McLean County, IL Privacy & Surveillance: License Plate Readers (2026)

Under McLean County Code Ch. 300, Article V, a municipal corporation cannot bolt an automatic license plate reader to a pole along, across, or adjacent to a County highway without an ALPR permit from the County Engineer. The applicant must hand over all standards and installation details from the ALPR manufacturer before the permit issues. As a condition of the permit, the County Engineer requires the applicant municipality to agree that its readers will not be used to enforce a petty offense as defined in the Criminal and Traffic Assessment Act, 705 ILCS 135/1-5; a municipality caught using its cameras for petty-offense enforcement faces permit revocation.

Placement is dictated down to the foot: readers must be mounted no closer than 16 feet from the edge of pavement in a posted 55 mph zone, and no closer than 12 feet from the edge of pavement in a 30 mph zone, with the County Engineer fixing the exact spot wherever curb and gutter are present. The permitted municipality, not the County, bears every dollar of installation, all mounting hardware and poles, and all future repair, replacement, or relocation costs the County Engineer deems necessary.

If the equipment ever comes down, the municipality also pays to restore any disturbed traffic signal poles and right-of-way to their prior condition; the County disclaims any duty to monitor, repair, or maintain installed ALPR cameras or poles. A separate ALPR permit application fee applies under Chapter 205, Fees, per § 300-26A(7).