How to Start a Food Truck in Hattiesburg: Ordinance 3286, Private-Property Rule and Insurance

Hattiesburg regulates food trucks through its own ordinance, and its rules on where you can park are stricter than many new operators expect. Ordinance 3286, approved unanimously on January 19, 2021, sets the terms for a mobile food vending permit issued by the city's Planning Division. If you understand those terms before you buy a truck, you will not pay for a vehicle you cannot legally park where you need it.

This guide walks through the steps in the order that tends to work best: state registrations, the city privilege license, health and fire approvals, insurance, the site, and finally the Planning Division permit, which depends on all of the others.

Disclaimer: This article is informational, not legal or tax advice. Ordinances, fees and agency rules change. Confirm every figure with the agency named before you spend money, and talk to a qualified attorney or CPA about your specific situation.

What Mississippi does and does not license

Mississippi does not issue a general statewide business license, and many new operators waste time searching for one. The state filings you will make are registrations and tax accounts:

• LLC formation. Filing a Certificate of Formation (Form F0100) with the Mississippi Secretary of State costs $50. This registers your entity. It is not a license to sell food.
• Fictitious business name. If you sell under a name other than your LLC's legal name, file a Fictitious Business Name Registration (Form F0070) for $25. You file it with the Secretary of State, not the county.
• Sales tax permit. The Mississippi Department of Revenue issues a sales tax permit to businesses making retail sales. There is no fee, although a bond may be required for applicants with no permanent Mississippi location.

Local licensing is where Hattiesburg comes in. Under Miss. Code 27-17, every city issues its own privilege license. Counties license only businesses outside municipalities, so for a truck operating inside Hattiesburg, the city is the licensing authority. The privilege license is a separate step from the vending permit, with its own fee.

Materials and documents you need before you apply

Gather these before you file anything with the city. Several are prerequisites for the Planning Division application, so one missing item stalls the whole file.

• Certificate of Formation for your LLC (or the Articles of Incorporation, Form F0001, if you incorporate instead)
• Fictitious Business Name Registration, if you will trade under a name other than your legal name
• Hattiesburg privilege license
• Department of Revenue sales tax permit and your state tax number
• Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) food service permit for the truck
• Fire Inspector approval for the truck
• Written property owner consent for every location where you plan to park
• Central kitchen approval from MSDH, for a kitchen in Forrest County or Lamar County (your truck may qualify), plus an approved wastewater site
• A site plan for each location
• A certificate of liability insurance for $500,000 per unit, naming the City of Hattiesburg
• Proof of vehicle ownership and a list of your menu and equipment

Step-by-step: from entity to Planning Division permit

Step 1: Form your entity and check the name

File the LLC Certificate of Formation online through the Secretary of State's Business Services portal at corp.sos.ms.gov for $50. Before you file, search the state's business records to confirm the name is available. Under Miss. Code 79-29-109, the name must contain the words limited liability company or the abbreviation LLC, and it must be distinguishable from every entity on the state's records. If you need to hold the name while you finish other steps, a name reservation costs $25 and lasts 180 days. Online formation filings are normally approved immediately or within 24 hours, and no expedite fee applies to formation filings.

Step 2: Register for the sales tax permit

Apply through the Department of Revenue's registration page for sales and use tax applicants. There is no fee. The state sales tax rate is 7%. No county adds to that rate, and city levies apply only in Jackson and Tupelo, so Hattiesburg does not add a city levy on top of the state rate. Confirm this with the Department of Revenue before you set menu prices, because a wrong rate on every receipt is expensive to fix.

Step 3: Obtain the Hattiesburg privilege license

Apply to the City of Hattiesburg for a privilege license under Miss. Code 27-17. It carries its own fee, so confirm the amount with the city. Have Steps 1 and 2 finished so you can supply your entity details and sales tax number.

Step 4: Choose a private-property site that meets the zoning rules

This step eliminates most plans, so do it before you buy the truck. Ordinance 3286 allows mobile food vending only on private property. Public streets and rights-of-way are not covered by the permit, and special events are handled separately. Your site must meet all of these conditions:

• It sits in a Business or Industrial zoning district. In an R-3 district, vending is possible only with approval, so ask the Planning Division what approval is required.
• It has a hard surface. Grass, dirt and gravel do not qualify.
• It is at least 20 feet from a bus stop.
• It is at least 10 feet from any building.
• It is at least 10 feet from any fire hydrant.

Get the property owner's written consent for each location, and draw every location on your site plan. Confirm the parcel's zoning with the city before you sign a lease or consent letter. A listing, a broker or a neighbor's word is not the city's answer.

Step 5: Secure an approved central kitchen and wastewater site

Ordinance 3286 requires a central kitchen in Forrest County or Lamar County that MSDH has approved. Your truck may qualify as that central kitchen, which some operators use to avoid renting a separate facility. The kitchen also needs an approved wastewater site. Ask MSDH directly which wastewater arrangements it accepts and what they cost, and keep the written approval in your file.

Step 6: Get the MSDH food service permit and the Fire Inspector's approval

MSDH issues the food service permit for the truck. Schedule the inspection, pass it, and keep the permit on board. Check with MSDH for the permit fee and inspection requirements before you budget. The city's Fire Inspector must also approve the truck. Ask which fire suppression and extinguisher requirements apply to your layout. Get the approval in writing.

