Kids In Michigan No Longer Need A Government Permit To Run A Lemonade Stand.

A group of children in Presque Isle County, Michigan, wanted to sell lemonade at their local farmers market and discovered that doing so legally required them to pay their county health department a $57 licensing fee every two weeks. They found the situation puzzling enough to call their state representative, Cam Cavitt, who found it equally puzzling, described it as leaving a sour taste in his mouth, and turned their complaint into legislation. On June 25th, the Michigan House of Representatives voted 110 to 0, with not a single dissenting vote across party lines, to pass House Bill 6007, which exempts minors operating lemonade stands and other temporary nonalcoholic beverage businesses from the permit requirements, licensing fees, and inspections that local health departments currently apply to food vendors in some parts of the state. The unanimous bipartisan vote was described by Cavitt as refreshing in its own right.

Under the new legislation, any minor under 18 can run a lemonade stand or similar temporary beverage business on private property without a government permit or license, provided the stand earns less than $5,000 a year and only serves lemonade or nonalcoholic drinks that don't require temperature control. Local governments and health departments would be explicitly prohibited from requiring permits, charging fees, or conducting commercial inspections of these small operations. The bill now heads to the Michigan Senate. While researching the bill, Cavitt also discovered a separate quirk in existing Michigan law: car dealerships technically cannot serve customers a complimentary cup of coffee without a food-service license, a finding that his legislation addresses as well. Michigan joins Utah, Texas, and several other states that have passed similar protections for youth entrepreneurship in recent years. About 40 percent of Americans who grew up during the baby boom reported running a lemonade stand as a child, and Cavitt said the goal of the bill is simply to make sure the next generation gets the same chance, without a government form standing between them and a folding table and a pitcher of lemonade.

Source:https://www.cbsnews.com/detroit/news/michigan-lemonade-stand-bill-minors-permits/