CS/HB 445

1
A bill to be entitled
2An act relating to the Department of Business and
3Professional Regulation; amending s. 20.165, F.S.;
4establishing the Division of Service Operations within the
5department; amending s. 455.217, F.S.; transferring
6certain duties of the Division of Technology relating to
7examinations to the Division of Service Operations;
8requiring the department to use outside qualified testing
9vendors under certain conditions; deleting a requirement
10that the appropriate board approve the department's use of
11professional testing services; amending s. 509.233, F.S.;
12authorizing local governments to establish, by ordinance,
13local exemption procedures to allow patrons' dogs within
14certain designated outdoor portions of public food service
15establishments; deleting provisions for a pilot program
16that limits the authority for such local exemption
17procedures to a specified time; deleting a provision that
18provides for the future review and repeal of such pilot
19program; providing an effective date.
20
21Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
22
23     Section 1.  Paragraph (k) is added to subsection (2) of
24section 20.165, Florida Statutes, to read:
25     20.165  Department of Business and Professional
26Regulation.--There is created a Department of Business and
27Professional Regulation.
28     (2)  The following divisions of the Department of Business
29and Professional Regulation are established:
30     (k)  Division of Service Operations.
31     Section 2.  Subsection (1) of section 455.217, Florida
32Statutes, is amended to read:
33     455.217  Examinations.--This section shall be read in
34conjunction with the appropriate practice act associated with
35each regulated profession under this chapter.
36     (1)  The Division of Service Operations Technology of the
37Department of Business and Professional Regulation shall
38provide, contract, or approve services for the development,
39preparation, administration, scoring, score reporting, and
40evaluation of all examinations. The division shall seek the
41advice of the appropriate board in providing such services.
42     (a)  The department, acting in conjunction with the
43Division of Service Operations Technology and the Division of
44Real Estate, as appropriate, shall ensure that examinations
45adequately and reliably measure an applicant's ability to
46practice the profession regulated by the department. After an
47examination developed or approved by the department has been
48administered, the board or department may reject any question
49which does not reliably measure the general areas of competency
50specified in the rules of the board or department, when there is
51no board. The department shall use outside qualified
52professional testing vendors services for the development,
53preparation, and evaluation of examinations, when the use of
54such vendors is economically and viably services are available
55and approved by the board.
56     (b)  For each examination developed by the department or
57contracted vendor, to the extent not otherwise specified by
58statute, the board or the department when there is no board,
59shall by rule specify the general areas of competency to be
60covered by the examination, the relative weight to be assigned
61in grading each area tested, the score necessary to achieve a
62passing grade, and the fees, where applicable, to cover the
63actual cost for any purchase, development, and administration of
64the required examination. However, statutory fee caps in each
65practice act shall apply. This subsection does not apply to
66national examinations approved and administered pursuant to
67paragraph (d).
68     (c)  If a practical examination is deemed to be necessary,
69rules shall specify the criteria by which examiners are to be
70selected, the grading criteria to be used by the examiner, the
71relative weight to be assigned in grading each criterion, and
72the score necessary to achieve a passing grade. When a mandatory
73standardization exercise for a practical examination is required
74by law, the board may conduct such exercise. Therefore, board
75members may serve as examiners at a practical examination with
76the consent of the board.
77     (d)  A board, or the department when there is no board, may
78approve by rule the use of any national examination which the
79department has certified as meeting requirements of national
80examinations and generally accepted testing standards pursuant
81to department rules. Providers of examinations, which may be
82either profit or nonprofit entities, seeking certification by
83the department shall pay the actual costs incurred by the
84department in making a determination regarding the
85certification. The department shall use any national examination
86which is available, certified by the department, and approved by
87the board. The name and number of a candidate may be provided to
88a national contractor for the limited purpose of preparing the
89grade tape and information to be returned to the board or
90department or, to the extent otherwise specified by rule, the
91candidate may apply directly to the vendor of the national
92examination. The department may delegate to the board the duty
93to provide and administer the examination. Any national
94examination approved by a board, or the department when there is
95no board, prior to October 1, 1997, is deemed certified under
96this paragraph. Any licensing or certification examination that
97is not developed or administered by the department in-house or
98provided as a national examination shall be competitively bid.
