Senate Bill No. 118

Introduced By crismore

By Request of the Department of Public Health and Human Services

A Bill for an Act entitled: An Act generally revising the laws relating to public accommodations, campgrounds, and trailer courts; providing definitions; clarifying that a bed and breakfast is a public accommodation; authorizing the department of public health and human services to adopt rules; providing for expiration and cancellation of licenses; amending sections 50-51-102, 50-51-103, 50-51-201, 50-51-207, 50-51-212, 50-52-102, and 50-52-203, MCA; and providing effective dates.

STATEMENT OF INTENT

A statement of intent is required for this bill because additional rulemaking authority, beyond that already granted by 50-51-103 and 50-52-102, is being given to the department of public health and human services. The rulemaking authority will allow the department to adopt rules for establishments regulated by Title 50, chapter 51, in the following areas:

(1) requirements for food service;

(2) requirements for bed and breakfast establishments;

(3) requirements to implement staggered license expiration dates; and

(4) requirements addressing reimbursement of local governments for inspections and enforcement.

The amended rulemaking authority in 50-52-102 will clarify the department's authority to adopt rules for establishments regulated by Title 50, chapter 52, in the following areas:

(1) requirements to ensure that establishments have safe and sanitary facilities and systems;

(2) requirements for service buildings or facilities;

(3) requirements for plan review;

(4) requirements addressing nuisances that could cause the spread of disease or illness;

(5) requirements to implement staggered license expiration dates;

(6) requirements addressing licensing of establishments and operator requirements; and

(7) requirements addressing reimbursement of local governments for inspection and enforcement.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Montana:

Section 1.  Section 50-51-102, MCA, is amended to read:

"50-51-102.   Definitions. Unless the context requires otherwise, in this chapter, the following definitions apply:

(1) "Bed and breakfast" means a private, owner- or manager-occupied residence that is used as a private residence but in which:

(a) breakfast is served and is included in the charge for a guest room; and

(b) the number of daily guests served does not exceed 18.

(1)(2)  "Department" means the department of public health and human services provided for in 2-15-2201.

(2)(3)  "Establishment" means a bed and breakfast, hotel, motel, roominghouse, boardinghouse, or tourist home.

(3)(4)  "Hotel" or "motel" includes:

(a) a building or structure kept, used, maintained as, advertised as, or held out to the public to be a hotel, motel, inn, motor court, tourist court, or public lodginghouse, or;

(b) a place where sleeping accommodations are furnished for a fee to transient guests, with or without meals.

(4)(5)  "Person" includes an individual, partnership, corporation, association, county, municipality, cooperative group, or other entity engaged in the business of operating, owning, or offering the services of a bed and breakfast, hotel, motel, boardinghouse, tourist home, or roominghouse.

(5)(6)  "Roominghouse" or "boardinghouse" means buildings in which separate sleeping rooms are rented that provide sleeping accommodations for three or more persons on a weekly, semimonthly, monthly, or permanent basis, whether or not meals or central kitchens are provided but without separated cooking facilities or kitchens within each room, and whose occupants do not need professional nursing or personal-care services provided by the facility.

(6)(7)  "Tourist home" means an establishment or premises where sleeping accommodations are furnished to transient guests for hire or rent on a daily or weekly rental basis in a private home when the accommodations are offered for hire or rent for the use of the traveling public. a private home or condominium that is not occupied by an owner or manager and that is rented, leased, or furnished in its entirety to transient guests on a daily or weekly basis.

(7)(8)  "Transient guest" means a guest for only a brief stay, such as the traveling public."

Section 2.  Section 50-51-103, MCA, is amended to read:

"50-51-103.   Department authorized to adopt rules. The department may adopt and enforce rules to preserve governing the operation of bed and breakfasts, hotels, motels, roominghouses, boardinghouses, and tourist homes to protect the public health and safety. These rules shall relate to construction, furnishings, housekeeping, personnel, sanitary facilities and controls, water supply, sewerage and sewage disposal system, refuse collection and disposal, registration and supervision, and fire and life safety code. These rules may relate to construction, furnishings, housekeeping, personnel, sanitary facilities and controls, water supply, sewerage and sewage disposal systems, refuse collection and disposal, registration and supervision, fire and life safety, food service, rules for bed and breakfast establishments, staggered license expiration dates, and reimbursement of local governments for inspections and enforcement."

