California vs Illinois: Local Ordinance Comparison (2026)

ADU Rules

Government Code sections 66310 through 66342, the recodified ADU law formerly at 65852.2, establish statewide ministerial approval, size minimums, and parking caps for accessory dwelling units, overriding most local rules.

Garage Conversions

California ADU law, Government Code 66310 et seq. (formerly 65852.2), expressly authorizes converting an existing garage into an ADU, with no replacement parking allowed and ministerial approval required.

Chickens & Livestock

California Food and Agricultural Code section 16902 forbids any owner from willfully or negligently letting livestock stray onto, or stand unattended on, a public highway that is fenced or built up on both sides.

Illinois flatly bars owners from letting livestock run at large. Under 510 ILCS 55/1 you must provide restraints to keep animals confined, and you are civilly liable for all damage they cause when they escape.

Dog Leash Laws

Illinois law requires owners to keep dogs under restraint or control off their property and imposes strict liability for bites by unrestrained animals statewide.

Dispensary Zoning

California licenses cannabis retailers under MAUCRSA, but Business and Professions Code section 26200 preserves each city's and county's power to zone, permit, or completely prohibit dispensaries within its borders.

Illinois sets no statewide buffer for adult-use dispensaries; 410 ILCS 705/55-25 lets counties and municipalities zone them, cap their number, set distance limits from sensitive sites, or ban them outright, but never more strictly than the State allows.

Juvenile Curfew

Illinois imposes a statewide juvenile curfew barring minors under 17 from public places late at night under Section 12C-60 of the Criminal Code, which replaced the repealed Child Curfew Act in 2013.

Recreational Drones

Illinois preempts local drone regulation through the Freedom from Drone Surveillance Act, establishing uniform privacy rules while federal FAA authority controls airspace operation statewide.

Minimum Wage Preemption

California sets a statewide minimum wage floor under Labor Code 1182.12, $16.90 per hour for all employers as of January 2026. Local governments are not preempted and may set higher minimums; many cities exceed the state rate substantially.

Paid Leave Preemption

California's Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Families Act under Labor Code 245-249 mandates paid sick leave for nearly all employees statewide. SB 616 (2023) raised the minimum to 40 hours or five days annually effective January 2024, applying universally.

The Paid Leave for All Workers Act guarantees up to 40 hours of paid leave annually for nearly every Illinois employee, with limited carve-outs for jurisdictions with existing ordinances.

Coastal Development

The California Coastal Act, Public Resources Code sections 30000 through 30900, requires Coastal Development Permits for nearly all work in the coastal zone and gives the Coastal Commission appeal jurisdiction over local decisions.

The Illinois Department of Natural Resources Coastal Management Program regulates Lake Michigan shoreline development, applying uniform permit requirements along the entire Illinois coast regardless of municipality.

Stormwater Management

California Water Code sections 13260 and 13383 implement the federal Clean Water Act through statewide MS4 NPDES permits issued by the State and Regional Water Boards, binding all municipal stormwater dischargers uniformly.

Neighbor Fence Rules

California Civil Code Section 841, the Good Neighbor Fence Act, presumes adjoining landowners share equal benefit and equal cost responsibility for boundary fences, applying statewide regardless of city ordinance.

Under the Illinois Fence Act (765 ILCS 130/3), adjoining landowners must each build and maintain a just proportion of the division fence between their properties. A legal fence stands at least four and one-half feet high, and cost disputes go to township fence viewers.

Brush Clearance

California requires property owners in fire hazard zones to maintain 100 feet of defensible space around structures, applying uniformly across State and Local Responsibility Areas.

Fireworks

California uniformly prohibits possession, sale, and use of dangerous fireworks statewide, while permitting cities to further restrict or ban Safe and Sane fireworks locally.

Illinois generally prohibits consumer fireworks statewide under the Pyrotechnic Use Act, allowing only novelty items like sparklers, smoke devices, and snakes for the public.

Outdoor Burning

California requires permits for most outdoor burning, with statewide CAL FIRE and Air Resources Board rules that uniformly apply alongside local air district restrictions.

Illinois EPA regulations restrict open burning statewide, prohibiting the burning of garbage, landscape waste in many urban areas, and any materials producing dense smoke or air pollution.

Wildfire Zones

California uniformly classifies and maps Fire Hazard Severity Zones statewide, with mandatory building, disclosure, and defensible space rules tied to zone designations.

