Howard County
Howard County Health Department, Bureau of Environmental Health
In short
Howard County Health Department, Bureau of Environmental Health issues 4 permits we publish for Howard County, last verified 2026-10-02. Each carries the fee as the agency publishes it, with a link to the schedule it was read from.
What this agency issues
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mobile Food Vendor License | Howard County Health Department, Bureau of Environmental Health | $157 under Council Resolution No. 89-2026, effective July 1, 2026, plus a 10% technology surcharge added on top of that figure rather than included within it. | annual | 2026-10-02 |
| Temporary Food Service Facility Licenseonly if it applies to you | Howard County Health Department, Bureau of Environmental Health | $65 per event or season under Council Resolution No. 89-2026, effective July 1, 2026, plus a 10% technology surcharge added on top of that figure rather than included within it. | per event or season | 2026-10-02 |
| Food Service Facility License | Howard County Health Department, Bureau of Environmental Health | High priority $415, Medium priority $325, Low priority $100, under Council Resolution No. 89-2026, effective July 1, 2026, plus a 10% technology surcharge that the resolution's text describes as collected on all uncapped established fees, in addition to (not included within) the listed figures. | annual | 2026-10-02 |
| Annual Public Swimming Pool or Spa Permitonly if it applies to you | Howard County Health Department, Bureau of Environmental Health | $391 under Council Resolution No. 89-2026, effective July 1, 2026, plus a 10% technology surcharge added on top of that figure rather than included within it. | annual | 2026-10-02 |
Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.
About each permit
Mobile Food Vendor License
A food truck operating in Howard County needs this license from the Health Department's Bureau of Environmental Health, at $157 a year under Council Resolution No. 89-2026, effective July 1, 2026, plus a 10% technology surcharge added on top (resulting in roughly $172.70, before rounding, in total collected). The Department's own public fee-schedule page still showed the superseded 07-2024 all-in figure of $173 when retrieved on October 2, 2026; that older figure already included the surcharge under the 2024 schedule's own wording, while the 2026 resolution's $157 figure does not, which is why the two numbers look close despite describing different bases. Resolution 89-2026 is the current, adopted source for this fee.
Temporary Food Service Facility License
A food truck or restaurant serving food at a one-off event or temporary location in Howard County uses this license instead of the standing Food Service Facility License: $65 under Council Resolution No. 89-2026, effective July 1, 2026, plus a 10% technology surcharge added on top of that figure. The Health Department's own public fee-schedule page still showed the superseded 07-2024 all-in figure of $72 when retrieved on October 2, 2026 — that older figure already included the surcharge under the 2024 schedule's own wording, while the 2026 resolution's $65 base figure does not. Resolution 89-2026 is the current, adopted source for this fee, issued by the Bureau of Environmental Health at 8930 Stanford Blvd, Columbia.
Food Service Facility License
A restaurant or coffee shop operating in Howard County needs this license from the Health Department's Bureau of Environmental Health, 8930 Stanford Blvd, Columbia, at a base fee by inspection-priority tier: High $415, Medium $325, Low $100, under Council Resolution No. 89-2026, effective July 1, 2026. A 10% technology surcharge is added on top of these figures rather than included within them: the superseded 07-2024 schedule explicitly stated its own figures 'include the surcharge,' language that Resolution 89-2026 dropped, and dividing several of the resolution's other 2026 figures (Mobile Food Vendor, Temporary Food Service, Pool/Spa Permit) by 1.10 reproduces the old 2024 all-in totals almost exactly — consistent with the 2026 figures now being pre-surcharge bases. The Health Department's own public fee-schedule page, at howardcountymd.gov/health/resource/fee-schedule, remained the superseded July 2024 version when retrieved on October 2, 2026, and shows different (and in several cases higher) dollar figures for the related mobile and temporary permits below; Resolution 89-2026 is the current, adopted source and is what this record cites.
Annual Public Swimming Pool or Spa Permit
A fitness studio with an on-site public swimming pool or spa in Howard County needs this permit from the Health Department's Bureau of Environmental Health: $391 a year under Council Resolution No. 89-2026, effective July 1, 2026, plus a 10% technology surcharge added on top (reproducing, almost exactly, the old 2024 all-in total of $430 once the surcharge is added to the pre-surcharge 2026 base). The Health Department's own public fee-schedule page still showed the superseded 07-2024 figure when retrieved on October 2, 2026; Resolution 89-2026 is the current, adopted source for this fee. A fitness studio without a pool or spa has no obligation under this record.
Contact
- Jurisdiction
- Howard County
- Phone
- 410-313-6300
Contact details are taken from the agency’s own site or its published fee schedule. Where we have not verified a phone number we leave it blank rather than guess.
Sources
Every fee and term above was read from one of these government pages on the date shown.
- Howard County Council Bill 48-2008, amending Howard County Code §12.107 (food service facility definition)Howard County Council · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-02
- Howard County Council Resolution No. 89-2026, Health Department Fees, effective July 1, 2026Howard County Council · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-02
Other offices serving Howard County
The full permit list for this jurisdiction
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