# DC Basic Business Licenses (`nexgenwatch/dc-basic-business-licenses`) Actor

One record per DC Basic Business License (category/type, status, effective/expiry dates, premise address, entity + owner/agent names, ward) from the official DC DCRA open-data ArcGIS feed. Licence category/status/dates and addresses carried verbatim.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/nexgenwatch/dc-basic-business-licenses.md
- **Developed by:** [NexGen Watch](https://apify.com/nexgenwatch) (community)
- **Categories:** Business
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $13.40 / 1,000 registry records

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

An Actor is a serverless cloud program that runs on the Apify platform. It has two run modes.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.

Apify vocabulary and the platform model are defined once, in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md.

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.

Do not guess an integration path. Every one of them is in the agent quickstart at https://apify.com/agents.md: the Apify MCP server, Agent Skills with the Apify CLI, the JavaScript and Python clients, the REST API, and the account-free path for an agent with no human to sign in. It also carries the rule on stating cost before the first paid run.

For examples already wired to this Actor's own input schema, see the [API](#api) section below.

Each client library has reference documentation the quickstart does not restate: [JavaScript/TypeScript](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md) (`npm install apify-client`) and [Python](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md) (`pip install apify-client`).

# README

## 🔔 DC Basic Business Licenses

One record per DC Basic Business License (category/type, status, effective/expiry dates, premise address, entity + owner/agent names, ward) from the official DC DCRA open-data ArcGIS feed. Licence category/status/dates and addresses carried verbatim.

Public, robots-honoured.

Output is one `dc_basic_business_license` row per result; billing is pay-per-event, the value event being one registry record (a $0.02 start fee per run, then $0.02 per registry record). Source: maps2.dcgis.dc.gov.

No login, no API key and no CAPTCHA solving are involved: the source is read logged-out with an identified contact User-Agent.

### 📊 Sample Output

[![DC Basic Business Licenses sample output — a table of real registry record rows (customer\_number, license\_type, license\_status\_date, initial\_issue\_date) from run Y4w6Ad90FYYGKH6ne on build 0.1.4](https://api.apify.com/v2/key-value-stores/8gLgXMBveEI1tTz1z/records/dc-basic-business-licenses-sample)](https://apify.com/nexgenwatch/dc-basic-business-licenses?fpr=2ayu9b)

Real rows from run `Y4w6Ad90FYYGKH6ne` on build 0.1.4 (2026-09-18), the same input as the Quick start below — every value is as the source published it (emails masked, long text shortened):

| customer\_number | license\_type | license\_status\_date | initial\_issue\_date | business\_activity | premise\_address |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 500624000099 | Business License | 2024-08-29 | 2024-02-06 | Two Family Rental | 815 E ST SE, WASHINGTON, DC, 20003, USA |
| 400224000353 | Business License | 2024-03-01 | 2024-03-01 | Charitable Solicitation | 1140 CONNECTICUT AVE NW, 1200, WASHINGTON, DC, 20036, USA |
| 39400991 | Business License | 2010-10-04 | 2010-10-04 | Restaurant | 1050 30TH ST NW, WASHINGTON, DC, 20007, USA |
| 39902200 | Business License | 2010-10-05 | 1999-04-27 | Delicatessen | 327 7TH ST SE, WASHINGTON, DC, 20003, USA |
| 500525002592 | Business License | 2025-06-21 | 2025-06-20 | One Family Rental | 627 HARVARD ST NW, Washington, DC, 20001, USA |
| 400312001139 | Business License | 2026-03-13 | 2012-04-26 | General Business | 2300 N ST NW, 6135, WASHINGTON, DC, 20037, USA |
| 65002525 | Individual License | 2026-03-06 | 2005-05-13 | Motor Vehicle Salesperson | 5917 GEORGIA AVE NW, WASHINGTON, DC, 20011, USA |
| 420316000432 | Individual License | 2026-06-26 | 2016-08-24 | Home Improvement Salesperson | 1508 17TH ST NW, WASHINGTON, DC, 20036, USA |