Firearms in Vehicles

California prohibits carrying loaded firearms in vehicles statewide under Penal Code 25400 and 25850. Unloaded handguns transported in private vehicles must be in a locked container or the vehicle's locked trunk; long guns must be unloaded but need not be locked.

Illinois law sets uniform rules for transporting firearms in vehicles under the FOID Card Act and Firearm Concealed Carry Act, preempting local handgun transport ordinances.

Open Carry

California broadly prohibits open carry of firearms statewide under Penal Code 25850 (loaded firearms in public) and Penal Code 26350 (open carry of unloaded handguns). The prohibition applies uniformly across all California cities and counties without local variation.

Illinois bans open carry of firearms in public under the Criminal Code, allowing concealed carry only by Firearm Concealed Carry Act licensees with limited exceptions.

Food Truck Permits

California Retail Food Code (Health and Safety Code 113700-114437) sets uniform mobile food facility permit, equipment, and food safety standards enforced by counties statewide.

Illinois requires mobile food vendors to obtain certified food protection manager status and meet uniform sanitation standards under the Food Service Sanitation Code statewide.

Vending Zones

California's Safe Sidewalk Vending Act (SB 946) preempts most local bans on sidewalk vending, allowing only objective health, safety, and welfare regulations.

Card Room Licensing

California's Gambling Control Act bars any city or county from issuing a gambling license to a cardroom unless a local ordinance authorizes it first: one adopted by voters after January 1, 1984, one already in effect before January 1, 1984, or one a local majority approves later. The Bureau of Gambling Control and Gambling Control Commission still license every operator statewide on top of that.

Casino Zoning Districts

Illinois doesn't let cities zone in casinos on their own: the Illinois Gambling Act (230 ILCS 10/7) hands out a fixed number of state owners licenses, each tied by statute to one named municipality. Chicago got its own license under a 2019 law, capped at 4,000 gaming positions. Five more licenses went to Danville, Waukegan, Rockford, a Cook County township cluster, and unincorporated Williamson County.

Charitable Bingo and Raffles

California Penal Code § 326.5 lets only tax-exempt nonprofits, mobilehome park associations, senior groups, and school-affiliated charities run bingo, and only under a local city or county ordinance. Prizes are capped at $500 per game, cities may charge up to a $50 annual license fee, minors cannot play, and every dollar of net proceeds must go to charity.

Illinois nonprofits need a Department of Revenue license before running charitable games, capped at 4 days a year, with single bets at house-banked games limited to $20 and cash payouts capped at $500 per event. Licenses cost $400 for two years. A companion law, the Bingo License and Tax Act, licenses bingo separately for $200 a year and taxes proceeds at 5% quarterly.

Board Procedures

California's Davis-Stirling Act gives every HOA member the right to inspect and copy association records under Civil Code § 5205. Boards must produce current-year records within 10 business days and records from the prior two fiscal years within 30 calendar days. Associations may charge only actual copying costs, plus up to $10 an hour, capped at $200, to redact enhanced records like invoices and bank statements.

Illinois gives association members open meetings and a records right, but the deadlines and the cost rules differ depending on which Act governs your association. A condominium owner requesting records under 765 ILCS 605/19 gets a denial by operation of law if the board does not produce them within 10 business days, and recovers reasonable attorney's fees and costs simply by prevailing. A member of a common interest community association under 765 ILCS 160/1-30(i) waits 30 days for the same effect and recovers fees only if the court also finds the failure was due to the board's acts or omissions. Board meetings are open to owners in both, with 48 hours notice, six narrow closed-session grounds, and a requirement that any vote be taken in the open portion. A common interest community board must meet at least 4 times a year and must reserve part of each meeting for member comments.

Clotheslines & Energy Devices

California voids any HOA governing-document clause that effectively bans or unreasonably restricts a clothesline or drying rack in an owner's exclusive-use backyard. Civil Code Section 4753 lets an association still impose rules, but only ones that do not significantly raise the cost of drying laundry outdoors.

Flag Display Rights

Civil Code § 4705 bars every California homeowners association from limiting a member's display of the United States flag on their own lot or within their exclusive-use common area. The only carve-out is a restriction genuinely required for public health or safety. An HOA that violates the statute pays the prevailing party's attorney's fees and costs under subdivision (c).

