Cicero, IL Noise from Specific Sources: Car Alarm Limits (2026)
Key Facts
- Max sound duration
- 4 minutes after activation
- First offense fine
- $50.00
- Second offense fine
- $75.00
- Third+ offense fine
- $100.00
- Roadway remedy
- Towing and impoundment (ch. 94)
Summary
Cicero caps every car burglar alarm at four minutes of continuous or intermittent sound before it must shut off automatically and reset. Installing, maintaining, parking or operating a vehicle with a noncompliant alarm violates Town Code Sec. 38-31, with fines starting at $50.00 and rising to $100.00 for repeat offenses.
(a) In any vehicle equipped with a continuous or intermittent audible signal device which acts as a burglar alarm, such device shall be limited in operation to four minutes after activation and shall be incapable of further operation until reset to become active again. ... (c) Any person who violates this section shall be subject to a fine of $50.00 for each offense. Any person who violates this section a second time shall be subject to a fine of $75.00. Any person who violates this section a third or subsequent time shall be subject to a fine of $100.00. Each installation and each use of an alarm in violation of this section shall constitute a separate and distinct offense... A violation of this section on a roadway is declared a public nuisance which may be abated by removing such vehicle pursuant to the procedures for impoundment set forth in division 7 of chapter 94 of this Code.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 121).
Full Breakdown
Sec. 38-31 regulates any vehicle equipped with a continuous or intermittent audible signal device functioning as a burglar alarm. The device must be limited to four minutes of operation after activation and must be incapable of sounding again until it is reset. The rule reaches three separate acts: installing such a device in a town-registered vehicle, maintaining one already installed, and parking or operating on any roadway a vehicle carrying a noncompliant alarm, unless the device has both an automatic shutoff after four minutes and an automatic reset mechanism.
00 for a third or subsequent violation, with each installation and each triggered use counted as a separate offense. The section carves out one exception: an alarm may sound past four minutes without violating the code if it was triggered by someone forcing open the hood, trunk or a door, or by breaking a window, and the extended sounding resulted from that intrusion. A vehicle whose alarm violates this section while parked on a roadway is declared a public nuisance, which the town may abate by having the vehicle towed and impounded under the procedures in chapter 94, division 7.
Violations & Fines
First-time violators of Sec. 38-31 pay a $50.00 fine; a second violation costs $75.00, and a third or later violation costs $100.00, with each installation and each alarm activation treated as its own offense. A vehicle left blaring on a roadway is a declared public nuisance and can be towed and impounded under the chapter 94 impoundment procedures.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it illegal to have a car alarm in Cicero?
What if my alarm goes off for more than four minutes because someone tried to break in?
Can the town tow my car over a noisy alarm?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Cicero
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How other cities in Cook County handle car alarm limits.