7-12-140 License required.

   (a)   It is the duty of the owner of each dog four months of age or older to obtain from the city a dog license for the privilege of owning such dog, unless such dog shall be temporarily within the possession of a veterinary hospital, pet shop, animal care facility, or humane society. The owner of each dog required to hold a license hereunder shall, when the dog is on the public way, either: (i) ensure the license is visible and securely attached to a collar, harness or similar device worn by the dog, or (ii) upon request by an authorized city official, make available the license for inspection. The license fee for each dog license shall be as set forth in Section 7-12-170.

   (b)   Upon determining that an owner has violated subsection 7-12-140(a), an authorized city official shall issue a notice of violation. The notice required by this subsection shall either be served by hand upon the person in possession of the animal at the time the violation is identified or sent by first class mail addressed to the owner at the most recent address shown on county rabies vaccination records.

   (c)   The penalty for any violation of subsection 7-12-140(a) shall be no less than $30.00 and no greater than $200.00. Each day that a violation continues shall be considered a separate offense to which a separate fine shall apply.

   (d)   The provisions of Article I of Chapter 2-14 of the Code shall apply to this section.

(Prior code § 98-8; Amend Coun. J. 12-12-01, p. 75777, § 4.2; Amend Coun. J. 2-7-07, p. 98109, §

7-12-150 License application forms.

   (a)   An application for a dog license shall be made to the City Clerk on forms or in an electronic format as prescribed by the City Clerk, and shall contain the owner's name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, information sufficient to identify the dog, and any other information as may be required by the City Clerk.

   As part of every dog license application, the owner shall attest to the following information for each dog for which an application has been submitted:

      (1)   that the dog has a current certificate of rabies inoculation that complies with Section 7-12-200;

      (2)   the number of the rabies inoculation certificate or tag referred to in subsection (a)(1) of this section, and the date of expiration of the rabies inoculation the dog received;

      (3)   the age of the dog's owner; and

      (4)   whether the dog has been sterilized.

   (b)   The City Clerk shall keep on file, for two years from date of issue, a copy, which may be an electronic copy, of each application or a copy of each license so issued on the basis of application.

   (c)   Any person who knowingly makes a false statement of material fact on any dog license application shall be subject to the provisions of Section 1-21-010 of the Municipal Code.

(Prior code § 98-8.1; Amend Coun. J. 6-13-07, p. 2873, § 2; Amend Coun. J. 12-12-07, p. 16793, § 3; Amend Coun. J. 7-30-08, p. 34890, § 2; Amend Coun. J. 11-16-16, p. 37901, Art. I, § 19)

7-12-160 Rabies inoculation certificate.

   Application for such license shall be made to the City Clerk. Before a license is issued, a certificate of inoculation against rabies for each dog, issued by the county rabies control officer, or by his deputy, or by a licensed veterinarian, shall be submitted to the City Clerk for examination. No license shall be issued for any dog unless such inoculation certificate bears a date within three years prior to the date of application for license or such other interval as approved by the Department of Agriculture of the State of Illinois. Such certificate shall be returned to the applicant after the current dog license number has been stamped thereon. When applying for a dog license by mail, the certificate of inoculation shall accompany the application. Said certificate shall be returned at the time the license tag is mailed to the applicant.

(Prior code § 98-8.2; Amend Coun. J. 11-16-11, p. 13798, Art. I, § 5; Amend Coun. J. 11-16-16, p. 37901, Art. I, § 20)

7-12-170 License fees.

   (a)   A dog license may be issued for either a one-year or three-year period as limited by subsection (e) of this section. The fee shall be paid at the time of the issuance of the license and shall be as follows:

 

	One-Year Fee	Three-Year Fee
Male or female, not sterilized	$50.00	$150.00
Male or female, sterilized	$5.00	$15.00

 

except that owners 65 years of age or older shall be charged as follows:

 

	One-Year Fee	Three-Year Fee
Male or female, not sterilized	$5.00	$15.00
Male or female, sterilized	$2.50	$7.50

 

   (b)   The fee for a replacement license shall be one- half of the original fee, or $20.00, whichever is less.

   (c)   No fee shall be charged for:

      (1)   any service dog. For purposes of this subsection a "service dog" means a dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of a person with a disability, including a physical, sensory, psychiatric, intellectual, or other mental disability; or

      (2)   any dog which is the property of any subdivision of local, state or federal government.

   (d)   Each dog license issued after July 1, 2008 shall expire at the end of the applicable one or three year period or on the expiration date of the certificate of inoculation that is in effect at the time the dog license is issued, whichever is earlier.