An Illinois association board may not prohibit a unit owner from displaying the American flag or a military flag on the owner's limited common elements or on the immediately adjacent exterior of the owner's building, and may not prohibit installing a flagpole there. The right is written twice: 765 ILCS 605/18.6 binds condominium boards, master associations and common interest community associations alike, while 765 ILCS 160/1-70 repeats it inside the Common Interest Community Association Act. The two versions differ, because only the Condominium Property Act text was amended by P.A. 103-409 on January 1, 2024 to add the Honor and Remember Flag. Boards keep the power to set reasonable rules on placement, manner, flagpole location and flagpole size, and neither section protects the Illinois state flag, a POW/MIA flag, a first responder flag or a historic flag.

HOA Fines & Enforcement

California law caps homeowners association fines at $100 per violation or the amount listed in the association's published penalty schedule, whichever is less. Civil Code section 5850 requires every board to adopt and distribute that schedule in its annual policy statement, and forbids any late charge or interest on a fine. Boards can exceed $100 only for health or safety violations, and only after a written finding at an open meeting.

Illinois puts no dollar limit on association fines. Both statutes say only that the board may levy reasonable fines, and neither sets a maximum, a daily cap or a cure period. What Illinois does require is process: under 765 ILCS 160/1-30(g) a common interest community association board may levy and collect reasonable fines only after notice and an opportunity to be heard, and 765 ILCS 605/18.4(l) imposes the identical condition on a condominium board. The board may discuss a violation in closed session, but the vote to impose the fine has to be taken in the open portion of a meeting. Since January 1, 2019 most Illinois associations have also had to maintain a written complaint policy under 765 ILCS 615/35 and issue a final determination in writing within 180 days, which is the gateway to an Ombudsperson request under 765 ILCS 615/40.

Home Daycare

Health and Safety Code sections 1597.40 through 1597.465 require all California cities and counties to treat licensed family daycare homes as permitted residential uses, preempting any local prohibition or restrictive zoning.

Home Kitchen Operations

California lets home cooks sell meals from their own kitchen under a microenterprise home kitchen operation (MEHKO) permit, capped at 30 meals a day, 90 a week, and $100,000 in annual sales. Health and Safety Code Section 113825 sets the rules, but a city or county must first opt in by ordinance or resolution before anyone there can get a permit.

Zoning & Home Occupation Permits

While most home occupation rules are local, state law guarantees certain residential uses statewide, including accessory dwelling units under Government Code 66310 et seq., family daycare homes, and cottage food operations.

DUI Checkpoint Legality

Sobriety checkpoints are lawful in California and stopping at one is a statutory obligation, not a courtesy. Vehicle Code § 2814.2(a) requires a driver to stop and submit to a sobriety checkpoint inspection conducted by a law enforcement agency when signs and displays are posted requiring that stop. The rest of the section, added by AB 353 (Stats. 2011, Ch. 653) and effective January 1, 2012, exists to stop checkpoints being used as vehicle seizure operations: § 2814.2(b) bars impounding a car at a sobriety checkpoint when the driver’s only offense is driving without a license under Vehicle Code § 12500, and § 2814.2(c) requires the officer to try to release the car to the registered owner or to a licensed driver the owner authorizes before the checkpoint ends.

Illinois holds roadside safety checks, but the General Assembly never wrote a statute authorising or regulating them. The Illinois Vehicle Code mentions checkpoints exactly once, in a funding clause at 625 ILCS 5/11-501.01(g), and the Criminal Code of 2012 does not mention them at all. What is written down is what happens once an officer singles you out: implied consent to a chemical test under 625 ILCS 5/11-501.1(a) attaches only on arrest evidenced by a Uniform Traffic Ticket, field sobriety testing for cannabis under 11-501.9(a) requires an independent cannabis-related factual basis, and refusing a chemical test costs a first offender 12 months of driving privileges.

Recording Police

California is one of the few states that answers this by statute rather than by case law alone. Penal Code § 148(g) says that photographing or making an audio or video recording of a public officer or peace officer, while the officer is in a public place or while you are somewhere you have the right to be, does not by itself violate the resisting, delaying, or obstructing offense in § 148(a), and does not give reasonable suspicion to detain you or probable cause to arrest you. The subdivision was added by SB 411 (Stats. 2015, Ch. 177) and took effect on January 1, 2016. California’s all-party consent recording law, Penal Code § 632, does not reach a street encounter with police, because § 632(c) excludes communications made where the parties may reasonably expect they may be overheard or recorded.

