County Board votes down health fees for non-profit

Cathy Ward

via FACEBOOK at 8:50PM Sept 16, 2015

THANKS TO A PACKED HOUSE OF BOONE COUNTY FRIENDS, THE COUNTY BOARD TURNED DOWN THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT'S REQUEST TO ADD FEES TO NON-PROFIT GROUPS. I'm so very proud of those of you who came. The vote was 6 against the fees, two people abstained, one left before the vote, so officially 6-3. It's a terrific honor to represent you, the lifeblood of our county.

THANKS TO A PACKED HOUSE OF BOONE COUNTY FRIENDS, THE COUNTY BOARD TURNED DOWN THE HEALTH DEPARTMENT'S REQUEST TO ADD FEES TO NON-PROFIT GROUPS. I'm so very proud of those of you who came. The vote was 6 against the fees, two people abstained, one left before the vote, so officially 6-3. It's a terrific honor to represent you, the lifeblood of our county. Just to keep the record straight, Sherry Giesecke, Paul Larson and Sherry Branson voted to add on the new fee to non-profits. Ken Freeman, Craig Schultz, Brad Stark, Jeff Carlisle, Bob Walberg and I voted no. Denny Ellingson and Ray Larson abstained and Karl Johnson left early in the meeting before the vote.

Here is the issue which was voted on.

Boone County to consider fees for nonprofits serving food at fundraisers - News - Rockford Register Star - Rockford, IL

By Ben Stanley
BELVIDERE — Nonprofit groups in Boone County may soon have to pay fees to the Health Department to serve food at fundraisers.

For years the Boone County Health Department waived food-permit charges for nonprofits, but the County Board recently backed a measure that changes course. The county is looking to implement permit fees for nonprofits but at a significantly reduced rate.

The County Board will consider the proposal at 6 p.m. Wednesday at the Boone County Administration building. If approved, nonprofits would have to pay 50 percent of the permit fee normally charged to organizations.

Opponents of the proposal say charitable organizations will feel the pinch.

"By the time you (factor in) buying the food and everything, a lot of fundraisers don’t produce that much money," said Marion Thornberry, legislative director of the Illinois State Grange and moderator for St. John's United Church of Christ in Belvidere. The money raised "goes right back into the county to help the homeless and the needy in one way shape or form."

An annual permit allows a group to serve food at essentially as many fundraisers as it wants as long as it meets inspection standards. The price of the permit is based on several factors, including the level of risk associated with the types of foods organizations plan to serve.

According to Health Department records of food permits issued to nonprofits from Sept. 4, 2014, to Sept. 4, 2015, the average price of an annual or seasonal food permit was $216. If the new measure passes, nonprofits would be on the hook, on average, for $108 a year.

Bill Hatfield, director of environmental health for the Health Department, said the maximum fee the county can charge for a high-risk annual food permit is $450, which means the most a nonprofit would have to pay for a permit would be $225.

The new fees are estimated to bring in $9,000 a year.

Health Department officials believe they're one of the only counties in the state still waiving the fees for nonprofits; Winnebago County does not.

“One of the things that’s getting overlooked here is this is a user fee," Hatfield said. "A not-for-profit is choosing to drive down the food highway, and there’s rules, and inspections. They could choose to drive down a road that is not food. They could sell sports equipment. They could sell Popsicle sticks. They could do whatever kind of fundraiser they want and not even have to worry about a food permit. But they’re choosing to do food, and the general public needs to have assurance that the food that’s being offered meets the public health code ... and there are expenses involved."

Page 2 of 2 - Hatfield said the cost of health inspections has risen over the past 40 years as health codes expanded and more stringent rules were put in place.

"We have utilities, building expenses, electrical expenses, benefits, wages. There’s talking on the phone, there’s making permits, there’s issuing permits, there’s making notes in the files, there’s getting things ready to do the inspections, there's the cost of gas, there's time spent on site … most people just want to say, 'well that inspector’s getting $20 an hour and it took him a half-hour to do the inspection, my fee should be $10.' There’s a lot of things involved in the service that are not readily seen."

