Nevada Restaurants

Menu Labeling: Psychologically Harmful or Nutritionally Beneficial?

Are menu labeling laws helpful or harmful to customers? While much legislation is currently being proposed across the country, restaurant operators and customers are wondering if menu labels are really the answer to the nation’s current weight concerns.

 

So what do you think? Are menu labeling laws helpful or harmful?

Sugar-sweetened Beverages Tax

A tax on sugar-sweetened beverages and juices is being discussed as a possible way to generate more money to pay for the healthcare reform package.

 

This type of tax will have a negative impact on Nevada restaurants and may also hurt the families who frequent them. In addition, nationwide, the beverage industry provides over 220,000 jobs with health benefits. 

It is suggested that the tax on sugar-sweetened beverages will address the problem of obesity.  Obesity is a complex issue with many contributors, and singling out one product will not solve this complex problem.  There is nothing unique about the calories in a soft drink that cause obesity.  Obesity rates are rising while soft drink sales are declining.  A more successful approach may be to promote education and diversity of choices.  Offerings of no and lo-calorie beverages has reduced average calories per ounce. Education about healthy choices in schools resulted in a 65% reduction of sugared beverage consumption.

 

To voice your opinion on this issue, click on "comments" below.

ProStart Alum to Star in New Food Network Show

Next Friday, August 14, chef Santanna Salas of Michael Mina's Seablue restaurant will appear on the Food Network's new show Chefs vs. City! The program is styled as The Amazing Race meets the culinary world. Check out Salas as she and a partner, Seablue executive chef Stephen Hopcraft, go head ot head in a competition against two Food Network chefs, Aaron Sanchez and Chris Cosentino.

Salas is a 2005 graduate of the ProStart program at Coronado High School in Las Vegas and is now the executive pastry chef at Seablue inside the MGM Grand.

The episode airs on the Food Network at 10pm EST/PST on Friday, August 14. For more information on the show, please click HERE.

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The Nevada Restaurant Association Educational Foundation (NvRAEF) was founded in 2001 and is a non-profit organization dedicated to the educational, research, and philanthropic needs of the hospitality industry. The NvRAEF is the state sponsor of the ProStart program, which is a 2-year national high school culinary and foodservice management program. For more information on ProStart, please email education@nvrestaurants.com.

Credit Card Fair Free Act

Please contact your Representative in anticipation of a House Judiciary Committee markup of H.R. 5546, the Credit Card Fair Fee Act. Chairman Conyers will wait until after the July 4th recess to markup the bill, the crucial next step in the legislative process and necessary before a House floor vote.

Crucial Points:

• H.R. 5546, Visa and MasterCard's anticompetitive practices have forced a take-it-or-leave-it situation.
• Out of control interchange fee increases are one of the biggest concerns for business.
• The Credit Card Fair Fee Act is a market-based solution. It would allow merchants of all sizes to negotiate with the credit card companies. Open negotiation is the first step in providing relief to merchants of all sizes.

Proposed Changes to the Nevada Clean Indoor Air Act (NCIAA)

CLEAN INDOOR AIR ACT REGULATION DEVELOPMENT

On November 7 2006, Nevada ’s voters approved the Nevada Clean Indoor Air Act (NCIAA) initiative by over 54 percent.  This initiative became law on December 8, 2006.  Its provisions that impact restaurateurs prohibit smoking tobacco in any form within indoor places of employment, including all indoor areas within restaurants and all areas of grocery stores.  “No smoking” signs or the international “No smoking” symbol must be conspicuously posted in areas where smoking is prohibited.  No ashtrays or other smoking paraphernalia may be present in non-smoking areas. smoking is permitted in areas within casinos where minors may not loiter and in stand-alone bars, taverns, and saloons in which food service is incidental to the operation and which are physically independent

The Southern Nevada Health District, the Washoe County District Board of Health, and the Nevada State Health Division are working together to develop regulations to implement the NCIAA.  They have held one workshop to obtain public input and have promised to hold at least one more which is as yet unscheduled.  The proposed regulations add detail to the NCIAA and seek to clarify some of the Act’s provisions that seemed subject to multiple interpretations.   Key sections of the draft regulation of likely interest to NvRA members include:

Sec. 3  which states:  ”Ashtray” means any receptacle, container used or being used for collecting the ashes or residue of burning tobacco or for disposing of smoking materials including but not limited to cigarettes and cigars. 

Sec. 4 defines “Food service” as delivering, giving, or bringing food to another except for prepackaged food items exempt from food licensing requirements.

Sec. 11 requires an employer to establish and implement written policies and procedures with regard to a) requesting a person who is smoking in a prohibited area to stop (that is, the restaurateur or his employee must request someone who is smoking to stop smoking); b) not supplying ashtrays or other smoking paraphernalia; c) removal of these objects; and d) documentation of informing employees, applicants for employment, and smokers of theses policies.  These policies must be communicated to all existing employees, applicants for employment, and any person smoking in the place of employment; and the policies and documentation of compliance with this regulation must be made available to the health authority upon request. 