Illinois writes the right to film police directly into its eavesdropping statute. 720 ILCS 5/14-2(e) says nothing in the eavesdropping article prohibits any individual who is not a law enforcement officer from recording an officer performing his or her duties in a public place, or anywhere the officer has no reasonable expectation of privacy. The same subsection lets the officer take reasonable action to maintain safety and control, secure crime scenes and accident sites, protect investigations, and protect public safety and order, so the right is to record, not to stand wherever you like. Illinois has no statute creating a minimum distance you must keep from a working officer.

Stop & Identify Laws

California has no general stop-and-identify statute. The old Penal Code § 647(e), which required a person lawfully detained to give "credible and reliable" identification, was held unconstitutionally vague in Kolender v. Lawson (1983), and subdivision (e) today punishes unlawful lodging instead. Two genuine identification duties survive: Vehicle Code § 12951 requires a driver to carry a valid license and present it on a peace officer’s demand, and Penal Code § 853.5 lets an officer who arrests you for an infraction require your license or other satisfactory evidence of identity, with custody as the consequence if you have none and refuse the statutory alternative.

Illinois gives officers a demand power without giving them a penalty to back it. Under 725 ILCS 5/107-14(a) a peace officer who has identified himself as such may stop a person in a public place and demand a name, an address and an explanation of the person's actions, but no section of the Criminal Code of 2012 makes it an offence to stay silent. Lying is different: 720 ILCS 5/31-4.5 makes furnishing a false or fictitious name, address or date of birth a Class A misdemeanour. Drivers have a separate and harder duty, because 625 ILCS 5/6-112 requires physical surrender of the licence itself.

Vehicle Search & Consent

California has no statute that requires you to consent to a search of your car, and none that requires an officer to warn you that you may refuse. What the Legislature and the voters have done instead is strip away specific justifications and add procedural duties. Health and Safety Code § 11362.1(c), enacted by Proposition 64, provides that cannabis involved in conduct the section makes lawful is not contraband, is not subject to seizure, and that no conduct deemed lawful by the section shall constitute the basis for detention, search, or arrest. Penal Code § 1546.1 separately requires a warrant or your specific consent as the authorized possessor before a government entity reads anything on your phone, and since January 1, 2024 Vehicle Code § 2806.5 has required the officer to state the reason for the stop before any investigative questioning begins.

Illinois has no statute that requires an officer to warn you that you may refuse a vehicle search, but it does require the officer to write the request down. 625 ILCS 5/11-212 makes every traffic stop generate a record of whether a consent search was requested of the vehicle, driver or passengers and whether consent was "given or denied," alongside whether a dog sniffed the car and whether anything was found. Illinois also bars one search outright: 725 ILCS 5/108-1(3) forbids searching a vehicle, its contents, the driver or a passenger solely because of a seat belt violation. Legal cannabis does not give Illinois drivers the search shield California and New York rely on.

Artificial Turf

Since SB 676 took effect in 2024, Government Code 53087.7 protects only drought-tolerant living landscaping from local bans, so cities may again prohibit artificial turf. Civil Code 4735 still voids HOA bans on artificial turf.

Composting

SB 1383 requires every California resident and business to separate food scraps and yard waste from trash, with universal collection or on-site composting.

Native Plants

AB-1572 prohibits using potable water to irrigate non-functional turf at commercial, institutional, and HOA-common areas, accelerating native and low-water landscape conversions statewide.

Rainwater Harvesting

The 2012 Rainwater Capture Act allows California residents to capture rainwater from rooftops for non-potable outdoor use without a state water-right permit, preempting most local barriers.

Illinois has never adopted a statewide plumbing standard for rainwater harvesting. The Department of Public Health proposed one in December 2018, but it never took effect, and the Illinois Plumbing Code still contains no harvested-water subpart.

Water Restrictions

California's State Water Resources Control Board issues statewide drought emergency regulations and waste prohibitions that apply to every household, overriding more lenient local rules.

Weed Ordinances

Illinois law designates noxious weeds and requires landowners to control them on all property regardless of municipal weed ordinances.

Aircraft Noise

California sets statewide airport noise limits under Title 21 CCR, with the state preempting most local aviation noise control because federal FAA authority dominates aircraft operations in flight.

Aircraft noise in Illinois is governed exclusively by federal aviation law, leaving cities and the state without authority to regulate flight operations or in-flight sound.

Decibel Limits

Illinois sets uniform statewide decibel limits for stationary industrial and commercial noise sources through Pollution Control Board rules under the Environmental Protection Act.

