Illinois vs Washington: Local Ordinance Comparison (2026)

ADU Rules

Washington HB 1337 (RCW 36.70A.681) requires cities and counties to allow two ADUs per lot in urban growth areas, preempting restrictive local rules.

Tiny Homes

Washington allows tiny houses on permanent foundations under IRC Appendix Q (adopted in the state building code) for dwellings 400 square feet or less. RCW 35.21.686 governs tiny houses with wheels and tiny house communities.

Beekeeping

The Illinois Bees and Apiaries Act requires registration of all colonies with the Department of Agriculture and authorizes inspections to control diseases statewide.

Washington RCW 15.60 requires all beekeepers with one or more hives to register their apiaries annually with the Washington State Department of Agriculture, supporting disease tracking and pollinator health statewide.

Chickens & Livestock

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.

Washington bars owners from willfully or negligently letting livestock run at large in any stock restricted area under RCW 16.24.065. Owners are liable for trespass damage, and neighboring landowners need not fence animals out to recover.

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.

Exotic Pets

Illinois prohibits private possession of dangerous animals including big cats, bears, wolves, and primates under the Dangerous Animals Act, with limited exempt categories.

Washington RCW 16.30 prohibits private possession, breeding, and importation of dangerous wild animals including big cats, bears, wolves, and primates, applying uniformly statewide with limited grandfather and accreditation exceptions.

Pet Limits

Illinois defines and criminalizes companion animal hoarding under the Humane Care for Animals Act, applying uniformly through state criminal code statewide.

Washington RCW 16.52 criminalizes animal cruelty and neglect statewide, providing the legal foundation for animal hoarding prosecutions when owners fail to provide necessary food, water, shelter, and veterinary care to multiple animals.

Wildlife Feeding

Illinois Wildlife Code prohibits feeding deer and similar wildlife in many counties to prevent chronic wasting disease spread, with statewide enforcement authority.

Washington bans intentionally feeding or attracting large wild carnivores, bears, cougars and wolves, to any land or building, and treats a first intentional violation as a misdemeanor under RCW 77.15.792.

Structure Height Limits

Washington adopts the International Building Code statewide through chapter 51-50 WAC, setting maximum heights and stories tied to construction type and occupancy classifications.

Tobacco Retail License

Illinois requires retailers selling electronic cigarettes and e-liquids to obtain Department of Revenue licensing and follow age-verification, packaging, and tax rules statewide.

Washington RCW 70.345 requires licensing for vapor product retailers, distributors, and delivery sellers, with state Department of Revenue oversight and tax collection.

Commercial Drones

Commercial drone operations in Washington are governed by FAA Part 107, with state law adding criminal liability for invasive uses and limited authority over state-owned land.

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

Washington RCW 49.46 sets a statewide minimum wage adjusted annually for inflation; as of 2026 it is $17.13 per hour. Washington does not preempt local minimum wages, so several cities set higher rates.

Paid Leave Preemption

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.

Washington RCW 49.46.200 mandates paid sick leave for nearly all employees, and RCW 50A.04 provides paid family and medical leave funded by payroll premiums.

Coastal Development

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.

Washington's Shoreline Management Act (RCW 90.58) requires Shoreline Substantial Development Permits for most construction within 200 feet of marine and freshwater shorelines statewide.

Flood Zones

Illinois law requires state-issued permits for construction within regulatory floodways and mandates municipal participation in NFIP minimum standards across all designated flood hazard areas.

Washington requires all communities participating in the National Flood Insurance Program to adopt floodplain ordinances meeting state minimum standards under RCW 86.16.

Stormwater Management

Washington Department of Ecology administers federally-required NPDES stormwater permits statewide, setting minimum standards for municipal, construction, and industrial stormwater that all jurisdictions must implement.

Neighbor Fence Rules

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.

Washington's partition fence law requires adjoining landowners using a boundary fence for livestock to share construction and maintenance costs equitably under RCW 16.60.

Outdoor Burning

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.

Washington's Clean Air Act (RCW 70A.15) bans outdoor burning in urban growth areas and most cities. The Department of Ecology and clean air agencies enforce statewide standards regardless of local rules.

