A. License Required: No person shall engage in the business of a taxicab, hack or cab operator or operating a public passenger metered vehicle for hire within the corporate limits of the city, except in compliance with the provisions of this code. No license will be issued to an individual taxicab unless that taxicab is leased to, or owned by, a taxicab company currently licensed under this chapter. It shall be unlawful for a person to operate a public passenger metered vehicle for hire unless such person has applied for and obtained a license from the city as provided in this code. A taxicab vehicle license shall be valid for the term of one year, beginning July 1 and ending June 30. The taxicab license fee shall be set forth in section 4-18-1 of this title.
B. Application: An applicant for license shall submit an application, under oath, stating:
1. Applicant's name and residential address as on file with the Illinois secretary of state.
2. Applicant's date of birth and valid driver's license number.
3. Whether the applicant, manager, on site supervisor, and individual taxicab drivers have ever been convicted of, pled guilty to, or been found guilty by a court of law of a felony or an offense involving violence or moral turpitude.
4. The address of applicant's business. In the case of an individual taxicab owner, the address of the taxicab company it is leased to with a copy of the lease with the franchise.
5. The applicant will not violate any of the provisions of this code or the laws of the state of Illinois or the United States in the conduct of his place of business.
6. A certificate of insurance showing coverage in section 4-14-5 of this chapter must accompany the license application.
7. No license shall be issued to any applicant who does not comply with the applicable requirements of this code. The chief of police, or his designee, shall indicate on the application for a license the results of his investigation, and his approval or disapproval of said application. In addition to any other fees assessed in this chapter, a fee set forth in section 4-18-1 of this title per person shall be paid by the applicant to cover the cost of said fingerprint processing.
C. Issuance Of Taxicab License: When the terms and provisions of this chapter have been complied with, a license shall be granted by the chief of police, or his designee, to be issued in the same manner as generally prescribed in chapter 2 of this title for the issuance of licenses, except that for the first year, the license shall be a probationary license. Said license shall be reviewed at the end of the first year of issuance to determine if the licensee has complied with this chapter and all other ordinances of the city of Des Plaines. Said probationary license is subject to nonrenewal at the end of the first year, or revocation at any time during the year of probation if the chief of police, or his designee, determines that the licensee has violated one or more ordinances of the city of Des Plaines and that the violation or violations adversely affect the public health, safety and welfare of the citizens of Des Plaines. Any person whose license is revoked, suspended, or not renewed may, within ten (10) days of the date of the notice of the adverse action, appeal the action by filing an appeal, in writing, with the office of the city attorney. Thereafter, an appeal will be set for hearing pursuant to the provisions of section 1-16-17 of this code before the administrative hearing officer. Based upon the record of such hearing, the administrative hearing officer shall make a finding and shall sustain, modify or rescind any official notice or order considered in the hearing. A written report of the hearing decision shall be furnished by the legal department to the person whose license was revoked, suspended or not renewed. No license shall be granted to any person under eighteen (18) years of age. The chief of police, or his designee, may grant licenses for the replacement of one taxicab by another by the same owner or licensee by remitting current mechanical/physical inspection sticker and individual taxicab vehicle sticker. The replacement vehicle must comply with all provisions of this code.
D. License Register: It shall be the duty of the chief of police, or his designee, to keep a register of the names of persons to whom licenses are granted, the dates when issued, the numbers of the licenses and the descriptions of the vehicles licensed.
E. Number Of Vehicle Licenses: The number of public conveyance vehicle licenses to be issued to each company by the city under this chapter shall be no less than ten (10) and not exceed fifty five (55). The combined total of all taxicab company vehicle licenses shall not exceed two hundred seventy five (275). (Ord. M-19-13, 10-7-2013)