Cobb Reporter

A Georgia Senate Committee is studying whether to regulate food delivery from third-party apps, according to a recent report by FOX 5 Atlanta.

This comes as Department of Public Health State Environmental Health Director Galen Baxter points out Iowa recently passed a law that regulates the third-party delivery application companies, with part of the law including "regulating the holding temperatures, making sure the containers are sealed" and putting regulations on who can ride in the car with them at the time of the delivery.

"It's really to sort of look at whether there's an additional balance that we need to put between restaurants and third-party delivery apps because restaurants are highly regulated related to food safety," state Sen. Elena Parent (D-Atlanta), the chair of the study committee, told FOX 5 Atlanta.

Responsible for inspecting food service establishments, the Georgia Department of Public Health also has the authority to shut down any eatery that fails to adhere to state regulations, but the oversight ends as soon as delivery food order is handed over to a third-party delivery driver, FOX 5 reports.

According to the report, as local lawmakers continue studying whether the state should enact regulations over apps like DoorDash, Uber Eats and GrubHub, Baxter's testimony was part of the second hearing by the Senate Food App Delivery Study Committee. Restaurants have also complained to lawmakers that some of the apps do not contract with them nor get their permission to sell their food.

Among other concerns, some have also expressed that the prices apps charge consumers and the amount of commission they take can hurt restaurants’ bottom lines. The study committee will draft a report and possibly recommend legislation, the report states. In a final meeting Nov. 1, they will adopt the report ahead of the 2023 legislative session.