Rockford, IL Public Conduct: Outdoor Smoking Restrictions (2026)
Key Facts
- Outdoor buffer
- 15 feet from public-place entrances
- Fine range
- $50 to $750 per violation
- Enforced by
- Rockford fire and police departments
- Hotel exemption
- up to 25% of rooms
Summary
Rockford's smoke-free ordinance bans smoking inside public buildings and workplaces and extends that ban outdoors to within 15 feet of any entrance, covering sidewalks, doorways, and patios citywide.
Smoking in public places (as defined in section 19-101) within the city, places of employment, and governmental vehicles prohibited. No person shall smoke in a public place or in any place of employment or within 15 feet of any entrance to a public place or place of employment. No person may smoke in any vehicle owned, leased, or operated by the state or a political subdivision of the state.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 18).
Full Breakdown
Rockford's Code of Ordinances § 19-102 prohibits smoking in any public place, place of employment, or government vehicle, and extends the ban outdoors to within 15 feet of any entrance to those places, so sidewalks, doorways, and patios abutting workplaces, restaurants, bars, and other public places are off-limits to smokers. Exemptions exist for hookah lounges, hotel/motel smoking rooms (capped at 25 percent of rooms), and licensed long-term-care smoking rooms. The city fire and police departments enforce the ban under § 19-105.
Violations & Fines
Smoking inside a covered public place or within 15 feet of its entrance violates § 19-106; fines run $50 to $750 per offense under the city's general Code penalty, § 1-9.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I smoke on a restaurant patio in Rockford?
Does vaping count as smoking under this ordinance?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Rockford
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