Chicago requires a Mobile Food License ($700 for Preparer, $350 for Servers/two-year) from the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection (BACP). Chicago Municipal Code §7-38-115 enforces a strict 200-foot buffer from any brick-and-mortar restaurant — the rule upheld by the Illinois Supreme Court in 2019 — and mandates GPS tracking on every truck.
Chicago food trucks are licensed by the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection under Chicago Municipal Code §4-8 and operate under §7-38-115 health rules. Two license classes exist: Mobile Food Preparer ($700 for two years) allows cooking onboard, and Mobile Food Servers ($350 for two years) is limited to prepackaged or reheated food. Both require a Chicago-licensed Shared Kitchen User or Commissary affiliation. MCC §7-38-115(l) prohibits operating any mobile food vehicle within 200 feet of the principal customer entrance to any restaurant — the rule survived a constitutional challenge in LMP Services v. City of Chicago (2019, Ill. Supreme Court). Every truck must carry a permanently-mounted GPS device that transmits location data to BACP, and may not park in any single location for more than 2 hours (longer at city-designated mobile food stands). Operators also need a Mobile Food Vehicle Vendor city sticker, an IL Department of Public Health Mobile Food Unit certification, and a Sanitation Certificate.
Operating without a Mobile Food License is a fineable offense from $1,000 to $2,000 per day under MCC §4-4-340. Violating the 200-ft restaurant buffer carries fines of $1,000 to $2,000 plus possible license revocation. Disabling or tampering with the GPS device is a separate $1,000–$2,000 fine and can lead to immediate license suspension under §7-38-115(o).
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