The Health Department receives tax money and government grants to operate each year, but it has been losing revenue. The county's tax base is dwindling as costs are rising. While waiting on frozen-by-the-budget-stalemate state funding, the department has been digging into its rainy-day fund to, among other things, support its staff.

In its fiscal 2015 budget, the department is projected to expend nearly $60,000 more than it will collect in revenue.

"The money we lose is going to continue to get higher," Administrator Cynthia Frank said. "We totally base what we charge for a permit on what it costs us. That’s how we come up with the fee. But now it’s gone up. So now we are losing even more money than we were before. And there’s more not-for-profits (obtaining free permits) ... we've got to get a handle on it."

But many nonprofits also rely on government funding, so additional expenses — such as permit fees on fundraisers — aren't exactly good news.

“My perspective on the situation is that they’re crazy" at the Health Department, Thornberry said.

Charging nonprofits for food permits will limit their resources, he explained, as well as their ability to effectively care for disadvantaged populations.

"If the nonprofits don’t support the homeless and don’t care for the homeless, who’s going to do that? If the nonprofits stop doing that stuff, it’s going to come back on the county."

Ben Stanley: 815-987-1369; bstanley@rrstar.com; @ben_j_stanley

Mr. Ward also had an opinion piece on the issue.

Hundreds of Boone County volunteers in nonprofit groups will get a clear picture of how much they are valued when the the Boone County Board votes Wednesday on a proposed fee for any food permits for these groups.

The Boone County Health Department is again seeking to impose a fee, snatching a portion of the profits, when church groups, community groups, school groups have dinners, breakfasts, ice cream socials, spaghetti dinners, etc., as fundraising activities.

The agency tried this a couple years ago, but the proposal was defeated; some board members even suggested at the time that the department be eliminated and services be contracted out to other counties. At the time, County Board member Ron Wait, who was a state representative for years, noted that counties are not required to have health departments.

So the department is back again seeking the fee with a new board that, so far, has not seen a fee hike it didn't like.

The proposal has had easy passage from the Health Board; County Board member Sherry Branson and new Health Board member Barb Thrun voted no. At the County Board committee level, only I voted no; Paul Larson, Sherry Giesecke and Ray Larson voted yes.

Health Board official Bill Hatfield says they need the money to help balance the budget, even though figures show more than $500,000 in the combined reserves. He also says the fee will not even cover the costs of the work done to supervise these events. However, sometimes the only work done is to file the permit sheet.

Besides, Boone County residents already pay for the services of the Health Department every time we pay taxes. That's their job! The department also receives many grants, which is also taxpayer money.

When asked how much each nonprofit group would have to pay, Hatfield said: “What is the speed limit in Illinois?” I guess that smart-aleck reply to a legitimate question was meant to mean that each permit could carry a different fee.

Hatfield also claimed that the Boone County Health Department is a nonprofit group. However that is an apples-to-oranges comparison because Health Department staff members are certainly paid (Hatfield's annual salary is more than $62,000, plus health benefits, vacation and holiday pay) while volunteers in nonprofits usually pay for the privilege of serving on these groups with time, gas, dues, buying tickets.

At a time when distrust of many government activities is apparent, it seems a poor time for any board to raise fees for people working hard to help their communities. It will be certainly hard to convince these volunteers of the statement “We're from the government. We're here to help.”

The County Board will meet at 6:30 p.m. at the Logan Avenue Administration Building.  (Wednesday, September 16, 2015)

Much of the attention to the issue was caused by several stories in the Belvidere Daily Republican by Lisa Rodgers.

Committee votes in favor 3-1 for food permit fees for non-profits

Committee votes in favor 3-1 for food permit fees for non-profits

Posted by RVPEditor / In Belvidere Daily Republican, Public Meetings

By Lisa Rodgers

Reporter

BOONE COUNTY: Once again the Boone County Board is being asked to approve food permit fees for nonprofit (NFP) organizations.

