Form BCHD-AC-10-2, Commercial facility license application – Baltimore City, MD

The Commercial facility license application is the Baltimore City Health Department, Office of Animal Control form that a person submits to request a license for a commercial animal facility under Baltimore City Health Code, Title 10, Part II.

The form collects the applicant's name and home address, telephone, cell and e-mail, the trade name of the facility, its address, block, lot and property owner, the facility's mailing address, the type of facility, the type of animals, and the current and planned number of animals. The applicant signs a certification that the requirements of the Baltimore City Health Code and Health Department regulations have been met and that the information and attachments are true and correct to the best of the applicant's knowledge and belief.

Three attachments are printed on the form: an affidavit about animal-abuse convictions, a lease if the applicant is a lessee, and a Use & Occupancy Certificate from the Department of Housing. A fee payment goes with the application.

The form also states that the holder of the permit must comply with the Baltimore City Code, the Annotated Code of Maryland and other applicable federal, state and local laws, rules and regulations, and that the permit cannot be transferred to other persons or locations. The block marked "Animal Control use only" records the permit or license number, fee, dates of issuance and expiration, and whether the application is approved or disapproved.

This is a facility license. The same Baltimore City animal permits page lists separate processes for pet licenses, exotic pet permits and electronic fence exemptions, and this form is not used for them.

Anyone who plans to open or run a commercial animal facility in Baltimore City and needs a license from the Office of Animal Control files this application. The Baltimore City animal permits page names a vet hospital, a groomer, a shelter and a rubber stable as examples.

Conditions tied to the application:

• The affidavit must certify that the applicant, owner, operator, agent and/or employee of the applicant has never been convicted of animal abuse, cruelty or neglect.
• A lessee attaches a copy of the lease agreement. The agency page adds that a renter submits written permission from the property owner to house multiple animals.
• The facility needs a Use & Occupancy Certificate from the Department of Housing.

The form is signed by the applicant. It names no other signer and says nothing about a representative signing for the applicant.

Do not use this form for a pet license, an exotic pet permit or an electronic fence exemption. The Baltimore City animal permits page describes a different process for each. The license cannot be transferred to another person or location.

Apply when you are ready to open the facility and have gathered the attachments, because the agency's first step is to collect the required documents and the second is to schedule a meeting with the Office of Animal Control by calling (410) 396-4698. The form prints no filing deadline.

The date of issuance and the date of expiration are entered by Animal Control in the office-use block after review, so the length of the license is not printed on the form. Because the license is non-transferable to other persons or locations, it applies to the applicant and facility named on the application.

You apply through the Baltimore City Health Department's Office of Animal Control, either by scheduling a meeting by phone or by applying in person.

• Meeting: the agency's licensing steps are to gather the required documents, then call (410) 396-4698 to schedule a meeting with the Office of Animal Control.
• In person: the form says you may apply in person and pay with cash, check or money order. The form's letterhead gives the Office of Animal Control at 2490 Giles Road, Baltimore, Maryland 21225.
• Payment: a fee applies. A check or money order is made payable to Director of Finance. The form and the agency page give the current amount, and Animal Control can confirm it at 410-396-4698.

The form names no mailing address or online portal. Bring the signed application with the affidavit, the lease if you are a lessee, the Use & Occupancy Certificate and any other documents the agency lists. FillingPDF lets you fill out and download the PDF; submission follows the channels above.