99     (e)  The department shall adopt rules regarding the
100security and monitoring of examinations. In order to maintain
101the security of examinations, the department may employ the
102procedures set forth in s. 455.228 to seek fines and injunctive
103relief against an examinee who violates the provisions of s.
104455.2175 or the rules adopted pursuant to this paragraph. The
105department, or any agent thereof, may, for the purposes of
106investigation, confiscate any written, photographic, or
107recording material or device in the possession of the examinee
108at the examination site which the department deems necessary to
109enforce such provisions or rules.
110     (f)  If the professional board with jurisdiction over an
111examination concurs, the department may, for a fee, share with
112any other state's licensing authority an examination developed
113by or for the department unless prohibited by a contract entered
114into by the department for development or purchase of the
115examination. The department, with the concurrence of the
116appropriate board, shall establish guidelines that ensure
117security of a shared exam and shall require that any other
118state's licensing authority comply with those guidelines. Those
119guidelines shall be approved by the appropriate professional
120board. All fees paid by the user shall be applied to the
121department's examination and development program for professions
122regulated by this chapter. All fees paid by the user for
123professions not regulated by this chapter shall be applied to
124offset the fees for the development and administration of that
125profession's examination. If both a written and a practical
126examination are given, an applicant shall be required to retake
127only the portion of the examination for which he or she failed
128to achieve a passing grade, if he or she successfully passes
129that portion within a reasonable time of his or her passing the
130other portion.
131     Section 3.  Section 509.233, Florida Statutes, is amended
132to read:
133     509.233  Public food service establishment requirements;
134local exemption for dogs in designated outdoor portions; pilot
135program.--
136     (1)  INTENT.--It is the intent of the Legislature by this
137section to establish a 3-year pilot program for local
138governments to allow patrons' dogs within certain designated
139outdoor portions of public food service establishments.
140     (1)(2)  LOCAL EXEMPTION AUTHORIZED.--Notwithstanding s.
141509.032(7), the governing body of a local government may
142participating in the pilot program is authorized to establish,
143by ordinance, a local exemption procedure to certain provisions
144of the Food and Drug Administration Food Code, as currently
145adopted by the division, in order to allow patrons' dogs within
146certain designated outdoor portions of public food service
147establishments.
148     (2)(3)  LOCAL DISCRETION; CODIFICATION.--
149     (a)  The adoption of the local exemption procedure shall be
150at the sole discretion of the governing body of a participating
151local government. Nothing in this section shall be construed to
152require or compel a local governing body to adopt an ordinance
153pursuant to this section.
154     (b)  Any ordinance adopted pursuant to this section shall
155provide for codification within the land development code of a
156participating local government.
157     (3)(4)  LIMITATIONS ON EXEMPTION; PERMIT REQUIREMENTS.--
158     (a)  Any local exemption procedure adopted pursuant to this
159section shall only provide a variance to those portions of the
160currently adopted Food and Drug Administration Food Code in
161order to allow patrons' dogs within certain designated outdoor
162portions of public food service establishments.
163     (b)  In order to protect the health, safety, and general
164welfare of the public, the local exemption procedure shall
165require participating public food service establishments to
166apply for and receive a permit from the governing body of the
167local government before allowing patrons' dogs on their
168premises. The local government shall require from the applicant
169such information as the local government deems reasonably
170necessary to enforce the provisions of this section, but shall
171require, at a minimum, the following information:
172     1.  The name, location, and mailing address of the public
173food service establishment.
174     2.  The name, mailing address, and telephone contact
175information of the permit applicant.
