§ 31.251. Taxicab company licenses.

(a)

License Required. No taxicab shall be operated upon streets and ways within the City, nor shall any taxicab company engage in business, unless there shall first have been obtained therefor licenses from the City Clerk. Such taxicab licenses shall be issued for the term of the calendar year, or such part thereof as remains at the time the license is applied for, and shall be effective for such period of time unless sooner suspended or revoked. The full yearly license fee shall be charged no matter when the license is applied for or issued.

(b)

Application and Issuance of License. Applications shall be made by the taxicab company in writing to the City Clerk on forms, as reasonably required and approved by the City Manager. A license fee of two hundred dollars ($200.00) shall be submitted with the application. If the application is for renewal of a taxicab company license, the application shall be submitted to the City Clerk no later than thirty (30) days prior to expiration of the current license. Renewal applications filed after this deadline shall be considered a late filing but shall be accepted by the City Clerk provided a late filing fee of fifty dollars ($50.00) is submitted with the application and license fee.

Taxicab companies shall be required to include in the application a true statement of certain facts, including, but not limited to: (1) the state of incorporation of the taxicab company, if the company is a corporation; whether the company is organized and qualified to do business under the laws of the state, if it is a corporation; (2) the taxicab company's principal place of business; (3) the full names and addresses of the individuals who own the taxicab company; whether the taxicab company is a corporation, partnership or sole proprietorship; (4) and the registered agent of the corporate taxicab company. The full names, dates of birth and residential addresses of persons having an ownership interest of five percent or more in the taxicab company shall be disclosed on the application.

(c)

Rate Sheet Required. A rate sheet to be in effect for the period of the taxicab company license shall be included as part of the application.

(d)

Insurance Requirements:

(1)

The applicant shall be required to file with the City Clerk, as part of its application for a taxicab company license, a certificate of insurance issued by a solvent company authorized to do business in the state and approved by the City Attorney, insuring the taxicab company and owners of all taxicabs for which licenses are sought, its drivers (operators) and employees against liability for any damage or injury to, including death of, any person and for damage or injury to property resulting from the negligence of such licensee, owner, operators, employees or any other agent in the operation of such vehicle. Such policy of insurance may cover one or more vehicles. Taxicab companies having taxicabs operated by independent contractors must cause each operator to provide proof of automobile liability insurance for each taxicab registered pursuant to this Article or provide the required insurance on behalf of such independent contractor.

(2)

The limits of liability shall be, with respect to each vehicle covered by such policy, not less than three hundred thousand dollars ($300,000.00) combined single limit, each accident. Such policy of insurance shall provide for the payment and satisfaction of any final judgment rendered against the licensee or owner of such vehicle for both damage to property and for personal injury, including death.

(3)

The policy shall be further endorsed to provide thirty (30) day advance written notice of any cancellation thereof to the City Clerk. In the event the insurance coverage required under this Section is cancelled, the taxicab company license and all taxicab vehicle licenses and taxicab operator's licenses relating to such taxicab company shall immediately terminate as of the effective date of such insurance termination unless a substitute policy of insurance complying with the provisions of this Section is provided to the City prior to the effective date of the insurance cancellation.

(4)

In the event that a final judgment or claim has been paid by any indemnitor or insurance policy, as a result of which the original amount of coverage required herein is proportionately reduced, all licenses issued pursuant to the authority granted by this Article to the affected taxicab company, its vehicles and operators shall be immediately terminated subject to reinstatement, within thirty (30) days, by replacement of the coverage so reduced.

(5)

All licensed taxicab companies shall provide proof of automobile liability insurance for each taxicab registered pursuant to this Article. Such proof of insurance must be carried in each individual taxicab licensed pursuant to this Article at all times and shall be made available to any person involved in an accident at the time of such accident.

(e)

The taxicab company, along with its application for a taxicab company license shall license or cause to be licensed each individual taxicab operated by, for or on behalf of such company within the City in accordance with Section 31.252 of this Chapter.

(f)

Investigation. The City shall investigate the owner(s) of the applicant taxicab company, including each officer, general partner, sole proprietor and all persons having an ownership interest of five percent or more of any such applicant. If this investigation of the application material reveals information showing any of the following, the application shall not be approved and no license shall be issued to the taxicab company:

(1)

The owner(s) has been convicted of a felony based upon his or her conduct or involvement in taxicab business activity or similar business activity within the past ten (10) years;

(2)

The owner(s) has been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor unrelated to his or her conduct or involvement in taxicab business activity or similar business activity, which felony or misdemeanor involves any of the following offenses:

(A)

Unlawful possession with the intent to deliver: any controlled substance, as such term is defined in the Illinois Controlled Substances Act (720 ILCS 570/100 et seq.), as amended from time to time; or cannabis, as defined in the Cannabis Control Act (720 ILCS 550/1 et seq.), as amended from time to time; or an intoxicating compound, as listed or defined in the Intoxicating Compounds Act (720 ILCS 690/0.01 et seq.), as amended from time to time, within the past ten (10) years,

(B)

Unlawful possession of any controlled substance, cannabis or intoxicating compound, within the past five years,

(C)

Criminal sexual assault and criminal sexual abuse, as such offenses are defined in the Illinois Criminal Code 720 ILCS 5/1-1 et seq., or any like offense of another state or country, within the past ten (10) years,

(D)

Any offense involving violence against another person or threatened violence against another person under the Illinois Criminal Code 720 ILCS 5/1-1 et seq., or any like offense of another state or country, within the past ten (10) years, or

(E)

Any offense involving moral turpitude, including, but not limited to any offense involving the misapplication, misappropriation or misuse of funds of another person, within the past five years;

(3)

An owner(s) has been convicted of a misdemeanor based upon his or her conduct or involvement in taxicab business activity or similar business activity within the past five years; or

(4)

The owner(s) or applicant(s) has misrepresented or omitted material facts in the application for a license.

(g)

Operational Requirements. The taxicab company licensee shall be responsible for the acts, omissions and general conduct of persons operating a taxicab for, on behalf of or with the permission of such taxicab company. The taxicab company shall, periodically during the term of each annual license, determine if its taxicab operators continue to meet the qualifications set forth in this Article and shall promptly inform the City Clerk of the names of any such operators who fail to so qualify.

(h)

Transfer of License. If a licensee holding a taxicab company license under this Chapter shall change its principal place of business, it shall notify the City Clerk in writing. Upon receipt of such notification, the City Clerk shall make the necessary alterations to her records. No fee shall be required for a change in the principal place of business of the company. If ownership of a cab company licensed under this Article shall be conveyed to a new owner, said new owner shall apply for a new license in its name in accordance with the procedures and standards set forth in this Section. There shall be no transfer of a license from one owner of a business to another.

(i)

Number of Licenses. There shall be no limit on the number of taxicab company licenses nor on the number of taxicab vehicle licenses.

(j)

Abandonment of Service. Upon complete abandonment of taxicab service for the period of ten (10) consecutive days, the Mayor, upon hearing, after not less than five days' notice to the owner, shall thereupon revoke the license of such taxicab company.

(Ord. 11-2005 § 2 (part))