(INDIANAPOLIS) - The Indiana House of Representatives advanced State Representative Joanna King’s legislation to boost support for Indiana food truck vendors.

Since the pandemic, the food truck industry has been on the rise. According to a report produced Grand View Research, the U.S. food truck services market was valued at over $1 billion in 2021 and is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of over 6 percent from 2022 to 2030.

King, a Republican from Middlebury, says House Bill 1577 would create a statewide mobile retail food establishment license so vendors could operate in different counties without having to obtain a local license or permit in each location. The legislation builds off a law King authored last year simplifying the permitting process for food trucks by capping certain fees and requiring local health departments to create mobile retail food establishment permits that follow a set of universal state standards beginning this year. The permit must be established in accordance with state regulations adopted by the Indiana Department of Health.

King says her legislation would equip the IDOH to establish this licensure procedure, the standards for licensure and inspections, as well as standards for the operation of a mobile retail food establishment. Local health departments would also oversee issuing licenses, collecting fees, and conducting semiannual inspections of license holders beginning in 2027.

Additionally, King said House Bill 1577 would add transparency by establishing a publicly accessible database on food truck inspections and any violations issued to promote and uphold the safety of these mobile food establishments.

House Bill 1577 now moves to the Senate for further consideration.