City of Oak Creek

Common Council Report

Meeting Date:  06/20/06

Item No.:        

Recommendation:     INFORMATIONAL PRESENTATION & DISCUSSION

Presentation by Greg Pallaske of Wis. Dept. of Health & Family Services on the Agent Program for Local Food Safety Protection, and discussion of the City becoming an agent of the state for Sanitarian duties.

Background: 

The Wis. Dept. of Health & Family Services (DHFS) is the state agency that oversees investigation, licensing and inspection of restaurants and temporary restaurants.  The agency’s oversight also includes inspections of hotels, motels, tourist rooming houses, bed and breakfast establishments, vending machine commissaries, campgrounds, recreational-educational camps, public swimming pools, body-art establishments and school food services programs. 

Mr. Pallaske will be attending the Council meeting to provide information on current DHFS activities, and information that illustrates how local public health departments with registered Sanitarians can improve food safety in their communities.  He will also discuss the City’s becoming an agent of the state, and the duties, requirements and ramifications for the City in being named as an agent.

Currently, in this area, only Oak Creek, Franklin and Greendale have no Sanitarian.  There have been discussions recently, among representatives for these three communities, to share the services of a full-time Sanitarian by either hiring or by contracting with an outside agency, but this arrangement has not developed because the other communities each preferred to proceed on their own.

Fiscal Impact: 

None.  In the event the City takes steps to be named as an agent of the state for DHFS, the City would incur costs for providing licensing, inspections and Sanitarian services, although the state does not provide for any payment to the community.  The City would be allowed to establish licensing fees to cover costs.

	Respectfully submitted, Patrick DeGrave City Administrator
Prepared by and fiscal review by: Beverly A. Buretta, CMC City Clerk/Comptroller