Abandoned Vehicles

California Vehicle Code sections 22651 and 22669 set uniform rules allowing peace officers and authorized agents to remove abandoned vehicles from public and private property after defined waiting periods, with statewide notice and lien procedures.

The Illinois Vehicle Code establishes uniform procedures for declaring, towing, and disposing of abandoned vehicles on public and private property across all jurisdictions in the state.

Towing & Impound Rights

California doesn't ban private-property towing, but Vehicle Code Section 22658 controls how it happens. A posted sign at least 17 by 22 inches must warn drivers before a tow company can remove a car under an owner's general authorization. If you return before the vehicle leaves the lot, the drop fee is capped at half the regular tow charge, and refusing an unconditional release is a separate crime.

Illinois runs two layers of private-property towing law, and which one you are under depends on the county. Statewide, 625 ILCS 5/4-203(f) governs every nonconsensual tow from private property: if you reach your car before it is actually removed the tow truck must disconnect and let you go on payment of no more than one-half the posted rate, with a receipt; the tower must notify police within 30 minutes; the lot must carry signs in 2-inch light-reflective letters posted for at least 24 hours beforehand; and the vehicle must be released within one-half hour of your request during business hours. On top of that, Chapter 18a of the Vehicle Code, enforced by the Illinois Commerce Commission, applies only in counties of 1,000,000 or more, which means Cook County, and in smaller counties whose county board votes to opt in, minus any municipality that has filed a resolution opting out. In Chapter 18a territory an ordinary car cannot be charged a drop fee at all, there is no storage charge for the first 24 hours, and the tow distance is capped at 10 or 15 air miles.

Snow & Sidewalk Clearing

The Illinois Snow and Ice Removal Act shields residential property owners from liability for natural accumulations cleared in good faith, applying uniformly statewide.

Just Cause Eviction

Civil Code 1946.2 requires landlords statewide to have just cause to terminate tenancies of qualifying tenants who have lived in a covered unit at least 12 months.

Landlord Entry & Notice

California Civil Code § 1954 limits when a landlord may enter a rented home. Except in emergencies, abandonment, or with tenant consent, the landlord must give reasonable written notice (24 hours is presumed reasonable) and may enter only during normal business hours, for specific permitted reasons such as repairs, inspections, or showings.

Late Fees & Grace Periods

California sets no fixed dollar or percentage cap on rent late fees, but a late fee in a residential lease is treated as liquidated damages. Under Civil Code § 1671, such a fee is valid only if it reasonably estimates the landlord's actual loss from late payment; arbitrary penalty fees are unenforceable.

Squatter's Rights & Adverse Possession

California adverse possession requires five years of continuous, open, hostile possession AND payment of all property taxes during that period under Code of Civil Procedure § 325. A squatter or trespasser who has not paid taxes gains no ownership and can be removed by unlawful detainer, ejectment, or a police trespass action.

Adverse possession in Illinois generally requires 20 years of possession (735 ILCS 5/13-101). The period drops to 7 years when the occupant holds under claim and color of title 'made in good faith' and pays all taxes assessed (735 ILCS 5/13-109), or holds connected record title with 7 years of actual residence (735 ILCS 5/13-107).

Agricultural Zoning Protection

The California Land Conservation Act of 1965 (Williamson Act), Government Code 51200-51297.4, allows landowners to enter contracts with counties restricting land to agricultural use for ten-year minimum terms in exchange for reduced property tax assessment based on farming income.

Illinois protects agricultural land through the Agricultural Areas Conservation and Protection Act and limits county zoning over farms outside municipal boundaries.

Insurance Requirements

California requires hosting platforms to warn hosts to check their lease and insurance before listing (Business and Professions Code 22592), and AB 537 requires short-term lodging prices to be advertised with all mandatory fees included.

Taxes & Fees

Illinois imposes a 6% state Hotel Operators' Occupation Tax on short-term rentals of fewer than 30 consecutive days, including platforms like Airbnb and Vrbo, applied uniformly statewide.

Plastic Bag Rules

California prohibits grocery stores and large retailers from providing single-use plastic carryout bags under Public Resources Code 42280-42288, enacted by SB 270 (2014) and ratified as Proposition 67 in 2016. Recycled paper or reusable bags require a 10-cent minimum charge.

Plastic Straw Rules

California Public Resources Code 42270-42273, enacted by AB 1884 (2018), prohibits full-service restaurants from providing single-use plastic straws unless requested by the customer. The on-request rule applies uniformly to dine-in restaurants statewide.

