Under California Health & Safety Code §113948, a newly hired food handler must obtain a valid California Food Handler Card within how many calendar days after the date of hire?

Explanation

California Health & Safety Code §113948, enacted by SB 602 (2010) and effective July 1, 2011, requires food handlers to obtain a California Food Handler Card within 30 calendar days of hire and to maintain a current card throughout employment. The card is valid for 3 years from the date of issue and is portable across employers and across counties that participate in the statewide program. Three counties — Riverside, San Bernardino, and San Diego — operate their own pre-existing local food handler programs and are exempt from the statewide SB 602 rule, with different timelines (commonly within 14 days of hire) and different course content. Option A (14 days) is the timeline for the local county programs but is not the statewide §113948 deadline. Option B (30 days) is technically correct but option C is the BEST answer because it correctly states both the §113948 statewide rule AND the local-county variant. Option D (90 days) is much too long and is not consistent with the statute. Employers are responsible for verifying that every covered food handler holds a current card and for retaining records under §113949.5.