File a Business Affairs and Consumer Protection FOIA Request

The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) is a state law that provides citizens with access to public records.

The Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection maintains the following categories of records:

Business Licenses
Public Vehicle Licenses
Public Way Use Permits
Public Chauffeurs
Taxi Medallions
Business Complaints and Citations
License Violations and Fines
Investigations and Enforcement
Hearings and Disciplinary Actions
Consumer Protection
Consumer Fraud and Retail Complaints
Cable Regulations and Complaints
Business/Consumer Educational Workshops

Please note: all records listed on this page may not be subject to disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act.

*Please note that the following data is now available online in the City’s Data Portal:

The direct link to Business Licenses Issued Since 2006 is http://data.cityofchicago.org/Community-Economic-Development/Business-Licenses/r5kz-chrr

The direct link to Current Business Licenses is http://data.cityofchicago.org/Community-Economic-Development/Business-Licenses-Current-Active/uupf-x98q

The direct link to Business Owners is http://data.cityofchicago.org/Community-Economic-Development/Business-Owners/ezma-pppn

The direct link to Current Liquor and Public Place of Amusement Licenses is http://data.cityofchicago.org/Community-Economic-Development/Business-Licenses-Current-Liquor-and-Public-Places/nrmj-3kcf

Instructions to find Public Chauffeur License dataset.

If you are looking for other datasets, the Chicago Data Portal hosts over 200 datasets presented in easy-to-use formats about City departments, services, facilities and performance. The catalog list datasets alphabetically and links back to each set on the portal.

All Freedom of Information requests submitted to City of Chicago departments must include the following information:

The name, mailing address and contact information of the requester;
A description of the records that are being requested.

To submit a FOIA request, please complete a Freedom of Information Request Form, and send it via e-mail to BACPfoia@cityofchicago.org.

Please note that all FOIA requests are posted online. FOIA requests are public information, and when you submit a FOIA request, your name and information about the request will be made available on the City’s website. To view the BACP log click here: http://www.cityofchicago.org/content/city/en/depts/bacp/dataset/foialog.html