For more guidance on who you should be reaching out to and how to contact them, please see our California Government Officials Contact Info Spreadsheet.

Supervisor Call Template: 

Hi [Supervisor/ Aide Name], 

• I’ve heard about state bill AB 626 passing last year and understand that our County is not yet issuing permits for microenterprise home kitchens

• I would like to apply for a permit and know other cooks who are also very interested.

Do you know if there is a plan for our County to Opt-in? How can I help make it happen?

Supervisor Meeting Open Comment Template: 

• I’ve heard about AB 626, the Homemade Food Operations Act, passing and understand that our County is not yet issuing permits

• The ability to sell home cooked food is important to me because… [a little bit about your background with cooking, need for extra income or desires to incubate a food business]

• I would like a permit and know other cooks who are also very interested— some are in the audience today, can you please raise your hands? 

• We would like to know if there is a plan for our County to Opt-in and how we can help make it happen

Supervisor Email Template:

[COUNTY NAME] Supervisors
[County, State]

Email subject: PLEASE OPT INTO AB 626 the Homemade Food Operations Act

Dear [YOUR COUNTY NAME] Supervisors,

My name is [your first and last name] and I am writing to encourage [county name] County to opt into AB 626, the Homemade Food Operations Act. AB 626 allows cooks to apply for a Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operation permit (MEHKO permit) to sell food made in their home kitchen.

[insert reason for personal interest, such as desire to get a permit, desire to eat food from your neighbors, etc]

This permit will enable home cooks – mostly women, immigrants, and people of color – to use their skills to generate income. Without the fear of fines, thousands of existing home cooks will be able to openly access business education and training on safe food handling practices.

Small-scale microenterprises are an important tool for those who may want to grow their business that would not otherwise have access to sufficient capital to enter the commercial food industry. Finally, this permit protects consumers by ensuring cooks are highly trained and that public officials have access to inspect and certify the kitchens where the food is prepared. 

For these reasons, I support the implementation of AB 626, Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operations, in our local county. Thank you for your leadership in helping bring this opportunity to cooks!

Sincerely,

[your first and last name]
[email]
[street address]
[city, state, zip code]
[country]