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Resolution of the County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, recommending that information regarding Food Safety Inspection Reports be placed on the Allegheny County Health Department's website as a means to increase access to public information regarding food operations in restaurants, eating establishments, and other facilities which provide food to the public.
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WHEREAS, the Allegheny County Health Department safeguards public health through the application of the principles of food safety, foodborne illness prevention, and environmental health in food facilities thoughts its Food Safety Division; and
WHEREAS, all food operations including restaurants, eating establishments, hospitals, nursing homes, personal care homes, schools, retail stores, food processors, caterers, warehouses, food stands, and food facilities which serve the public are inspected on a routine basis to insure that food safety guidelines, as established in Departmental regulations, are complied with by the facility; and
WHEREAS, the inspection reports, containing information on how each facility fares when inspected by the Food Safety Division, are public documents currently accessible by visiting or contacting the Penn Avenue offices of the division in Lawrenceville; and
WHEREAS, an estimated 76 million people nationwide get sick each year from the food they eat, roughly one-quarter of the population, although estimates are based on the small fraction of cases that are reported or identified; and public information regarding food safety can be integral to identifying those restaurants and eating establishments which are most cognizant of food safety; and
WHEREAS, providing food inspection reports online will increase the accessibility of such information to the general public and may also serve as an incentive for eating establishments to make food safety a priority.
The Council of the County of Allegheny hereby resolves as follows:
SECTION 1.
The Allegheny County Health Department is encouraged to act with all due diligence to post information regarding Food Safety Inspection Reports on the Department's website as a means to increase access to public information regarding food operations in restaurants, eating establishments, and other facilities which provide food to the public.
SECTION 2. If any provision of this Resolution shall be determined to be unlawful, invalid, void or unenforceable, then that provision shall be considered severable from the remaining provisions of this Resolution which shall be in full force and effect.
SECTION 3. Any Resolution or Ordinance or part thereof conflicting with the provisions of this Resolution is hereby repealed so far as the same affects this Resolution.