On September 18, 2018, Governor Brown signed into law Senate Bill (“SB”) 946, which adopts state law that imposes limits on how local authorities, including cities, may regulate sidewalk vending. SB 946 is codified in Government Code 51036 and following.
Among other things, SB 946 limits city regulation of sidewalk vending to restrictions that are directly related to objective health, safety, or welfare concerns and prohibits punishment for street vending-related violations unless it is through a civil fine.
On January 8, 2019, the City Council adopted Urgency Ordinance 2018-006, and established a sidewalk vending program (Chapter 12.46 of the Municipal Code) that provided regulations that directly related to the objective health, safety, and welfare of the City, and consistent with state law. The Urgency Ordinance was extended and currently expires on March 1, 2021.
On December 15, 2020, the City Council introduced regular Ordinance No. 2020-009 amending and restating Chapter 12.46 (Sidewalk Vending Program) to make the sidewalk vending program permanent, subject to potential amendments in the future. The second reading of the Ordinance is on the Council’s agenda for adoption tonight. If adopted, the Ordinance would take effect 30 days thereafter. Also on December 15, 2020, the City Council adopted Urgency Ordinance No. 2020-008 with the same regulations that are included in the regular Ordinance.
Fee Schedule:
Under Urgency Ordinance 2018-006, an application fee of $425 was adopted to cover the costs associated with the review of sidewalk vending applications. The City Council is being asked to adopt a sidewalk vending application fee and permit renewal fee which would be added to the fiscal year 2020/2021 master fee schedule. The proposed fees are as follows:
Sidewalk Vending Application Fee: $425
Sidewalk Vending Permit Renewal Fee: $210
All existing sidewalk vending permits will expire on March 1, 2021 unless a sidewalk vending permit renewal is applied for.
Due to the numerical cap on the number of permits that can be issued under the sidewalk vending program, all applications will be reviewed on a first-come first-serve basis.