Polystyrene Foam Rules

California restricts expanded polystyrene food containers statewide through SB 54 (2022) packaging requirements under Public Resources Code 42040-42081. The law mandates that polystyrene foodware achieve 25 percent recycling by 2025 or face statewide sales prohibition.

Panel Permits

California's Solar Rights Act and the SolarAPP+ mandate (SB 379) require expedited permit review of small residential solar systems, preempting restrictive local processes.

Illinois protects residential solar energy installations through the Homeowners Energy Policy Statement Act and limits unreasonable association or municipal restrictions.

Fencing & Safety Requirements

California Health and Safety Code sections 115920-115929 (Swimming Pool Safety Act) impose statewide minimum fencing and drowning-prevention standards for new and remodeled residential pools.

Illinois requires public and semi-public pools to be enclosed by barriers at least 4 feet high under the state Swimming Facility Code, while residential pool fencing is enforced through locally adopted building codes.

Flavored Tobacco Bans

California bans retail sale of most flavored tobacco products statewide under Health and Safety Code 104559.5, enacted by SB 793 (2020) and upheld by voters via Proposition 31 in November 2022. The ban applies uniformly to all California retailers.

Tobacco Age Restrictions

California prohibits sale of tobacco and vapor products to anyone under 21 statewide under Business and Professions Code 22958, enacted by SBX2-7 in 2016. The Tobacco 21 standard applies uniformly across all California jurisdictions.

Illinois prohibits sale of any tobacco, alternative nicotine, and electronic cigarette product to persons under 21 under the Prevention of Tobacco Use by Persons under 21 Act.

Recycling Requirements

Illinois requires every county to develop and maintain a solid waste management plan with recycling provisions, and bans landfill disposal of landscape waste, electronics, and white goods statewide.

Heritage & Protected Trees

California provides statewide protections for native oak woodlands and heritage trees through CEQA review, Public Resources Code, and Forest Practice Rules that apply uniformly.

Radar Detector Rules

No section of the California Vehicle Code makes it an offense for a private motorist to own, carry or use a radar detector. The prohibition in Vehicle Code section 28150 reaches only devices that jam, scramble, neutralize, disable or otherwise interfere with police speed measuring equipment, and possessing four or more of those turns the infraction into a misdemeanor. The real constraint on a detector is where it sits: section 26708 bars anything affixed to the windshield or applied in the vehicle that obstructs the driver clear view, and the exemption list in section 26708(b) does not name radar detectors.

A radar detector is legal in an ordinary Illinois passenger car. The only detector ban in the Illinois Vehicle Code, 625 ILCS 5/12-714, reaches a driver who operates or is in actual physical control of a commercial motor vehicle as defined in 625 ILCS 5/6-500(6), which means roughly 26,001 pounds or more, 16 or more passengers including the driver, or any size vehicle hauling placarded hazardous materials. Radar and laser jammers are a separate matter and are banned in every motor vehicle by 625 ILCS 5/12-613. Both sections carry the same unusual protection: an officer may not stop or search a vehicle solely because a detector or jammer is suspected.

Underglow & Auxiliary Lighting

California works from a closed list: Vehicle Code section 24003 says no vehicle may carry any lamp or illuminating device not required or permitted by the code, so an accessory light is lawful only if a section names it. Underglow is named. Section 25400 lets any vehicle carry an exterior diffused nonglaring light of not more than 0.05 candela per square inch, in any color except red showing to the front, limited to 720 square inches and kept at least 12 inches clear of required lamps. Auxiliary driving lamps, passing lamps, foglamps and spotlamps are each permitted two at a time with their own mounting heights, and blue warning lights belong to peace officer emergency vehicles alone.

Illinois runs a closed list for vehicle lighting. Under 625 ILCS 5/12-212(c), all lighting on a vehicle other than what the Vehicle Code expressly authorises is prohibited, so the question is never whether a lamp is banned but whether it is named. Section 12-207 names the main aftermarket allowance: one spot lamp, and not more than 3 auxiliary driving lamps showing white, including HID white, or yellow or amber light, mounted forward facing at a height of not less than 12 inches and not more than 42 inches. Section 12-211(b) then caps the total number of front lamps lighted at any one time on a highway at 4, and 12-210 requires every auxiliary driving lamp to be extinguished within 500 feet of an oncoming vehicle. Underbody accent lighting is authorised only for motorcycles, and only since January 1, 2024.