(Prior code § 98-8.3; Amend Coun. J. 12-12-01, p. 75777, § 4.3; Amend Coun. J. 7-26-06, p. 81829, § 3; Amend Coun. J. 6-13-07, p. 2873, § 2; Amend Coun. J. 6-13-07, p. 2891, § 2; Amend Coun. J. 7-30-08, p. 34890, § 2; Amend Coun. J. 5-9-12, p. 26724, § 1; Amend Coun. J. 10-28-15, p. 12759, § 1)

7-12-180 Exemptions from license requirements.

   (a)   Section 7-12-140 shall not apply to dogs owned by or in the charge or care of nonresidents traveling through the City of Chicago or temporarily living therein; however, any person keeping or harboring any dog for 15 consecutive days within the city shall be considered a resident owner and shall comply with the licensing requirement.

   (b)   Section 7-12-140 shall not apply to any person who is properly licensed under Chapter 4-384 of this Code to engage in the business of permanent animal exhibition or properly permitted under Section 7-12-185 to operate a temporary animal exhibition.

(Prior code § 98-8.4; Amend Coun. J. 7-26-06, p. 81829, § 3; Amend Coun. J. 6-13-07, p. 2873, § 2; Amend Coun. J. 6-13-07, p. 2891, § 2; Amend Coun. J. 5-9-12, p. 27485, § 153)

7-12-185 Temporary animal exhibitions – permit required.

   (a)   For purposes of this section, the term "temporary animal exhibition" shall be defined as set forth in Section 4-384-010.

   (b)   No person shall operate a temporary animal exhibition without first having obtained an animal exhibition permit.

   (c)   An application for an animal exhibition permit shall be made on a form prescribed by the Executive Director, and shall be accompanied by a non-refundable application fee as set forth in Section 4-5-010. The application shall contain:

      (1)   The name and business address of the applicant and any other associated information that the Executive Director may require, including any disclosures pertaining to ownership or control of the applicant;

      (2)   A description of the proposed exhibition, including location, dates of operation, the species and numbers of animals included, and any animal tricks, behaviors or other activities intended as part of the exhibition;

      (3)   Proof of insurance with amounts and coverages set by the Executive Director, following consultation with the City's risk manager; and

      (4)   Such other information as the Executive Director may reasonably require.

   (d)   Upon being satisfied that a permit application is complete and meets the requirements of this section, and that the proposed exhibition will not endanger the public or create an imminent hazard to the health of the animals included in such exhibition, the Executive Director shall issue the permit. The permit shall be valid only for the exhibition as described on the application. If the Executive Director denies the permit, the Executive Director shall inform the applicant in writing, stating the reasons for the denial.

   (e)   (1)   Any person found to be operating a temporary animal exhibition without the permit required by this section, or in violation of the terms of a permit issued pursuant to this section, shall be subject to a fine of not less than $100.00 nor more than $1,000.00 for each offense, or summary closure of the exhibition, or both a fine and summary closure. A separate violation shall be deemed to have occurred for each day of noncompliance.

      (2)   If the Executive Director determines that any violations are limited in scope or egregiousness such that they can be corrected by the permittee, the Executive Director may mandate that the permittee complete corrective action by a date certain, or, if summary closure is imposed, as a precondition to re- opening the exhibition. Provided, however, that summary closure of a temporary animal exhibition shall only be authorized if an inspection by the Department results in a finding of an imminent hazard to the health of animals included in such exhibition. Corrective action may be imposed in conjunction with a fine.

   (f)   (1)   Any applicant who believes that his application for a permit is wrongfully denied, or any permittee whose exhibition has been summarily closed pursuant to this section, may file an appeal with the Department of Administrative Hearings within five business days of the date of the notice of the Executive Director's denial or the closure. If no appeal is filed within said five-day period, the Executive Director's action shall be deemed final.

   Upon the filing of such appeal, the Department of Administrative Hearings shall cause a hearing to be held within five business days and based upon the evidence contained in the record of such hearing, either affirm or reverse the decision of the Executive Director.

   Any final decision of the Department of Administrative Hearings shall be subject to judicial review in accordance with applicable law.

      (2)   If under the circumstances there is not sufficient time to file the appeal in accordance with the procedure set forth in this subsection, the decision by the Executive Director shall be deemed a final decision subject to judicial review in accordance with applicable law.

(Added Coun. J. 5-9-12, p. 27485, § 154; Amend Coun. J. 11-16-16, p. 37901, Art. I, § 21)

7-12-190 Citations.

   The Department, through its animal control officers, is authorized to issue citations against the owner of any animal for violations of this chapter.

(Prior code § 98-8.5; Amend Coun. J. 10-2-95, p. 8604; Amend Coun. J. 11-16-16, p. 37901, Art. I, § 22)