DuPage County, IL Noise from Specific Sources: Generator Noise (2026)
Key Facts
- Exempt condition
- Power outage from natural disaster/outage
- Exemption citation
- Sec. 26-10(b)(ii)
- Applies to
- Unincorporated DuPage County only
- Non-outage generator use
- Subject to Sec. 26-12 nighttime rule
- Ordinance date
- Ord. JPS-O-0001-25, 4-22-2025
Summary
Portable and stationary generators are exempt from DuPage County's loud and raucous noise ordinance when they run during a power outage caused by a natural disaster or utility failure, so no permit is needed to run one after a storm knocks out electricity.
The following sound amplifying devices are exempt from application of this chapter: ... Sounds created by portable or stationary generators during periods when there is no electricity from the primary power supplier due to natural disaster or power outage.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 14 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
Section 26-10 of the County Code lists the sounds that are exempt from the county's Article IV loud-and-raucous-noise rules, which otherwise apply only in unincorporated DuPage County (the article does not reach incorporated cities and villages, each of which sets its own noise rules). m. , the general nighttime permit requirement in Section 26-12 still applies, since the outage exemption only covers the specific circumstance of lost utility power after a disaster or outage, not routine generator use for convenience or construction.
Violations & Fines
The exemption itself carries no penalty because it is a shield, not a prohibition. If a generator is run outside the outage exemption in violation of Section 26-12's nighttime restriction, Section 26-13 applies: a fine of not less than $100.00 and not more than $1,000.00 per day, rising to $500.00-$1,000.00 for a second violation within one year.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I run a generator during a power outage in unincorporated DuPage County?
Does the generator exemption apply inside Naperville or Wheaton?
Is a generator exempt if I just want backup power, not because of a real outage?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in DuPage County
Compare DuPage County to another location·View the Illinois noise from specific sources overview
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