CHICAGO—At a meeting this afternoon, the Chicago City Council voted to reform the city’s sign permit process to speed up approvals. Under the proposal, the full City Council would no longer need to vote on individual sign permits unless the local alderman and the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection disagree on whether one should be issued. The Institute for Justice Clinic on Entrepreneurship at the University of Chicago (IJ Clinic) has advocated for reform for more than a decade and praised the Council’s action today.

“Coming off a difficult year of lockdowns and uncertainty, Chicago businesses need to let people know they are open and ready to serve customers,” said IJ Clinic Policy Fellow Noah Bazis. “Reform of the convoluted sign permit process has been a long time in coming. We hope that this helps our streets come back to life and revives the small businesses that are the backbone of their neighborhoods.”