About the course

Introductory knowledge, skills, and abilities related to the system of federal, state, and local laws that provide the authority to regulate feed and food, and associated policies and procedures.

1. Participants will be able to recognize legal authority to conduct regulatory activities.

2. Scope: Topics in this course include Foundations, Laws, Regulations, Policies and Procedures, and Guidance.

Course Objectives

Foundations

1. Define relevant terminology, and 
2. Differentiate between laws, regulations, policies, and procedures.

Laws

1. Identify constitutional basis for regulatory authority,
2. Recognize the legislative process,
3. Recognize how local ordinances differ from state and federal statutes,
4. Define delegation of authority, and
5. Recognize how laws authorize enforcement actions.

Regulations

1. Recognize the rulemaking (regulation) process, and
2. Identify how regulations are used by food protection agencies.

Policies and Procedures 

1. Recognize the role of policies in aligning agency goals and actions, 
2. Identify the role of procedures in achieving agency goals and actions, and
3. Recognize the relationship between policies and procedures.

Guidance

1. Recognize the purpose of guidance documents, 
2. Identify how guidance documents are developed, and
3. Recognize how guidance documents differ from policies and procedures

Duration - 2 hours

• Unit 1: Foundations – 20 minutes 
• Unit 2: Laws – 30 minutes
• Unit 3: Regulations – 15 minutes
• Unit 4: Policies and Procedures – 15 minutes
• Unit 5: Guidance – 15 minutes