Plano, TX Public Health Rules: Food Handler Certification (2026)

The City of Plano Code of Ordinances § 9-6, part of the Food Code adopted by Ordinance 2025-4-2, sets Plano's supervision and training standards for food establishments. Section 9-6(b)(3) requires that all food employees, except the certified food protection manager, successfully complete an accredited food handler training course within thirty days of employment, and this requirement does not apply to temporary food establishments. Separately, § 9-6(b)(2) requires the person in charge of the establishment to be a certified food protection manager who has passed a test through an accredited program and who is present during all hours of operation, unless the establishment falls into a lower-risk category the health department exempts, such as those handling only prepackaged food.

Once employees complete training, § 9-6(b)(4) requires the food establishment to maintain, on the premises, a certificate of completion of the food handler training course for each food employee, with the original food protection manager certificate posted where consumers can see it, and copies made available to the Plano Health and Environmental Services Department on request. These training and posting duties sit alongside the broader knowledge requirement in § 9-6(b)(1), which lets the person in charge demonstrate food-safety knowledge either by having no priority-item violations during inspection, by being a certified food protection manager, or by correctly answering an inspector's questions on topics like cross-contamination, safe cooking temperatures, and handwashing.