Current through Bulletin 2024-06, March 15, 2024
(1)
The Commissioner may suspend a registration:
(a) whenever an inspection of the food
establishment reveals that the establishment has critical or repeat violations
that remain uncorrected beyond the negotiated period of time.
(b) when there exists in a food establishment
an immediate and substantial hazard to public health, unless the hazard is
immediately corrected. The Commissioner may temporarily suspend the
registration of the food establishment without prior notice, informal hearing,
and order the food establishment immediately closed by issuing an order in
writing. An immediate and substantial hazard to the public health means any
condition, based upon inspection findings or other evidence that:
(i) there is an imminent threat of food-borne
illness or disease transmission; or
(ii) there is a hazardous condition including
but not limited to critical control points without adequate control measures,
contamination from wastewater, or non-potable water supply.
(c) in the event of a natural
disaster, the Commissioner has the authority to order an establishment
immediately closed if, in the opinion of the Commissioner the establishment
cannot operate in a safe and sanitary manner. Conditions for immediate closure
can include but are not limited to the following: No water supply, no electric
power, flooding, or significant damage to the establishment. The Commissioner
shall decide under what conditions the establishment will be allowed to
reopen.
(d) whenever an owner or
operator of a food establishment denies access to authorized personnel during
normal business hours and does not allow them to conduct regulatory
activities.
(2) The
procedures for suspending the registration are as follows:
(a) the Commissioner shall notify the holder
of the registration or the designated person-in-charge, in writing, when a
registration is to be suspended;
(i) the
Commissioner shall state specific reasons for which the registration is to be
suspended; and
(ii) the
Commissioner shall offer an opportunity to a person whose registration is
suspended for an informal hearing as per
R51-2-6, provided a
written request for an informal hearing is filed with the Commissioner by the
registration holder no later than ten business days, after receipt of the
notice;
(b) the
establishment shall be closed and shall remain closed until the registration
has been reinstated;
(c) a person
whose registration has been suspended may request a re-inspection. Upon receipt
of the request, the Department will conduct the inspection within three
business days. The registration may be reinstated if the inspection shows the
violation(s) that led to the suspension is corrected;
(3) the Department may suspend the operations
for one processing area of an establishment without suspending the registration
for the entire food establishment if the reason for suspension is isolated to
that processing area and does not affect other areas of the
establishment.
(4) if a food
establishment voluntarily closes due to an immediate and substantial hazard to
public health, the food establishment shall notify the Department prior to
reopening.
(5) when a third
administrative enforcement action is assessed against a registered
establishment within any twelve-month period of time, the Department may
initiate proceedings to suspend the registration.
(6) the registration shall be suspended and
in effect until the conditions no longer exist or the Commissioner affirms,
modifies, or rescinds the order as appropriate.
