San Leandro, CA Food Trucks & Mobile Vendors: Sidewalk & Mobile Vending (2026)

SB 946 (2018, codified at Government Code §51036–§51039) preempts criminal regulation of sidewalk vendors — defined as a person who sells food or merchandise from a pushcart, stand, display, pedal-driven cart, wagon, showcase, rack, or other non-motorized conveyance, or from the person's body, on a public sidewalk or pedestrian path. A 'sidewalk vendor' is NOT a food truck (which has a motor and is regulated under SLMC Ch. 4-34). The City may impose objective time, place, and manner rules only if they are directly related to health, safety, or welfare, and may not (1) restrict vendors to specific zones except for objective safety concerns, (2) require a vendor to operate within designated neighborhoods, or (3) prohibit roaming vendors entirely. Sidewalk food vendors must still obtain an Alameda County Environmental Health permit (Cal. Retail Food Code) and a city business license. Violations of any local sidewalk-vending ordinance are punishable only by an administrative fine: $100 (first), $200 (second), $500 (third) for failure to comply with operational rules; $250 / $500 / $1,000 for vending without the required permit. The City must conduct an ability-to-pay analysis and reduce or waive fines for low-income vendors. SLMC Chapter 4-34 covers motorized food trucks; standalone sidewalk-vendor cart rules — if any — are tied to SB 946.