The run finished with the status message: `NORMAL: 50 unique rows (0 duplicates collapsed). billable=50`

### ✅ What you get

Each row is flat JSON with these fields (from the dataset schema and the sample run; a field the source does not publish for a given row is `null`):

- `record_type` (string) — e.g. `dc_basic_business_license`
- `customer_number` (string/null) — e.g. `500624000099`
- `license_status` (string/null) — e.g. `Active`
- `license_type` (string/null) — e.g. `Business License`
- `license_subtype` (string/null) — null in every sample row
- `license_status_date` (string/null) — e.g. `2024-08-29`
- `license_start_date` (string/null) — e.g. `2023-01-01`
- `license_end_date` (string/null) — e.g. `2026-12-31`
- `initial_issue_date` (string/null) — e.g. `2024-02-06`
- `primary_activity` (string/null) — null in every sample row
- `business_activity` (string/null) — e.g. `Two Family Rental`
- `premise_address` (string/null) — e.g. `815 E ST SE, WASHINGTON, DC, 20003, USA`
- `entity_name` (string/null) — e.g. `Diem Trang Doan Nguyen`
- `entity_trade_name` (string/null) — e.g. `.`
- `entity_type` (string/null) — e.g. `Sole Proprietorship`
- `owner_first_name` (string/null) — e.g. `Diem Trang`
- `owner_last_name` (string/null) — e.g. `Nguyen`
- `agent_first_name` (string/null) — e.g. `Hung`
- `agent_last_name` (string/null) — e.g. `Nguyen`
- `ward` (string/null) — e.g. `Ward 6`
- `district` (string/null) — e.g. `FIRST`
- `data_refreshed_on` (string/null) — e.g. `2026-09-18`
- `source` (string/null) — e.g. `dc-basic-business-licenses`
- `release_date` (string/null) — null in every sample row
- `source_url` (string/null) — e.g. `https://maps2.dcgis.dc.gov/dcgis/rest/services/FEEDS/DCRA/FeatureServer/0`
- `observed_at` (string/null) — e.g. `2026-09-18T19:42:13Z`
- `terminal` (string/integer/null) — null in every sample row
- `reported_total` (string/integer/null) — null in every sample row
- `raw_seen` (string/integer/null) — null in every sample row
- `duplicates` (string/integer/null) — null in every sample row
- `unique_found` (string/integer/null) — null in every sample row
- `delivered` (string/integer/null) — null in every sample row
- `scope` (string/integer/null) — null in every sample row
- `note` (string/integer/null) — null in every sample row
- `license` (string/integer/null) — null in every sample row
- `attribution` (string/integer/null) — null in every sample row

**What you get**

One `registry_record` per entity, deduplicated on the source-native id. Fields the source does not publish are honest `null`. A `run_receipt` row carries the source URL, scope, reconciliation counts, and delivered/duplicate totals.

### ⚙️ Sample inputs

**1. Quick start — the Store example (this is what the sample above came from)**

```json
{
  "maxRecords": 50
}
```

The sample run charged exactly: 2 × $0.02 apify-actor-start + 50 × $0.02 registry\_record = **$1.04** on the Free tier — every delivered row was billed.

**2. A smaller, narrowed run**

```json
{
  "maxRecords": 5
}
```

Caps the run at 5 rows — about $0.12 on the Free tier ($0.02 start + 5 × $0.02).

**3. A full-size run**

```json
{
  "maxRecords": 5000
}
```

Up to 5000 rows (the schema default for `maxRecords`) — about $100.02 on the Free tier ($0.02 start + 5000 × $0.02) if the source has that many.

