Resistance to change is a hallmark of bureaucracy, but El Dorado County’s Environmental Services has taken this to new heights in its campaign against Microenterprise Home Kitchen Operations (MEHKOs). Their efforts to maintain the status quo are as unappetizing as the proverbial sausage-making process they seem determined to preserve.

For years, I’ve been an advocate for MEHKOs. Authorized by California legislators in 2018, the program allows counties to “opt-in” and permit small-scale home-based food businesses. The regulations are reasonable: amongst the many facets of the program, annual revenue is capped at $100,000; meal production is limited to what a family of four might consume daily; food must be prepared on the same day it’s sold; and operators must complete food safety certification. Twenty-two counties small and large, from Sierra to San Diego, have embraced MEHKOs. Data from these counties show negligible issues with foodborne illnesses or neighborhood disturbances. In fact, eating at a friend’s house (or your own) carries significantly more risk than dining on a MEHKO-prepared meal. Even El Dorado County’s own data that I obtained through a public records request confirms this.

Nonetheless, Environmental Services has launched an aggressive campaign against MEHKOs. They’ve lobbied both the City of South Lake Tahoe and the City of Placerville to oppose the program, citing hypothetical concerns like “lack of ventilation” or “potential parking issues.” These arguments are unsupported by evidence from other counties where such problems have not materialized. Internal documents reveal a troubling inconsistency: at one point, they supported MEHKOs when grant funding was available, yet shortly thereafter urged cities to oppose adoption.

This bureaucratic resistance creates absurd regulatory gaps. For instance, my private chef business (Tahoe Persian Kitchen) can legally prepare meals in a client’s home without a health permit. I can also cook for invited guests in my own kitchen. But if I charge for that same meal or deliver it elsewhere, it suddenly becomes illegal. My wife’s business (Tahoe Charcuterie Co.) faces similar contradictions: washing grapes at home is deemed unsafe, but doing so at a commissary kitchen or client’s house is perfectly fine. Thankfully, neither of our businesses are our main vocation. These rules are not just illogical—they’re stifling innovation and entrepreneurship. 27 people expressed interest in starting MEHKO’s when surveyed by the County last year; those are all potential entrepreneurs and potential future restaurateurs whose business (and tax revenue) is reduced or eliminated by current regulation.

Unfortunately, it appears Environmental Services’ lobbying has succeeded in delaying MEHKO adoption indefinitely. Armed with letters of opposition from local cities and their own relentless advocacy against the program, county Supervisors are unlikely to approve it anytime soon. Remember this next time your Supervisor campaigns on a pro-business, pro-small-government, “pull yourself up by your boostraps” message.

The most distressing aspect of the last few years of my advocacy is that the issue at hand has never been anything to do with public health. Other counties have adopted MEHKO regulation and they have not become hellscapes of noise, grease and disease. El Dorado County Environmental Services’ actions amount to nothing more than protectionism of a bureaucracy and a regulatory regime not based on evidence or reason. It’s simply resistance to change at any cost. That’s bad for small business, bad for innovation, bad for public health, and bad for economic opportunity – in my opinion, bureaucratic governance at its worst.