Step 7: Buy the liability insurance

Ordinance 3286 requires $500,000 in liability insurance per unit, naming the City of Hattiesburg. Per unit means each truck you operate. Ask your agent for a certificate that names the city as the ordinance requires, and confirm the certificate wording with the Planning Division before you submit it. Premiums vary by carrier, vehicle, menu and driver history, so get quotes from more than one agent.

Step 8: Submit the mobile food vending permit to the Planning Division

Assemble the complete file: privilege license, MSDH food service permit, state tax number, Fire Inspector approval, property owner consents, central kitchen approval, wastewater site approval, site plan and insurance certificate. Then submit it to the Planning Division. The permit costs $250 a year, or $125 if you apply after July 1. Renewals are due January 1. Those figures come from the 2021 ordinance, so confirm the current fee and renewal date with the Planning Division before you budget.

Step 9: Operate within the hours and conditions

Under the ordinance, you may operate from 6 a.m. to 2 a.m. Keep your permit, privilege license and MSDH permit on the truck, and keep your consents and site plans in the office file for inspection. Each location needs its own owner consent. Before you move to a new spot, ask the Planning Division whether it needs a permit amendment. Do not assume the permit covers a location you did not list.

Costs at a glance

Item	Cost	Agency	Status
LLC Certificate of Formation	$50	Secretary of State	Confirmed
Name reservation (lasts 180 days)	$25	Secretary of State	Confirmed
Fictitious business name registration	$25	Secretary of State	Confirmed
LLC annual report	$0, due April 15	Secretary of State	Confirmed
Sales tax permit	No fee	Department of Revenue	Confirmed
Hattiesburg privilege license	Separate fee	City of Hattiesburg	Confirm with city
Mobile food vending permit	$250 a year ($125 after July 1)	Planning Division	2021 figures, confirm current
MSDH food service permit	Not confirmed here	MSDH	Confirm with MSDH
Fire Inspector approval	Not confirmed here	City Fire Inspector	Confirm with city
Central kitchen and wastewater approval	Not confirmed here	MSDH	Confirm with MSDH
Liability insurance ($500,000 per unit)	Varies by carrier	Insurance agent	Get quotes

Ongoing obligations: annual report, taxes and staff

An LLC must file its annual report online by April 15 each year. The fee is $0. Failure to file can lead to administrative dissolution, which would cut off the entity you use to hold the permit and the insurance.

An LLC taxed as a partnership is a pass-through entity. Its income is reported on the members' Mississippi returns. The franchise tax does not apply to that LLC, since it applies to corporations. An LLC taxed as a corporation pays Mississippi corporate income tax, plus franchise tax, which steps down for 2027 and is repealed effective January 1, 2028. Choosing a tax classification is a decision for a CPA.

Mississippi has no state minimum wage law, so the federal minimum wage governs your hourly staff. Check local and federal rules before you hire, and keep payroll records from your first shift.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Buying the truck before confirming the site. If your parking spot fails the zoning or clearance rules, the truck has no legal place to operate.
• Parking on grass, gravel or a street. The permit covers private property with a hard surface only.
• Looking for a state general business license. Mississippi does not issue one. The city privilege license is the local requirement you need.
• Filing the fictitious name with the county. The registration goes to the Secretary of State.
• Measuring clearances by eye. Use a tape to confirm 20 feet from a bus stop and 10 feet from a building or hydrant, and record the measurements on the site plan.
• Submitting an insurance certificate that does not name the city. Get the wording confirmed before you submit.
• Budgeting from old fee figures. The $250 and $125 amounts come from the 2021 ordinance. Confirm the current figure.
• Moving to a new location without new consent. Each location needs its own owner consent and site plan.

What to expect after you file

State formation and registration filings are the fastest part of the process. Online Secretary of State filings are normally approved immediately or within 24 hours. The city, MSDH and Fire Inspector reviews have no published turnaround we could confirm, so ask each office for its current turnaround and plan for several weeks of back-and-forth rather than a single visit.

A complete, carefully checked file gives you the best chance of avoiding delays at the Planning Division. No permit guarantees sales volume, which depends on your menu, location, pricing and marketing. Your food safety and handling practices are your responsibility, and the MSDH inspection will check them.

Get help from the right people

The Mississippi Small Business Development Center Network, with its lead center hosted by the University of Mississippi and 19 locations statewide, offers free advising for new business owners. Start with the network's site at mississippisbdc.org. The U.S. Small Business Administration's Mississippi district office page is at sba.gov/district/mississippi. For liability questions, talk to an insurance attorney. For how to structure the LLC for tax purposes, talk to a CPA.

Official resources

• Mississippi Secretary of State, Business Services Division: https://www.sos.ms.gov/business-services
• Online filing portal: https://corp.sos.ms.gov/corp/portal/c/page/corpnewfilings/portal.aspx
• Business entity search: https://corp.sos.ms.gov/corp/portal/c/page/corpBusinessIdSearch/portal.aspx
• Mississippi Department of Revenue: https://www.dor.ms.gov/
• Sales and use tax registration: https://www.dor.ms.gov/business/sales-use-tax/registration-information-sales-and-use-tax-applicants
• Mississippi Small Business Development Center Network: https://www.mississippisbdc.org/