This bill generally requires persons who provide fish to a grocery store or restaurant to disclose the country of origin of the fish to the grocery store or restaurant and to disclose whether the fish was farm-raised or harvested from the wild. Subject to certain exceptions, this bill requires grocery stores and restaurants that offer fish that originated outside the U.S. for sale to disclose to their customers that the fish is imported or disclose the country of origin for the fish. This bill also requires grocery stores and restaurants to disclose to their customers whether fish being offered for sale is farm-raised fish or wild fish. For grocery stores, the disclosures may be made on the packaging or receptacle holding the fish at the final point of sale or by a sign placed near where the fish is offered for sale. For restaurants, the disclosures may be printed on or attached to the menu or by a sign placed near where the fish is offered for sale. This bill's disclosure requirements do not apply to the following: (1) A retailer that is required to inform consumers of the country of origin of fish under federal law; (2) A hospital; and (3) A group of 10 or more individuals who preorder their food items. This bill requires the commissioners of agriculture and health, respectively, to investigate complaints of violations of this bill's disclosure requirements. This bill provides a schedule of graduated penalties for violations, which range from a written warning for a first violation to a civil penalty of $1,000 for each covered commodity for which a disclosure was not made for a fifth or subsequent violation occurring within 24 months of the first violation. If the investigating commissioner determines that a grocery store or restaurant unknowingly violated this bill due to a good faith reliance upon the supplier's disclosure of the fish's country of origin, or whether the fish is farm-raised fish or wild fish, then this bill prohibits the commissioner from assessing a penalty against the unknowing violator. The full text for this bill specifies procedural requirements for assessment of civil penalties and appeals of such assessments. Any moneys collected as civil penalties under this bill must be paid into the respective department's operational account and used for the enforcement of this bill. The full text of this bill specifies exceptions from this bill's disclosure requirements for certain types of shellfish.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 53-1-116