The Boone County Board denied a previous request. Originating from Boone County Health Department (BCHD) staff followed by approval by the Boone County Board of Health, the request was forwarded to Boone County Health and Human Services Committee for discussion and vote.

On Sept. 3, the Health and Human Services Committee (HHS) had its monthly meeting and on their agenda was the fee request from the BCHD.  Committee members present were Chairman Paul Larson, Sherry Giesecke, Raymond Larson, and Cathy Ward, Ex-Official Bob Walberg, and Vice-Chairman Sherry Branson was absent.

Discussion began and at the onset Cathy Ward stated she had just come from a Keen Age meeting prior to the HHS Committee meeting.  Ward brought forth that she had heard the laws were changing and that rhubarb might now be permissible.

Public Health Administrator Cynthia Frank and Director of Environmental Health Bill Hatfield were seated at the table and included in the discussion.  Neither Frank nor Hatfield responded either confirming or refuting Ward’s statement.

“Taxpayers are publically subsidizing the NFP’s by not having fees on the food permits.  The health department is losing revenue.  Based on the NFP applications the health department has lost $18,370 in total fees not collected.  This would have been collected without a waiver.  It is a total loss of revenue,” Hatfield said.

Further discussion continued and the amount with a resolution of 50 percent of the regular fee was proposed.

Votes as cast: Chairman Paul Larson-Yes; Sherry Giesecke-Yes; Raymond Larson-Yes; Cathy Ward-No; Vice-Chairman Sherry Branson-Absent.

It should be noted there was dissent from the audience stating that Chairman Paul Larson should not have voted.  It was stated he should only vote in a tie.  Vote stood as cast.

With approval, the request now moves to county board for a vote on Sept. 16.  Only the full Boone County Board has the authority to either approve or deny the request of fees.

Cathy Ward who was the only “No” vote had the following comment, “Once again the Boone County Health Department wants to snatch a part of the proceeds from volunteer groups working hard to help our county and community by seeking a fee for each food permit issued for not-for-profit groups. I opposed this a couple years ago when they proposed this and still do.”

When asked how much the fee would be, Boone County official Bill Hatfield replied,
“What is the speed limit in Illinois?’

The Health Department receives money every time we pay property taxes. They also receive grants to run their departments.

Hatfield says the health department is a not-for-profit group, too.

Part of the problem here is the public relations disaster this department has created through the years, and now if this passes, it will be harder still to convince the good people (regarding the health department) of our county that ‘We’re from the government. We’re here to help’,” said Cathy Ward Boone County Board Member District 3.

At the same time fees are being requested from the BCHD, Illinois State Legislators introduced and approved legislation effective Jan. 1, 2016 to amend the Food Handling Regulation Enforcement Act 410 ILCS 625/ and offer exemption from the law for non-profits in regards to fundraisers. While conducting research on Sept. 3, the following website forrager.com/law/illinois/ provided information:

http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/publicacts/fulltext.asp?Name=099-0191.

At three separate meetings that included BCHD staff Aug. 31, Sept. 2 and Sept. 3 no information/comments were provided in regards to the new law effective Jan. 2016.

The next Boone County Board meeting will be held Sept. 16 at 6:30 p.m. at 1204 Logan Ave. in Belvidere in the Administrative Building.

