Donating food without fear of being sued: the good samaritan law

It is the law that removes the fear that sends food to the dumpster instead of to a pantry. It shields good-faith donors from civil and criminal liability, and clearly marks the one line that cannot be crossed: improper or intentional conduct and gross negligence, both defined in the law itself.

The donor, whom the law defines broadly: individual, corporation, organization, association, company or government entity, hotels, motels, factories, wholesale and retail grocery stores, restaurants, partnerships, farmers and nonprofit food distributors and hospitals; for entities, the term includes their officers, directors, partners, deacons, board members, trustees or other elected or appointed individuals responsible for managing it. It also protects the person who allows collection on their property. The recipients are gleaners and nonprofit organizations.

• That the donation be in good faith and made to a gleaner or a nonprofit organization for distribution to people in need.Verified against the official source
• That it be a healthy-looking food or an adequate-looking non-edible product, as the law defines them.Verified against the official source

• Reliable record of the condition of the food or non-edible product when it has an expired date, manufacturing defects, damage, or is used or deteriorated, so that no doubt remains in the mind of the consumer or the organization.

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   Step 1: “Healthy-looking” does not mean pretty

   The definition settles the most common doubt: healthy-looking food is any food meeting all quality and brand requirements imposed by federal and state laws and their regulations, “even though the product is not ready to be marketed due to its appearance, freshness, grade, ripeness, size or other conditions that do not imply it is harmful for human consumption.” The same applies to adequate-looking non-edible products.

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   Step 2: The protection, and its single exception

   The good-faith donor shall not be subject to civil or criminal liability arising from the nature, packaging or condition of the donated goods. But the law preserves the cause of action where a person in need suffers harm or death from using or consuming the product and the donor engaged in an act or omission constituting improper or intentional conduct or gross negligence. The law defines both: improper or intentional conduct is that carried out with knowledge, at the time of the act, that the conduct is harmful to people’s health or well-being; gross negligence is voluntary conduct carried out with knowledge, at the time of the act, that such conduct is likely to be harmful to the health and well-being of others.

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   Step 3: If the product is expired or damaged, it can be donated with notice

   This is the article most worth knowing. If part or all of the donated food or non-edible products have an expired date, manufacturing defects, damage, or are used or deteriorated products, the donor shall not be subject to civil or criminal action if the gleaner and/or nonprofit receiving them is notified by the donor of the condition. And there is a form requirement: the goods’ condition shall be recorded reliably so that no doubt remains in the mind of the consumer or the organization proposing to acquire it.

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   Step 4: When it cannot be donated, period

   The same section sets the limit: such donation may not be made if a United States or Puerto Rico government agency prohibits it, or if the food or non-edible product does not meet the safety and health standards required by those governments or by the product’s country of origin.

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   Step 5: Allowing collection on your property is covered too

   A person who allows a gleaner, or the representatives — paid or not — of a nonprofit organization, to collect food or non-edible products on their property or one they occupy, shall not be subject to civil or criminal action for harm or death suffered by the gleaner as a result of that activity. The exception is the same: they may be subject to a cause of action where the harm or death results from an improper or intentional act or omission or gross negligence of that person. It is the rule that matters to a farmer who lets people in to glean the harvest.

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   Step 6: The donation may carry a nominal charge between organizations

   The definition expressly allows it: “donation” means giving something freely and voluntarily without requiring anything of monetary value in return from the recipient, and it includes when a gleaner or a nonprofit donates to another of the same kind even if it charges a nominal amount to cover operating costs, so long as nothing of monetary value is required from the needy person in exchange for the food. The person in need does not pay.

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   Step 7: Selling what was donated is an offense

   Any person who disposes of goods donated under this law, for payment or equivalent, in contravention of it, commits a misdemeanor carrying a fine of five hundred dollars ($500.00), six (6) months in jail, or both.

There is no office where a donation is “registered”: the protection operates by law when its conditions are met. The law orders the Secretary of Health to adopt regulations to oversee the good condition of donated products and guidelines to help recipients distinguish, accept and properly use them within a prudent period. If what you are looking for is to receive food, the food distribution guide explains ADSEF’s programme.

• Throwing out good food for fear of lawsuits: the law protects the good-faith donor.
• Believing the food must look perfect: the definition covers appearance, freshness, grade, ripeness and size.
• Donating expired or damaged product without reliably recording the condition.
• Donating when a federal or Puerto Rico agency prohibits it, or when the product fails safety and health standards.
• Thinking the protection covers gross negligence: the law expressly excludes it.
• Selling or trading what was donated: a misdemeanor with a $500 fine, six months, or both.

These are the government pages this guide is based on.

• Departamento de Salud de Puerto Rico

  Salud

  bvirtualogp.pr.gov

• Department of Health

  Departamento de Salud

  www.salud.pr.gov