Kids shouldn't need a permit for a lemonade stand

Somewhere right now, a kid is thinking about dragging a folding table to the end of A driveway with a poster board, a marker, and a picture, and in most states, that kid needs a permit to sell you a cup of lemonade out of some Dixie cups. Only 14 states let that kid run a lemonade stand without paperwork. The rest require a vendor’s license and, in some places, a health Inspection. I don’t care where you sit politically. If your first instinct isn’t “that’s ridiculous,” I’d like to know what’s wrong with you. We say we want kids off screens and outside doing stuff. Then we slap an application on them and a four- to six-week wait. And that’s if they’re lucky.The Mielke brothers weren’t so lucky. A new permit requirement ended their lemonade stand’s three-summer run at a farmers market in Rogers City, Michigan. According to The Washington Post, their local health department busted Ethan, 13, Seth, 11, and Jonathan, 8, saying they would need a permit to continue.The permit costs $57 every two weeks, which would have brought the boys’ total for the season to nearly $400. Since they sold lemonade for 50 cents a cup, the cost made the stand impossible to keep going, and they had to shut it down.The brothers decided to push back, thankfully, sending letters and meeting with state Rep. Cam Cavitt during a coffee hour. Cavitt said in a statement reported by Globe Magazine that children from the community first brought this to his attention. He said that red tape shouldn’t stop kids from working hard and learning how to start a business.Amen.It’s lemonade! Not contraband!What do you think about all this?The best conversations are two-way streets. I want to hear from you.* Email: james@thedailynote.net* Call or Text: (585) 371-8865* Leave a Voice Memo: thedailynote.net/contactP.S. I tell stories on radio stations and online five days a week. You can find them on Substack, Apple, Spotify, Reddit, YouTube, Instagram, and wherever podcasts are available.Recent editions:The Last Day of School Is Freedom for Kids and a Puzzle for Parents1 in 5 Teens Are Turning to AI Instead of People When They’re StrugglingYogurt‘No Elon’ Sticker at Costco and What It Says About How We Buy Things NowMichael B. Jordan and a sea of phonesAre We Surrounded by Bad People?The Politicians Never PaySourcesWhy some kids’ lemonade stands are actually illegalhttps://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2026/07/01/lemonade-stand-laws-states-permit/90766363007/You Might Need A Permit To Run A Lemonade Stand Unless You Live In These Stateshttps://www.tastingtable.com/1913892/are-lemonade-stands-legal/Michigan brothers fight back after $400 permit requirement shuts down their lemonade standhttps://www.yahoo.com/news/politics/articles/michigan-brothers-fight-back-400-104800828.html This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit <a href="https://jamesbrowntv.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium