The City of Tempe has introduced a new General Business License aimed at bolstering city services for local businesses, which was unanimously passed by the City Council earlier this month. Starting on August 1, Tempe businesses can avail themselves of a centralized information hub designed to improve the relationship between the local government and the business community, according to an announcement by the city. The license will enable the city to build a more comprehensive database of local businesses, many of whom are currently not included in the city’s records.
With approximately 30,000 Tempe businesses not accounted for in the existing database, the license will not only fill this gap, but it will also allow the city to gather and track business demographics. These include details about minority and disadvantaged business ownership that, until now, have been hard to come by. Despite the breadth of data collection, businesses retain the option to keep their information private from public sharing within the database. The Economic Development team in Tempe anticipates utilizing this database to disseminate resources like grants and technical support to the local business community.
A key detail of this initiative is that every business with a permanent location in Tempe will need to acquire this license, expanding the requirement beyond those who need a Transaction Privilege Tax (TPT) license. This includes a range of entities like contractors with job sites in Tempe and various professional services. To incentivize early registration, the city council has decided that businesses signing up before January 1, 2026, will be exempt from fees until the following year, with the license fee set at $25 annually thereafter. This rate is meant to align with fees from other cities in the region.
Exemptions to this license requirement have been carved out for several types of business operations. These include those holding regulatory licenses, like tobacco sales, temporary ventures, special events vendors, and other casual activities such as childcare and tutoring services. Additionally, religious, veteran, or civic organizations that engage in non-profit activities infrequently will not be subjected to the licensing fee.
Community engagement played a significant role in shaping the licensing program, with public meetings held in April and public hearings at the Tempe City Council meetings. The Tempe Chamber of Commerce has expressed support for the initiative, recognizing it as a positive step towards engaging with and supporting local businesses.
For businesses in Tempe looking for more information or with questions regarding the new license, officials have directed queries to [email protected] or the contact number 480-350-2955. Complete details about the ordinance and how to register for the license can be accessed at tempe.gov/BusinessLicense.