Reference:  Committee votes in favor 3-1 for food permit fees for non-profits

 

Great rhubarb over rhubarb in Boone County
By Lisa Rodgers
Reporter
BOONE COUNTY – According to Webster’s Dictionary and Daily Writing Tips (www.dailywriting tips.com/rhubarb-is-not-just-a-vegetable/), the word rhubarb may be used in the context of a vegetable, controversy, murmurous background noise, and in baseball.
Quotes provided from the Boone County Health Department (BCHD) were obtained from a public meeting of the Boone County Board of Health (BCBH) on Aug. 31 and from a meeting held Sept. 2 at the BCHD where the Belvidere Daily Republican was invited discuss rhubarb.
In attendance Sept. 2 was Public Health Administrator Cynthia Frank, Director of Environmental Health Bill Hatfield, Boone County Board of Health Member Marshall Newhouse, and Ellen Genrich who was required to attend as they were informed they were on the record.
Rhubarb (the vegetable) is the rhubarb (the controversy) in Boone County. And with this rhubarb (controversy) comes a rhubarb (murmurous background noise).
Where is the confusion originating? Is rhubarb pie permitted or prohibited? Recently at a NFP fundraiser, the rhubarb (vegetable and controversy) emerged once again.
Credible sources from the Boone County Community have complained, expressed anger, frustration as well as mistrust with the BCHD.
Members of non-for-profit’s (NFP’s) who have been issued a food permit said, “We have been informed that any type of rhubarb is prohibited due to ‘rhubarb being poisonous’ and that ‘the restriction is being mandated by the State of Illinois’.
“No information has been provided by the BCHD when the permit was issued in regards to what is at our event. We were informed of the rhubarb restriction at the time of the event and inspection,” said anonymous NFP sources.
On Aug. 31, an explanation was provided to the board/public when the rhubarb issue was raised in public comment about a recent NFP event.
“I received a phone call about the confusion and in about an hour the matter was resolved to everyone’s satisfaction. This was an isolated occurrence and it has been resolved,” Hatfield said.
On Sept. 2, when asked if he stood by his comment that this was an “isolated occurrence” Hatfield responded, “There was no occurrence. We have spoken to them and the matter was resolved in about an hour,” Hatfield said.
On Sept. 2, when different NFP’s were discussed as to having experienced similar problems over rhubarb it was explained.
“I have no written documentation in any of my paperwork from my inspectors in regards to an issue with rhubarb and have not received any phone calls/emails or complaints. I am unaware of any problems,” Hatfield said.
“Rhubarb pie, jams, and jellies are permitted in Boone County if produced in a properly permitted commercial kitchen and may be served at a NFP event or sold at a farmers market,” Hatfield continued in his explanation.
“For the two years I served on the Boone County Board, Hatfield claimed he had no complaints in regards to rhubarb or other issues. Nothing was documented in the reports, but fines could be verified.
Hatfield and I had numerous conflicts over the inappropriate and conflicting actions of the Health Department personnel. This can be verified by the minuets of Health and Human Service Committee meetings and County Board meetings,” said Marion L. Thornberry, former Boone County Board Member District 3 and Legislative Director, Illinois State Grange.
“Based on my conversations I am going to request a line item be added to the agenda of the next BCBH meeting to request a public meeting between the BCHD and the NFP’s in attempt to establish trust and remove any confusion of what is permissible,” Newhouse said on Sept. 2.
Despite all the rhubarb over rhubarb over the existing law there is exciting news for those who wish to have bake sales in Boone County.
While conducting research on Sept. 3, the following website forrager.com/law/illinois/ provided information on an amendment effective Jan. 1, 2016 to the current Food Handling Regulation Enforcement Act that currently profit and NFP are subject too.
Unfortunately, the State of Illinois still considers rhubarb to be a Potentially Hazardous Food due to low acidity.
“A home kitchen operation does not include a person who produces or packages non-potentially hazardous baked goods for sale by a religious, charitable, or nonprofit organization for fundraising purposes; the production or packaging of non-potentially hazardous baked goods for these purposes is exempt from the requirements of this Act,” according to www.ilga.gov/legislation/publicacts/fulltext.asp….
The next Boone County Board of Health public meeting is Monday, Sept. 28 at noon at 1204 Logan Ave. in Belvidere in the BCHD Conference Room.

Reference:  (23) Great rhubarb over rhubarb in Boone County By... - Belvidere Daily Republican