Section 3.  Section 50-51-201, MCA, is amended to read:

"50-51-201.   License required. (1) Each year, every A person engaged in the business of conducting or operating a bed and breakfast, hotel, motel, tourist home, boardinghouse, or roominghouse shall procure a license issued by the department.

(2)  A separate license is required for each establishment; however, when more than one of each type of establishment is operated on the same premises and under the same management, only one license is required that must enumerate on the certificate the types of establishments licensed.

(3)  Before a license may be issued by the department, it must be validated by the local health officer or, if there is no local health officer, the sanitarian, in the county where the establishment is located."

Section 4.  Section 50-51-207, MCA, is amended to read:

"50-51-207.   Expiration date of license. (1) Each Except as provided in subsection (2), each license shall expire expires on December 31 following its date of issue unless canceled for cause.

(2) The department may amend or issue licenses to provide for staggered expiration dates. The department may provide for initial license terms of greater than 12 months but no more than 23 months in adopting staggered expiration dates. Thereafter, licenses expire annually. License fees for the license term implementing staggered license terms may be prorated by the department."

Section 5.  Section 50-51-212, MCA, is amended to read:

"50-51-212.   Cancellation of license for multiple-type establishment -- definition. (1) When a multiple-type establishment is licensed by the department, the denial or cancellation of the license may affect the entire establishment or only a portion of it as determined by the department (.

(2) For the purposes of this section, a multiple-type establishment "multiple-type establishment" includes two or more of the following: bed and breakfast, hotel, motel, or tourist home)."

Section 6. Rules for bed and breakfast establishments. The department, in adopting rules establishing rules for bed and breakfast establishments, shall consult with bed and breakfast operators. The department shall establish a negotiated rulemaking committee, as provided in Title 2, chapter 5, part 1, to consider matters proposed by the department that affect bed and breakfast establishments.

Section 7.  Section 50-52-102, MCA, is amended to read:

"50-52-102.   Department to adopt rules. The department shall may adopt rules for constructing and operating campgrounds, trailer courts, work camps, and youth camps to insure sanitation and protect the public health and safety. The rules may include rules to:

(1) ensure that establishments have safe and sanitary facilities and systems, including drinking water, sewage disposal, and solid waste disposal systems;

(2) regulate service buildings or facilities associated with any activity regulated by this chapter, including laundry and food service facilities;

(3) provide for review and approval of plans and specifications for establishments;

(4) address nuisances that could cause the spread of disease or illness;

(5) implement staggered license expiration dates;

(6) address licensing of establishments under this chapter and operator requirements; and

(7) provide for reimbursing local governments for inspections and enforcement of this chapter."

Section 8.  Section 50-52-203, MCA, is amended to read:

"50-52-203.   Expiration date of license. Licenses (1) Except as provided in subsection (2), licenses expire on December 31 of the year in which they are issued unless canceled for cause.

(2) The department may amend or issue licenses to provide for staggered expiration dates. The department may provide for initial license terms of greater than 12 months but no more than 23 months in adopting staggered expiration dates. Thereafter, licenses expire annually. License fees for the license term implementing staggered license terms will be prorated by the department."

Section 9.  Right to renewal. (1) The department shall renew licenses as a matter of right, unless conditions exist that are grounds for cancellation or denial of a license.

(2) Renewal may be obtained annually by paying the required annual license fee.

Section 10.  Codification instruction. (1) [Section 6] is intended to be codified as an integral part of Title 50, chapter 51, and the provisions of Title 50, chapter 51, apply to [section 6].

(2) [Section 9] is intended to be codified as an integral part of Title 50, chapter 52, and the provisions of Title 50, chapter 52, apply to [section 9].

Section 11.  Effective dates. (1) [Sections 2, 6, 7, and 10 and this section] are effective on passage and approval.

(2) [Sections 1, 3 through 5, 8, and 9] are effective October 1, 1997.

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