The Cedar Park Planning & Zoning Commission voted unanimously at its May 19 meeting to approve changes to the city's ordinances regulating food trucks that city staff said are necessary in order to comply with a new state law.
The context
Starting July 1, the operators of food trucks, referred to in government documents as mobile food establishments or MFEs, will no longer need permits from cities or counties to operate locally. Instead, a single statewide permit process will replace the mix of local regulations previously in effect.
House Bill 2844, also known as the Mobile Food Vendor Regulatory Consistency Act, aims to streamline permitting and reduce regulatory inconsistencies across different jurisdictions by shifting regulatory powers from the local level to the state, according to state legislators.
The new law prevents a city's authority to regulate mobile food vending in any way that conflicts with the new state permitting system. It also prohibits cities from banning licensed mobile food vendors or restricting their hours of operation, according to city documents. However, the city can still impose its fire code as well as location and zoning requirements, Lori Murphy, a spokesperson with the Williamson County and Cities Health District, said in a statement.
"Jurisdictions may still have roles related to applicable fire code, zoning, location requirements, complaint response and potentially inspections if there is a collaborative agreement with the Texas Department of State Health Services," Murphy said.
The county will not assume responsibility for the permitting process; instead, the state will implement the new statewide licensing framework.
What's new
Several of the proposed changes would remove parts of the current city code of ordinances that conflict with the new state law.
"The amendments that we're proposing [are] not a change of policy but more shifting where some of our regulations are so that we are able to continue to apply these standards and, again, bring our code consistent with state law requirements," Assistant Director of Development Services Andreina Davila-Quintero told the planning and zoning commissioners.
City changes also outline new location requirements for food trucks, including:
- MFEs may not park or operate on roadways classified as major collectors or higher
- MFEs may not encroach on landscape strips, medians, landscape buffers and easements, building setbacks, required parking spaces, driveways or fire lanes
- MFEs may only operate as an accessory to a property designated with a different primary use
- MFEs must display their state license and fire inspection
- MFEs may not operate drive-thru services
Davila-Quintero said city staff are using this opportunity to try to clean up some other aspects of the city's code concerning food establishments. Because the city defers to the Williamson County and Cities Health District for all other food establishment permits, she said language in the ordinances is being changed to refer only to the Health District's fee schedule, and not the city's.
Diving in deeper
As of May 15, there are 20 active permitted food trucks operating in Cedar Park, according to an email from the city's communication team. The permitting fee is $200 per year, meaning the city stands to lose roughly $4,000 annually in permitting revenue previously received from mobile food establishment permits.
Additionally, as of May 18, WCCHD oversees 296 active mobile food establishment permits. Officials do not yet have a confirmed estimate for how many vendors could be added or transitioned under the new system, as that will depend on final guidance from the state health department and statewide vendor participation, Murphy said.
What's next
The Cedar Park ordinance amendments will go before City Council for final approval, with a public hearing scheduled for the June 11 and vote scheduled for June 25.