Sec. 12 requires that the no-smoking signage be posted at a height and location where a person of normal vision would see it, that each sign have lettering of at least two inches in height or have an international no-smoking symbol of at least six inches in diameter, and that each sign must have a contrasting background.

Sec. 13 requires that employees and customers be able to transit to a restroom without going through an area where smoking is permitted except where the restroom is under the control of a different business or where access is through a casino.

Sec. 14 concerns ordering and delivering food in stand-alone bars, taverns, and saloons.  No person in charge of such an establishment, his or her employee, nor anyone taking direction from him or her may 1) take an order for food in such an establishment and transmit it to a restaurant; 2) retrieve food from a restaurant or deliver food from a restaurant to a patron; or 3) permit silverware or plates to be available to a patron.

Sec. 15 prohibits a person in control of a restaurant, his or her employees, or a person under his or her direction from 1)  taking an order for food in a stand-alone bar, tavern, or saloon while physically present inside such an establishment and 2) serving or delivering food to a patron inside such an establishment.

Sec. 16 permits a patron of a stand-alone bar, tavern, or saloon 1)  to bring food into such an establishment for his or her own consumption; 2) to use a telephone or other electronic device inside the stand-alone bar, tavern or saloon to place a food order with a restaurant; 3) to be notified by an employee of a restaurant that a food order is ready for pickup; and 4) receive delivery outside of a stand-alone bar, tavern, or saloon from an employee of a restaurant of food the patron has ordered.  Such food may be packaged to prevent contamination during delivery.

Because the NCIAA contained no provisions for penalties, the regulation will be enforced under Health Division and Districts’ existing powers. There is no provision for fines, graduated or otherwise.  Instead, violators face suspension, revocation, or denial of their application for renewal of their permit issued by the Health Division. 

Please click  'Comment' link below to post responses.

Food Code: NAC 446 Proposed Changes

Please see http://health.nv.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=661&Itemid=1463 to review proposed changes to food code.

Click 'Comments' link below to post responses.

Tip Pooling Initiative

The Nevada Restaurant Association has filed a lawsuit against an attempts to eliminate tip pooling and employee grievance process  established by the Office of the Nevada Labor Commissioner.

Overview of Pending “Tip Pooling” Initiative

The key problems with the initiative are housed under two categories--the first is the substantive or operational problems that restaurateurs can readily see/already know and the second, the legal issues which under Nevada law could be sufficient to remove it from to the ballot. Be aware that this is only a preliminary overview of potentially difficult issues the legislation could present to operators.

PRELIMINARY STATEMENT

    The initiative being circulated is a statutory initiative which means that if certified with the minimum number of required signatures, it has to be presented to the Nevada State Legislature (2009 Session) first before going on the ballot (2010 General Election).  As a statutory initiative, it is for passing or as in this case, amending an existing statute.  The process requires: 1) presentation to the Legislature as one of the first issues and action by the 40th day; 2) if passed word-for-word/no changes, it goes into effect without having to go to the ballot; and 3) if rejected, amended or countered by another proposal, is required to go on the ballot in the General Election in 2010 as written/certified.  If passed, it is not like any other statute in that it is protected from any amendment for three years of effectiveness.

SUBSTANTIVE/OPERATIONAL ISSUES

1.    This puts tipped employees in charge of whether tips can be pooled. [Note: Does not seem to be drafted to preclude an employer from requiring tip pooling, but does restrict employer from interfering with tip pools put together by "eligible employees."]  This means that there could be myriad number and sizes of tip pools put together throughout the "business" with the employer having no say about a) which employees can be allocated a share of the pool(s) or b) any allocation to any particular employee (in or out of pool).

2.    While this is directed at the dealer/floor supervisor model recently debated in the 2007 Nevada State Legislature, its worst effect is that it is not limited to gaming employees and affects every employer/business with tipped employees in the state…especially restaurants.

3.    It defines "eligible employees" who can decide their own tip pools as only those "who are the actual and direct recipients of the tips or gratuities."  This means that those who "indirectly" receive tips (as well as their employers) are at the mercy of others as to whether they will receive any share of the tips, or will continue to under an agreement because they have no leverage under the law.  It also leaves open the issues of what happens when one employee no longer wants the agreement--does it require the pool to be dissolved, or does it continue over the objection of the employee, for example.  [Note: it is unclear whether an employer can impose pooling as a condition of employment prior to "employee" status; whether this statute overrides any pre-employment restriction/hiring condition; or whether if allows an employee to decide that he/she does not want to participate in a pool--agreed or required.] The morale and operational stability issues are multiple, and their resolutions are up in the air even if this passes as it may require further legislative battles to clarify, assuming these do not amend the passed initiative.

