Back in the day,  between 1984 and 1988,  when my second husband and me owned/operated one St. Paul taxicab,  the insurance rates ( per accident) were ok to start with.  By the time he got fed up with the job being dangerous,  the man that owned the legal rights to the name,  St. Paul Yellow Cab Co.,  was requiring us to carry 1 MILLION dollars,  per accident,  coverage.  

The way it works,  or at least used to work,  was that insurance rates were "across the board"  meaning that cab owners all across the U.S.A. had to carry the same amount of coverage,  it didn't matter that we didn't have as many accidents in St. Paul, MN. as New Yorkers were having.  Once upon a time,  there were statistics available to me regarding the facts of accidents for cabs.

So what does this have to do with hotdogs you ask?  well I just read an article in the Pioneer Press, this July,  that talked about how hotdog vendors in St. Paul now have to carry TWO MILLION big smackaroos in coverage!!

This is INSANE!  What in God's name do the city officials think is going to happen if a vendor has an accident!??  Is someone going to sue the vendor ( considering how small their income is?) if they get mustard spilled on them??!

According to the Pioneer Press,  Charles Belcher,  proprietor of C.W.'s Juicy Fat Boys and Dogs in Lowertown ( LOL,  whatta name for a hotdog vendor..) says he's lucky if he makes $200.00 a day!  And I can believe it too!

The new requirement,  or rather the amount,  comes from the city's public works dept.  which surprises me.  I'd have thought it'd come from the licensing dept.  They,  the licensing dept.,  had a snafu in 2003 for busting a 7 year old girl's lemonade stand!  Why?  because it was near the 2003 state fair grounds during fair time.  Good God!  No wonder I was glad to leave the city in 88!

It seems that the public works dept. started examing the vendor rules because of the upcoming 2008 Republican National Convention,  and they decided to apply the same liability requirements it demands of utility companies and construction crews...ya,  whatta deal.

The city also wants vendors to pay a monthly fee of $95.00,  cause that's what Excel and Qwest pay so their crews can set up at locations throughout the city.  Now THAT'S on TOP of the $200.00 that gets paid to the city's licensing dept.!  

The wonderful city of St. Paul also has a rule that keeps vendors at least 2000 feet away from special events,  such as Taste of Minnesota,  unless of course they're going to pay to be there too....nice huh?

Thanks to Jason Hoppin for his article.  

 I find the city's  rules and regulations unreasonable and greedy.   I oughta know,  I was there once upon a time...