### 🧾 JSON sample record

One real record from run `Y4w6Ad90FYYGKH6ne`, exactly as it lands in the dataset (emails masked, long text shortened):

```json
{
  "record_type": "dc_basic_business_license",
  "customer_number": "500624000099",
  "license_status": "Active",
  "license_type": "Business License",
  "license_subtype": null,
  "license_status_date": "2024-08-29",
  "license_start_date": "2023-01-01",
  "license_end_date": "2026-12-31",
  "initial_issue_date": "2024-02-06",
  "primary_activity": null,
  "business_activity": "Two Family Rental",
  "premise_address": "815 E ST SE, WASHINGTON, DC, 20003, USA",
  "entity_name": "Diem Trang Doan Nguyen",
  "entity_trade_name": null,
  "entity_type": "Sole Proprietorship",
  "owner_first_name": "Diem Trang",
  "owner_last_name": "Nguyen",
  "agent_first_name": "Hung",
  "agent_last_name": "Nguyen",
  "ward": "Ward 6",
  "district": "FIRST",
  "data_refreshed_on": "2026-09-18",
  "source": "dc-basic-business-licenses",
  "release_date": null,
  "source_url": "https://maps2.dcgis.dc.gov/dcgis/rest/services/FEEDS/DCRA/FeatureServer/0",
  "observed_at": "2026-09-18T19:42:13Z"
}
```

### 🔧 How it works

**Transport.** Plain HTTPS from the Apify platform, no proxy. robots.txt is read first and a disallowed path is never fetched. Every request carries an identified contact User-Agent. Pacing: `CRAWL_DELAY`=0.0.

**Charging.** Each registry record is charged at the moment it is pushed (`registry_record`); a row that fails to charge is not delivered, so the dataset count always equals the charged count.

**How it behaves**

The DC DCRA FeatureServer layer is paged (resultOffset/resultRecordCount, OBJECTID-ordered) and returnCountOnly reconciled against delivery. Fields copied verbatim from the published attributes; nulls preserved. Streaming, bounded to maxRecords.

**Source**

`https://maps2.dcgis.dc.gov/dcgis/rest/services/FEEDS/DCRA/FeatureServer/0`

**What is not done.** No login, no cookie or CAPTCHA bypass, no private or personal-account data, no browser automation.

### 💰 Pricing example

| Event | Free | Bronze | Silver | Gold |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Actor Start (`apify-actor-start`) | $0.02 | $0.02 | $0.02 | $0.02 |
| Registry Record (`registry_record`) | $0.02 | $0.02 | $0.02 | $0.01 |

Worked at the live Free-tier price:

- 8 registry records: $0.02 start + 8 × $0.02 = **$0.18**
- 25 registry records: $0.02 start + 25 × $0.02 = **$0.52**
- 5000 registry records: $0.02 start + 5000 × $0.02 = **$100.02**

A run that delivers zero rows charges the $0.02 start fee only. A BLOCKED run (source refused) fails loud and charges no value event. The start fee is charged once per GB of run memory; the default run memory is 4096 MB.

Yield on the sample run: `NORMAL: 50 unique rows (0 duplicates collapsed). billable=50`. `maxRecords` is a hard ceiling on what is delivered and billed, never a target.

### ⚖️ Legal & ToS

This actor reads public, logged-out pages and feeds published by maps2.dcgis.dc.gov. It collects only what the source publishes to any visitor, keeps to the source's robots rules (checked on every run), identifies itself with a contact User-Agent, and does not access accounts, private data or anything behind authentication. Use the output in line with the source's terms and your local law; the intended use is B2B research and monitoring.

### ❓ FAQ

**Q: Do I need an API key or a login?**\
A: No. The source (maps2.dcgis.dc.gov) is read logged-out; the input schema has no key field and the actor carries no secrets.

**Q: Why did my run return 0 rows?**\
A: Read the run's status message. GENUINE\_EMPTY means the source was read and had nothing in scope for your input; BLOCKED means the source refused and the run failed without billing a value event — retry later or narrow the input. A zero-row run bills the start fee only.

**Q: How many rows can one run return?**\
A: Up to `maxRecords` (default 5000). Raise the cap for a bigger run; you pay per delivered row.

