Chicago billboards must follow the Illinois Highway Advertising Control Act and MCC sign code lighting rules. Maximum luminance must not exceed 0.3 foot-candles above ambient at 250 feet, and digital displays must meet automatic-dimming requirements.
Illinois Administrative Code 92 IAC 522 plus 225 ILCS 440 govern billboard lighting on regulated highways. Chicago Sign Ordinance MCC 17-12 cross-references and adds that any illuminated off-premise sign must hold an electrical permit, use shielded fixtures aimed only at the sign face, and not direct light toward residential property or rights-of-way. Digital LED billboards must include automatic photocell dimming and a fail-safe to prevent over-illumination at night. The 0.3 foot-candle increment over ambient is measured at distances scaled to sign face. Glare onto adjacent windows or driver-distracting strobe effects are prohibited. The Department of Buildings and IDOT both inspect, with after-hours complaints routed to 311.
Operating a billboard with unshielded floods, exceeding 0.3 foot-candles above ambient, or running a non-dimming digital sign triggers MCC 17-12 fines, IDOT removal orders, and electrical-permit revocation.
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