176     3.  A diagram and description of the outdoor area to be
177designated as available to patrons' dogs, including dimensions
178of the designated area; a depiction of the number and placement
179of tables, chairs, and restaurant equipment, if any; the
180entryways and exits to the designated outdoor area; the
181boundaries of the designated area and of other areas of outdoor
182dining not available for patrons' dogs; any fences or other
183barriers; surrounding property lines and public rights-of-way,
184including sidewalks and common pathways; and such other
185information reasonably required by the permitting authority. The
186diagram or plan shall be accurate and to scale but need not be
187prepared by a licensed design professional.
188     4.  A description of the days of the week and hours of
189operation that patrons' dogs will be permitted in the designated
190outdoor area.
191     (c)  In order to protect the health, safety, and general
192welfare of the public, the local exemption ordinance shall
193include such regulations and limitations as deemed necessary by
194the participating local government and shall include, but not be
195limited to, the following requirements:
196     1.  All public food service establishment employees shall
197wash their hands promptly after touching, petting, or otherwise
198handling dogs. Employees shall be prohibited from touching,
199petting, or otherwise handling dogs while serving food or
200beverages or handling tableware or before entering other parts
201of the public food service establishment.
202     2.  Patrons in a designated outdoor area shall be advised
203that they should wash their hands before eating. Waterless hand
204sanitizer shall be provided at all tables in the designated
205outdoor area.
206     3.  Employees and patrons shall be instructed that they
207shall not allow dogs to come into contact with serving dishes,
208utensils, tableware, linens, paper products, or any other items
209involved in food service operations.
210     4.  Patrons shall keep their dogs on a leash at all times
211and shall keep their dogs under reasonable control.
212     5.  Dogs shall not be allowed on chairs, tables, or other
213furnishings.
214     6.  All table and chair surfaces shall be cleaned and
215sanitized with an approved product between seating of patrons.
216Spilled food and drink shall be removed from the floor or ground
217between seating of patrons.
218     7.  Accidents involving dog waste shall be cleaned
219immediately and the area sanitized with an approved product. A
220kit with the appropriate materials for this purpose shall be
221kept near the designated outdoor area.
222     8.  A sign or signs reminding employees of the applicable
223rules shall be posted on premises in a manner and place as
224determined by the local permitting authority.
225     9.  A sign or signs reminding patrons of the applicable
226rules shall be posted on premises in a manner and place as
227determined by the local permitting authority.
228     10.  A sign or signs shall be posted in a manner and place
229as determined by the local permitting authority that places the
230public on notice that the designated outdoor area is available
231for the use of patrons and patrons' dogs.
232     11.  Dogs shall not be permitted to travel through indoor
233or nondesignated outdoor portions of the public food service
234establishment, and ingress and egress to the designated outdoor
235portions of the public food service establishment must not
236require entrance into or passage through any indoor area of the
237food establishment.
238     (d)  A permit issued pursuant to this section shall not be
239transferred to a subsequent owner upon the sale of a public food
240service establishment but shall expire automatically upon the
241sale of the establishment. The subsequent owner shall be
242required to reapply for a permit pursuant to this section if the
243subsequent owner wishes to continue to accommodate patrons'
244dogs.
245     (4)(5)  POWERS; ENFORCEMENT.--Participating local
246governments shall have such powers as are reasonably necessary
247to regulate and enforce the provisions of this section.
248     (5)(6)  STATE AND LOCAL COOPERATION.--The division shall
249provide reasonable assistance to participating local governments
250in the development of enforcement procedures and regulations,
251and participating local governments shall monitor permitholders
252for compliance in cooperation with the division. At a minimum,
253participating local governments shall establish a procedure to
254accept, document, and respond to complaints and to timely report
255to the division all such complaints and the participating local
256governments' enforcement responses to such complaints. A
257participating local government shall provide the division with a
258copy of all approved applications and permits issued, and the
259participating local government shall require that all
260applications, permits, and other related materials contain the
261appropriate division-issued license number for each public food
262service establishment.
263     (7)  FUTURE REVIEW AND REPEAL.--This section shall expire
264July 1, 2009, unless reviewed and saved from repeal through
265reenactment by the Legislature.
266     Section 4.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2009.


CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.