**Q: How fresh is the data?**\
A: Every run reads the source live at run time; nothing is cached between runs. Put it on a schedule for a continuous feed.

**Q: What formats can I export?**\
A: The dataset downloads as JSON, CSV, Excel, XML or RSS from the run's Dataset tab or the Apify API, and any run can push to a webhook or integration.

**Q: How is this different from the other NexGen Watch actors actors?**\
A: Same output shape and billing model; this one covers maps2.dcgis.dc.gov. The siblings under **Related Actors** cover the other sources or slices — run several on one schedule for a combined feed.

**Q: Are there rate limits?**\
A: The actor paces itself against the source (`CRAWL_DELAY`=0.0) and honours its robots rules; there is no per-buyer limit beyond your Apify plan's concurrency.

### 🆘 Troubleshooting

- **Run FAILED with BLOCKED** → the source refused the request or changed its page shape → nothing was billed beyond the start fee; retry after a while, and if it persists open an Issue with the run id.
- **Status says CAPPED** → your cap (`maxRecords`) was reached → raise it for a bigger run.
- **Input validation error on start** → a field is outside the schema's allowed values → start from the Quick start block and change one field at a time.
- **Run TIMED-OUT** → a very wide request on a slow day → raise the run timeout in Run options or narrow the input; what was delivered before the timeout is still in the dataset.

### 🔗 Related Actors

- [CMS Hospice Facilities](https://apify.com/nexgenwatch/cms-hospice-facilities?fpr=2ayu9b) — A clean, structured roster of Medicare-certified hospice facilities in the United States,
- [Colorado Business Entities Master](https://apify.com/nexgenwatch/colorado-business-entities-master?fpr=2ayu9b) — One structured registryrecord per record from the official public source, logged-out. Public, robots-honoured
- [Czech ARES Company Registry](https://apify.com/nexgenwatch/czech-ares-company-registry?fpr=2ayu9b) — One structured registryrecord per record from the keyless ares.gov.cz REST economic-subjects API, logged-out. Public, logged-out, robots-honoured
- [Estonia Company Registry (bulk)](https://apify.com/nexgenwatch/estonia-company-registry-bulk?fpr=2ayu9b) — One structured registryrecord per record from the official public source, logged-out. Public, robots-honoured, keyless
- [Ireland CRO Company Records](https://apify.com/nexgenwatch/ireland-cro-company-records?fpr=2ayu9b) — One structured registryrecord per record from the official public source, logged-out. Public, robots-honoured
- [Ireland CRO Financial Statement Filings](https://apify.com/nexgenwatch/ireland-cro-financial-statement-filings?fpr=2ayu9b) — One structured registryrecord per record from the official public source, logged-out. Public, robots-honoured
- 🏢 **About NexGenData** — NexGen Watch is NexGenData's fleet of 256 public monitoring and lookup actors built on official sources, pay-per-result. Browse the catalog at [apify.com/nexgenwatch](https://apify.com/nexgenwatch?fpr=2ayu9b).

### ⭐ Found this useful?

If this actor saved you a manual check, a quick **[review on the Apify Store](https://apify.com/nexgenwatch/dc-basic-business-licenses?fpr=2ayu9b)** helps other teams find it. Feature request or a source that changed? Open it from the **Issues** tab — every one is read.

# Actor input Schema

## `maxRecords` (type: `integer`):

maxRecords (buyer bound).

## `userAgent` (type: `string`):

userAgent.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "maxRecords": 50
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "maxRecords": 50
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("nexgenwatch/dc-basic-business-licenses").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = { "maxRecords": 50 }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("nexgenwatch/dc-basic-business-licenses").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "maxRecords": 50
}' |
apify call nexgenwatch/dc-basic-business-licenses --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,nexgenwatch/dc-basic-business-licenses"
        }
    }
}
```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/wKY5mE4bgOBjBwt0g/builds/W2PlfO9UOOL5indM3/openapi.json