To: Charles Winfrey, Human Services Committee Chairperson
From: Michelle Estell, RS, MSA, Interim Health Officer
title
RE: Approval to increase Environmental Health license fees
recommendation
BOARD ACTION REQUESTED:
Approval to increase food service license fees.
BACKGROUND:
STFUs (Special Transitory Food Unit - food truck) are a restaurant on wheels. They are allowed to operate in any county in the State of Michigan once they are licensed. Two, paid inspections a year are required. STFUs are required to submit an "intent to serve" to the County they will be operating in and for how many days they will be operating, at a specific location. Every time they relocate to another location, an intent must be submitted. Many times, STFUs ignore this requirement and sanitarians discover them operating, while performing inspections at an event; this causes longer inspections and additional time, usually overtime. The amount of licensed STFUs has increased from 56 in 2022, to 94 in 2023; EH projects adding approximately five to ten more in 2024
DISCUSSION:
EH would like to increase the license fee and enforcement fee for STFUs. Two bills (2023-HEBH-4989 and 2023-SEBS-0506) passed in the House and Senate, September 19, 2023, allowing local health in the State of Michigan, to set their own STFU annual license fees; this flat fee of $160.00 was the same for the entire State previously. In addition to the annual license fee, two paid inspections of $90.00 are also required. The two $90.00 paid inspections still exist in law; currently, there is a proposed bill to have the paid inspection fees to be set by local health, not law; the bill has not yet reached legislature. EH would like to increase and create the following fees: Annual license fee $160.00 increased to $300.00 STFUs found operating without submitting an intent to serve - $80.00 (we currently charge an $80.00 late fee for temporaries for obtaining a license under the five day requirement) These units would ...
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