Committee backs amendment to H.401 to exempt small home food producers from licensure, sets $30,000 threshold

A House committee recommended an amendment to H.401 that would exempt certain home-based food manufacturing establishments from licensure and create new fee tiers based on gross annual receipts, the Office of Legislative Council said.

Katie McLennan, Office of Legislative Council, summarized the changes for the bill, saying the amendment sets a $30,000 gross‑receipts cutoff for several exemption and fee rules and explicitly extends the home‑kitchen exemption beyond bakeries to other food manufacturers operating from a home kitchen. "The licensure requirements and related licensure fees in the subchapter shall not apply to a food manufacturing establishment operating from a home kitchen whose average gross retail sales are less than or equal to 30,000 per year," McLennan said.

Under the amendment described by McLennan, nonbakery producers with gross receipts above $30,000 would face a fee of $2.75 (as written in the draft language presented to the committee), while nonhome operators below $30,000 would be placed in a new category with a $175 fee; home operators with receipts at or below $30,000 would be exempt from licensure. For bakeries, a home bakery with gross receipts above $30,000 would be charged $100; a nonhome bakery under $30,000 would pay $50, and a home bakery under $30,000 would be exempt.

McLennan told the committee that although exempt home producers would not be licensed, they must file with the health department to assert the exemption so they are known to regulators. She also noted that labeling requirements and inspection procedures are handled in health department rules and are not changed by this legislation.

Committee members questioned the source of some fee amounts and whether the overall change would be revenue neutral. A committee member noted the bill raises the cap from a previous $10,000 threshold to $30,000 and observed that the impact on individual producers would depend on their annual sales. Committee discussion also recalled that prior bakery thresholds had been lower and sometimes measured per day in prior rules.

A motion to recommend amending H.401 was put before the committee; the record shows the motion was seconded by Greg. The committee approved the amendment by voice/roll call with an 8-0-0 tally. The committee recorded the vote as 8 yes, 0 no, 0 abstain. The committee indicated it would forward the amended draft to the clerk's office for formal reporting; the reporting was signed and recorded in committee paperwork.

The amendment leaves health-department rule matters (including existing labeling language that indicates products "made in a home kitchen, not inspected by Vermont Department [of Health]") and inspection procedures unchanged; McLennan deferred specifics about inspections to the health department. The committee also discussed administrative steps for sending the approved draft to the clerk and noted prior instances where wrong versions had briefly delayed processing.

The committee approved the recommended amendment to H.401 and directed staff to transmit the approved draft to the clerk for reporting and further processing.