How effective are the Sacramento County rules for street food vendors?
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Board reviewed 2025 vending rules, permitting, enforcement, outreach and citations.
- County issued 36 health citations, seized 5.3 tons of food and granted 11 licenses.
- Supervisors flagged inspection pace and language access gaps for Spanish speakers.
Does Sacramento County issue sidewalk food vending licenses too fast and not conduct enough inspections? Does it take into account that rules in English aren’t necessarily understood by those who don’t speak it? And are these vendors a benefit?
These were matters addressed by the Board of Supervisors Tuesday as it analyzed the effectiveness of stricter health regulations for sidewalk vendors. The answers to the first two may be complicated; the last one was pretty clear to one supervisor.
“They’re there creating a culture that is unique,” said Supervisor Patrick Kennedy, who represents District 2.
Permits and penalties
Sidewalk vendors in unincorporated parts of Sacramento County are required to have a specific health permit and business license to operate because of an ordinance the Board of Supervisors passed last year. The county supervisors heard a presentation from county staff about outreach efforts, health citations and licenses given.
The vending program has been coordinated through Sacramento County’s Environment Management Department. Since the original ordinance passed in 2025, EMD has been the primary enforcer of rules and regulations in Sacramento County.
The rules are as followed, according to a presentation from Sacramento County:
- A vendor must receive a health permit issued by EMD. These permits costs $391 per year.
- A vendor must also have a one-year license, which costs $69.05.
- To obtain a business license, vendors must go through the County’s Business License department.
- If a vendor is selling merchandise without a business license, they are issued the following penalties (if they go without certification): a notice of violation, a $250 violation, a $500 violation and a $1,000 violation.
5.3 tons of food seized
The county has issued 36 citations to vendors who did not have a health permit, according to the county’s presentation. Consequentially, EMD has seized 5.3 tons of condemned food from vendors.
Supervisor Pat Hume expressed concern over the speed in which licenses are issued and how frequent inspections are being conducted. From January to June 2025, four business licenses were given, according to county data. In total, the county has issued 11.
“I’m looking at four vendors getting a business license, and I pass more than four vendors on a daily basis,” Hume said.
Laura Jacobson, who supervises the county’s business licensing, said the vending program plans to increase these numbers through additional outreach.
Spanish-speaking vendors
Although supervisors mostly commended county staff’s efforts, board members asked about the program’s cultural competency. Given a majority of vendors are Spanish-speaking, Supervisor Phil Serna questioned county code enforcement if advisory warning notices are not issued in Spanish.
He argued that if these documents are not given in a vendor’s native language, they would fail to understand the process.
“They don’t correct the action, and then it becomes a citation,” Serna said. “Now they’re looking at multiple hundreds of dollars in fines or violation fee, and it all can be traced back to the fact that there was a language barrier.”
Mike Sanchez, Sacramento County’s chief of code enforcement, said warning notices are given to property owners, not to the vendors themselves. A secondary enforcement, however, is presented in Spanish. The county also provides Spanish-language brochures and outreach, county staff explained.
The board also reviewed residents’ complaints. Eighty-seven complaints, which made up the majority, came from District 2, which encompasses south Sacramento and Vineyard. In total, residents have lodged more than 200 complaints with EMD in 2025.
Kennedy said health and safety should be maintained by the vendors and county enforcement. But the vendors also are bringing their culture to Sacramento.
“To me, they’re not a nuisance. To me, they’re not something that’s just there, adding to a problem...” Kennedy said. “It’s like one of the many things that makes District 2 so much of a more welcoming, better place to live because of the frequency.”
