Food trucks operating in Long Beach have been given updated rules that city officials hope will help with operating standards and strengthen public health and safety.

The City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved adopting a comprehensive mobile food facility ordinance, establishing a modernized regulatory framework for food trucks and other mobile food facility operations citywide. The new ordinance will take effect in about 30 days, city officials said.

This ordinance consolidates outdated and inconsistent regulations into a single, streamlined section of the Long Beach municipal code, creating clear standards for operators of mobile food facilities while supporting public health, safety and neighborhood quality of life, according to a news release. In addition to clarifying standards, the ordinance is also expanding opportunities for mobile entrepreneurs.

“As Long Beach continues to grow, it’s essential that our policies support entrepreneurship while ensuring safe, well-managed public spaces,” Mayor Rex Richardson said in a written statement. “This ordinance provides a balanced approach that expands opportunities for food truck operators and strengthens protections for residents, businesses and visitors.”

The ordinance is the culmination of several years of research, community engagement and interdepartmental coordination. The city began evaluating food truck regulations in 2021, when an audit by Lisa Wise Consulting identified inconsistencies in the municipal code and recommended consolidating, clarifying and modernizing the rules, according to a news release.

Building on that work, the city conducted extensive outreach with food truck operators, brick-and-mortar businesses, neighborhood groups and residents. This included a citywide survey that received more than 2,000 responses, focus groups, a virtual town hall, a health permit workshop and two public meetings to review early concepts and gather feedback.

In late 2025, the city released the draft ordinance and hosted both a virtual informational meeting and an in-person operator fair at the Billie Jean King Main Library. A digital feedback form remained open for a few months, generating comments from all nine council districts, according to a news release.

The ordinance adopted by the City Council incorporates this extensive community input, along with direction provided during council discussion in September and March. It represents a comprehensive, modernized framework designed to support entrepreneurship, protect public health and safety, and ensure food truck operations are well managed across Long Beach.

To operate legally in Long Beach, all mobile food facility operators must meet updated licensing, permitting and operating standards designed to support safe, orderly and well-managed mobile food facility activity citywide, according to a news release.

Additionally, operators must comply with all applicable state health and safety code requirements, the California vehicle code, Americans with Disabilities Act standards and relevant sections of the Long Beach municipal code. Operators will also have additional parking benefits, as well as expanded areas of opportunity, such as processes for operating on private property.

Some key components of the new ordinance include operators requiring a Long Beach business license and Long Beach health permit — a Los Angeles County permit will no longer be accepted — as well as insurance, including commercial general liability, auto liability and workers’ compensation.

General operating requirements include lighting being limited to what is necessary for food preparation and shielded, downward-facing customer lighting for safety, and no red or blue flashing lights; no tables, chairs, umbrellas or canopies in the public right of way unless permitted through a special event permit; no use of city-owned electrical outlet or power source without written authorization; no amplified or non-amplified sound devices; queuing may not obstruct sidewalks or ADA access; and operators must clean within a 50-foot radius and may not use city trash bins and may not dump grease, wastewater, ice or food debris into streets, gutters or storm drains, among other requirements.

Concerning parking benefits, operators in good standing may extend metered parking time limits up to twice the posted duration, with a four-hour cap citywide or up to 8 hours in the Downtown Dining and Entertainment District, according to the new ordinance.

Allowed location for food trucks include public streets that meet ordinance definitions, available parking spots in the Shoreline Aquatic Park surface lot, dedicated parking established for mobile food facilities on Ocean Boulevard by Lincoln Park, and designated stalls at participating parks through the park parking lot pilot program, which is slated to include Chavez Park, Hudson Park, Cherry Park, Davenport Park, Recreation Park, El Dorado Park East (Area 2), Scherer Park, Houghton Park and up to two stalls at Granada Beach limited to an hour.

To protect visibility, traffic flow and emergency access, the ordinance includes distance requirements such as a minimum 5-foot pedestrian path of travel, no vending within any location that obstructs traffic signals or regulatory signs, 15 feet of fire hydrants or fire lanes and 20 feet of driveways, intersections, marked crosswalk, curb cutout/ADA curb ramp, among other safety standards.

In the weeks leading up to the ordinance’s effective date, staff members will expand outreach to food truck operators, share multilingual materials and update the city’s mobile food facilities webpage with clear guidance on permitting and operating requirements, according to a news release.

Once the ordinance takes effect, the city will shift to a combined education and enforcement model. Operators will continue to receive support and information, and the city will also begin addressing and enforcing violations to ensure consistent application of the rules.

Enforcement will be carried out by various departments, including Business Services, Environmental Health, Planning, Public Works and the Police Department, each applying to their respective authorities as applicable to maintain safety and compliance, according to the news release.

The ordinance also introduces a cost recovery tool that allows the city to recoup staff time and resources when repeated noncompliance requires ongoing inspections or investigations, officials said. This provision is intended to promote fairness for operators who follow the rules and discourage ongoing violations that negatively affect the community.

For more information about the new mobile food facilities ordinance, go to longbeach.gov/lbcd.