4.    It also allows a private cause of action not only to enforce this statute, but also expands it to include an individual' employee's private lawsuit "to enforce the employee's rights or to address grievances resulting from an employer's violation of any of the provision of this Chapter."  In other words, it opens up all of NRS Chapter 608 regarding employment practices/restrictions in Nevada to private action, a significant change for every employer even non-tipped employees as it covers minimum wage, overtime, etc. In other words allows an employee to hire an attorney to sue a business owner over any alleged wage and hour violation instead of the current system of filing a grievance with the labor department

5.    The "but not limited to" language relating to damages could change the current limit on punitive/exemplary damages regarding employment-related issues (minimum 300,000 or three times compensatory damages)

PRE-CIRCULATION LEGAL ISSUES

Note:  These issues are governed/created by statutes, the Nevada Constitution and case law which set the contents, requirements, etc. for such initiatives which must be complied with for it to move forward as a proper initiative for signature-gathering.  This is why we have worked to include more restrictions and more successful cases as a basis for disqualifying petitions before they go out for signature, or before the ballot/legislature.  Also, please note that some of these are cured by court-ordered amendment or by proponent redrafting and may not be fatal. Pre-circulation issues generally do not go to the substance of the initiative or any merits (constitutionality, equal protection, etc.) as the court usually defers those to later, sometimes after it is successfully voted on.

1.    Recent law clarifying "single subject" rule should apply to remove parts of initiative (e.g., extra subject creating private cause of action for all of Chapter 608).

2.    May breach requirement that any new expenditure or program created must be funded by initiative as well.

3.    Description of effect may be inadequate, incomplete or deceptive.
For more information visit the Nevada Secretary of State's website: 

http://sos.state.nv.us/elections/pdf/GratuitiesPetition.pdf

-Summary provided by Samuel P. McMullen, Snell & Wilmer L.L.P.

 

SNHD 38% Proposed Fee Increase

The Southern Nevada District Board of Health (BOH) will conduct a public hearing on Thursday, May 24, 2007 at 9 a.m. during its regular monthly meeting in the Clemens Room at the Southern Nevada Health District (SNHD) Ravenholt Public Health Center, 625 Shadow Lane, Las Vegas, Nevada to take testimony and consider the adoption of the proposed Environmental Health Division Permit and Plan Review Fee Schedule. PDF (60 KB/5 pages)

Environmental Health Division permit and plan review fees were last approved three and a half years ago in 2003. Since that time, the number of facilities in restaurant, family/child care, solid waste, public accommodations, school, swimming pool, and other Environmental Health programs continues to experience tremendous growth. In order to provide essential and necessary services to the Clark County public, tourist industry and to the regulated community, the SNHD Environmental Health Division is proposing to change the existing fee schedule.

Copies of the proposed Environmental Health Division Permit and Plan Review Fee Schedule PDF (60 KB/5 pages) can be downloaded or are available for review at the Southern Nevada Health District Ravenholt Public Health Center, Wing One Environmental Health Division, 625 Shadow Lane, Las Vegas. If there are special viewing needs, call Beth Fitzgerald at (702) 759-0589 for assistance.

Interested persons may appear at the public hearing and present their views regarding the fee schedule. Written comments to be considered by the BOH must be forwarded by May 10, 2007 to:

Southern Nevada Health District
Attention Glenn D. Savage, Environmental Health Director
P.O. Box 3902
Las Vegas, NV 89127

Prior to the above public hearing at the BOH Meeting on May 24, 2007, there will be three workshops for the public to present its views on the proposed Environmental Health Division Fee Schedule:

Tuesday, May 1, 2007 at 10 a.m.
Regional Government Center
Rooms 1 and 2
101 Civic Way
Laughlin

Wednesday, May 2, 2007 at 10 a.m.
Mesquite City Hall
Training Rooms A & B (upstairs)
10 East Mesquite Blvd
Mesquite

Friday, May 4, 2007 at 2 p.m.
Southern Nevada Health District
Ravenholt Public Health Center, Clemens Room
625 Shadow Lane
Las Vegas

Civil Liability for Consumption of Alcohol

SB7, which establishes civil liability for certain acts involving the use of controlled substances and the consumption of alcoholic beverages, was originally heard on March 8, in the Senate Committee on Judiciary.  The bill was amended and do passed as amended out of the committee that day, with the amendment changing the word “unlawfully” to “knowingly” when establishing civil liability for an individual who knowingly serves or sells a controlled substance to another individual or minor in certain circumstances.  On Wednesday, April 18, the bill passed the full Senate as amended by a vote of 19 to 2.  The association is monitoring this bill with concern that it could be amended to include restaurants, bars and nightclubs.

Workforce Development Grant Funding

             SB351, which would make an appropriation to fund industry sector grants for targeted workforce objectives, was heard in the Senate Committee on Finance on Friday, April 13. Sponsored by Senator Horsford and supported by Danny Thompson of the AFL-CIO and the Association, the debate centered on the need for strategic efforts to develop qualified employees, a new challenge in this tight labor market. The sponsor appreciated our support, as did the committee, which realized that these new workforce challenges need to be dealt with strategically with coordinated resources--both government and private. No formal action was taken on the bill because it is exempt as part of resolution of budget issues this session.