Nampa, ID Food Trucks

Two years after the Institute for Justice (IJ) first warned Nampa, Idaho, that its food truck rules were unconstitutional, the city is back with a new proposal that would be just as damaging to local entrepreneurs. IJ sent a letter to city officials urging them to strike the ordinance’s most restrictive provisions.

In April 2024, IJ called on Nampa to stop enforcing its mobile vending code against trucks operating safely on private property. After public pushback against the enforcement, the council directed staff to work with the food truck community on a better solution. But vendors say that outreach never happened. Instead, on Sept. 30 of this year, and without any prior warning, truck owners received notice of new code changes. Worse, they were unable to see the actual ordinance language until the day it was first scheduled for a vote.

The latest proposed crackdown would institute an overnight parking ban, restrict vending to 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. in non-residential zones, prohibit drive-thrus, forbid seating, umbrellas, flags, and portable signs, and bar more than one truck per lot unless the property owner pays $350 and navigates a conditional use permit hearing to become a “food truck court.” Vendors on public property would even need written permission from neighboring property owners, a blatantly protectionist provision intended to advantage traditional brick-and-mortar restaurants. Some food truck operators say the provisions would put them out of business completely.