The city soon may have a new tool in the fight against blight.
Legislation will be introduced to City Council that will amend and clarify the ordinance code related to business licensing requirements. The bill could make it easier for the city to close a business where illegal activity is taking place or public safety is at risk.
Council member Denise Lee, chair of the Ad Hoc Special Committee on Jacksonville’s Neighborhood Blight, said the legislation represents a step forward in the fight against blight.
“We can show progress to the community,” she said.
Originally conceived as a way to cite — and possibly prosecute — businesses that are operating outside the law, it also will make the requirements for operating a business more clear.
The bill clarifies the process required to operate a business, said council member Warren Jones, chair of the subcommittee that drafted the legislation.
He said many people who decide to start a business understand they are required to obtain a license from the city, but there’s another document that’s required.
“Some people purchase a business license and assume they have the right to operate a business,” Jones said.
That’s not correct.
The other document required to operate a business is a Certificate of Use, which is granted only after building code and fire code inspectors determine the location is suitable for the business and proper zoning is verified.
The subcommittee found “loopholes and problems” with the existing law, said Assistant General Counsel Paige Johnston.
The term that describes the city-issued document required for all businesses will be changed in the Municipal Ordinance Code from “occupational license” to “business tax receipt.”
Jones said the owner of a new business secures the document from the tax collector. Based on a ruling from the state, tax collectors are allowed to collect the business tax without proof the company has received its Certificate of Occupancy.
Due to the existing ordinance lacking clarity, many businesses likely are operating without the occupancy certificate. The new legislation would increase the penalty for operating without the certificate “beyond a citation” from the Municipal Code Compliance Division, Johnston said.
The change would allow the city recourse in the case of illegal activity.
The bill adds to the law provisions for the suspension or revocation of the use certificate if it was obtained by the business owner failing to disclose or misrepresenting information required to obtain the certificate; if the owner engages in business not described in the application; or engages in conduct that is detrimental to the public health, welfare or safety of the city.
A mechanism to allow for repeal of the suspension or revocation is included in the bill, Johnston said, “to protect the property owner’s due process.”
The proposed legislation, sponsored by council members Jones, Lee, Greg Anderson, Bill Bishop, John Crescimbeni, Bill Gulliford and Jim Love, will be introduced Nov. 12.
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