LAFAYETTE, IN — A state law signed in 2025 affecting how mobile food vendor permits are handled is causing alarm among health officials in Tippecanoe County, who are hoping for changes and clarity before the law takes effect in January.
Tippecanoe County Health Department Administrator Stacie Rees said about 40 mobile food vendors are operating in the county. Under the new state law, which will go into effect on Jan. 1, mobile food vendors will be required to apply for a permit through the Indiana State Board of Health instead of through their local health department.
Currently, Tippecanoe County charges mobile food vendors $150 for an annual permit to operate within the county and $25 for visiting mobile vendors who are established in another county. Under the new law, permits will cost $450 annually while allowing mobile food vendors the ability to operate out of any Indiana county.
Rees said language in the bill was written “very gray and open for interpretation,” leaving local health departments with questions as to who is responsible for issuing mobile food vendor inspections during the permitting process.
Local officials say who will inspect the food trucks is unclear.
Health Officer Seema Kengeri said the state has indicated it will be involved with mobile vendors, but county officials aren’t too sure.
“That may affect us in a way that we are not responsible to give the permits, but we are concerned that if there is an outbreak of any sort of, you know, foodborne illness … we will have to be the ones who would have to step in,” Kengeri said. “The state has also told us that they will be there, but I think right now we will have to wait and see.”
The law does not distinguish between temporary vendors and mobile vendors, Rees said. The difference between a temporary food vendor and a mobile food vendor is access to running water, such as instances of a pop-up tent at a farmer’s market or a local festival.
The law was born from House Enrolled Act 1577, signed on May 27 last year, and was authored by State Rep. Joanna King. King is also co-owner of JoJo’s Pretzels, an Elkhart County pretzel business with locations in Shipshewana and Goshen.
Indiana House Republicans said in a news release that the new law establishes a “standard for the license, inspection and standards for the operation of the mobile retail food establishment” that are based on the same set of uniform standards used to regulate brick-and-mortar restaurants.
“We’re making it as easy as possible to own and operate a business, no matter where you are in the state,” King said in the release. “By creating a statewide mobile license, we can cut red tape and eliminate unnecessary burdens for Hoosier entrepreneurs who run food trucks. I’m happy to see this piece of legislation make it into law.”
Tippecanoe County’s food vendor regulations have a strict reputation, Rees said, and it’s something she takes pride in. Under the new law, local health officials would not be notified when an out-of-county vendor sets up business here.
Rees said she plans to reach out to local legislators to address concerns ahead of the law’s implementation come January, hoping to create clarity in expectations between local health departments and the state.
The primary concern isn’t necessarily about the county’s loss of revenue, Rees said, which equates to about $6,000 per year, but the risk of foodborne illness it potentially sets up for customers.
“The biggest thing is your consumer safety is what’s at risk, and that’s our job,” Rees said. “The big million-dollar question right now is how does regulation work? Tippecanoe County is one of the only counties that’s actually staffed, and the state falls in that bandwidth as well.”
Jillian Ellison is a reporter for the Journal & Courier. She can be reached via email at jellison@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Tippecanoe health officials worry about new Indiana food truck law
Reporting by Jillian Ellison, Lafayette Journal & Courier / Lafayette Journal & Courier
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