogurt stores.
    • Facilities that:
      • Serve or sell only prepackaged, non-PHF
      • Prepare only non-PHF
      • Heat only commercially processed PHF for “hot holding” (no cooking) or,
      • Does not cool PHF
      • “Cold holding” of PHF for dispensing.

    2
    • Preparation is for Same Day Service
    • Examples include Taco Bell, McDonald’s, delicatessens, Subway, pizzerias, KFC, Panda Express.
    • Facilities that have:
      • Limited menu: most products are prepared/cooked and served immediately and with limited hot or cold holding of PHF after preparation (e.g., hamburgers),
      • May include unpackaged PHF products that need further preparation/cooking before serving or,
      • Includes slicing of PHFs and cooking.
      • Complex food preparation requiring cooking, cooling, and reheating for hot holding is limited
    • Prepare foods for same day consumer demand.

    3
    • Full service restaurants
    • Examples include sushi restaurants, Baja Fresh, steak houses, “full service” restaurants, Red Lobsters, Fresh Choice, Hometown buffets, Pho restaurants 
    • Facilities that have:
      • Extensive menu and handling/preparation of raw ingredients,
      • Complex preparation including cooking, cooling and reheating for hot holding or serving involves many PHFs.
    • Processed meat, seafood, poultry or other PHFs by smoking, curing, drying or acidification.
    • Conduct specialized processes such as Reduced Oxygen Packaging for extended shelf-life.
    • Prepares foods for multi-day use.

    *PHF (Potentially Hazardous Food) means food that must remain refrigerated or kept hot to prevent the growth of harmful bacteria that causes foodborne illness.
               

  8. What does Risk Category mean for my pool/spa and how do I know what category I’m in?

    9. Swimming pools and spas will be assigned a Risk Category that reflects the volume of activity/intensity of use that it is subjected to. It is those pools/spas that experience high volume of activity in concentrated time periods that have shown the highest risk to public health, and also have the most problems with their operations and maintenance. Higher risk requires more oversight from our Department. A Risk Category 2 pool or spa will include those located at hotels, community (HOA) pools/spas, and those at apartment complexes. Risk Category 3 pools are those at municipal pools, health clubs, water parks, schools, swim schools, or medical facilities. Spas and pools will no longer be specifically differentiated, but the size of the body of water will be the other criteria for determining the fee.

  9. What if I disagree with the proposed changes or want to make a comment?

    10. We welcome your comments and suggestions!  Written comments may be submitted by fax to (408)280-6479, or by mail to:

    Santa Clara County
    Department of Environmental Health
    Attn: Director, Consumer Protection Division
    1555 Berger Drive, Suite 300
    San Jose, CA  95112-2716