The Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection (BACP) announced Cut the Tape for Small Business, a comprehensive effort to update and streamline the City’s administrative processes in service of making it faster and easier to open and operate a small business in Chicago. Cut the Tape for Small Business is designed to serve as both a strategic framework and a long-term resource for the small business ecosystem. Cut the Tape for Small Businesses priorities: 

1. Develop clear guidance for business owners to help them navigate pre-licensing City inspections to ensure clear expectations and requirements.
 
2. Simplify and digitize licensing and permitting processes to reduce complexity.

3. Streamline the administrative debt check process to reduce bureaucratic hurdles.

4. Develop an interactive online zoning map to provide a user-friendly overlay of business activity types allowed at specific locations.

5. Explore new regulation frameworks for emerging industries to ensure Chicago remains competitive.

6. Leverage cultural storytelling and cross-corridor marketing strategies to unlock the potential of neighborhood tourism.

7. Eliminate information silos between City departments to ensure a cohesive and supportive environment for businesses.

8. Collaborate with City Colleges of Chicago to provide in-community access to education and empowerment programs for entrepreneurs.

9. Launch a digital literacy initiative targeting under-resourced entrepreneurs, bridging the technology gap.

For more information, Chicago.gov/CutTheTape.