Wildfire Zones

Washington adopted the International Wildland-Urban Interface Code statewide under RCW 19.27.560, effective July 1, 2023. New construction in designated WUI areas must meet ignition-resistant building, defensible space, and water supply requirements.

Firearms in Vehicles

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.

Washington RCW 9.41.050 governs carrying firearms in vehicles statewide, requiring a concealed pistol license to carry a loaded handgun in a motor vehicle.

Food Truck Permits

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

Washington WAC 246-215 enforced under RCW 43.20 establishes the statewide retail food code requiring mobile food units including food trucks to obtain permits from local health jurisdictions and meet uniform sanitation standards.

Card Room Licensing

Washington's Gambling Commission is the only licensing authority for commercial card rooms statewide. RCW 9.46.070(2) lets the commission issue one-year licenses to food-and-drink businesses to run social card games, including house-banked games, as a commercial stimulant. RCW 9.46.0282 caps every licensed room at fifteen tables. Critically, RCW 9.46.295 hands every city and county the power to ban card rooms outright inside its own borders, license or no license.

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.

Sports Betting Law

Illinois legalized sports betting under the Sports Wagering Act, but only through an operator holding a Board-issued master sports wagering license. The Illinois Gaming Board licenses online operators, in-state sports facilities, and existing casino owners and organization licensees, each paying steep application and license fees. Bettors must be at least 21 and physically located in Illinois when they place a wager.

Sports betting is legal in Washington only at tribal casinos operating under a class III gaming compact amended to include it, as RCW 9.46.0364 authorizes following ESHB 2638 (2020 c 127). There is no commercial sportsbook license available to anyone else, and even in-casino mobile wagering works only while the bettor is physically on tribal gaming premises, per RCW 9.46.0368.

Board Procedures

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.

Washington requires HOA board meetings to be open to owners and gives owners broad record-access rights. WUCIOA communities follow RCW 64.90.445 (open meetings) and RCW 64.90.495 (records); older associations follow RCW 64.38.035 and 64.38.045. As of January 1, 2026, the WUCIOA open-meetings rule (RCW 64.90.445) applies to all Washington community associations.

Drought Landscaping Rights

Illinois protects native plantings, not xeriscape and not artificial turf. The Homeowners' Native Landscaping Act, 765 ILCS 167, effective July 19, 2024, bars an association from prohibiting a resident or owner from planting or growing Illinois native species on that person's own lawn, and expressly forbids the association from imposing height restrictions on a planned, intentional and maintained native landscape. The right is conditional: the area must stay predominantly free of weeds, invasive species and trash, the vegetation must not extend onto neighboring properties, sidewalks, streets or common areas, and it must not interfere with traffic or utilities. Nothing in Illinois law bars an association from requiring live turf generally, protects gravel or artificial turf, or blocks a fine for a brown lawn during a watering restriction.

This right applies only within Washington homeowners' associations governed by the Homeowners' Association Act, chapter 64.38 RCW: communities formed before July 1, 2018, excluding condominiums. Under RCW 64.38.057, governing documents cannot prohibit drought resistant landscaping, pollinator habitat including code-compliant beehives, or wildfire ignition resistant landscaping. Associations may set only reasonable placement and aesthetic rules that stop short of making these practices unreasonably costly or infeasible, and cannot fine owners for reduced lawn watering during a Department of Ecology drought order.

Cottage Food Operations

Illinois runs its cottage food program out of 410 ILCS 625/4, and the current text sets no ceiling at all on what a cottage food operation may sell. Paragraph (1) of subsection (b) is printed as "(Blank)", and the only dollar figure anywhere in the Section is the $50 maximum annual registration fee a local health department may charge. You register with the local health department for the unit of local government where your kitchen sits, not with the State, and you may then sell anywhere in Illinois. Subsection (h), added by Public Act 102-633 effective January 1, 2022, bars a home rule unit from regulating cottage food operations in a manner inconsistent with the State scheme.

Washington runs a cottage food permit through the state Department of Agriculture, not through the local health district. Under RCW 69.22.030 the permit is issued for two years and costs a $125 basic hygiene inspection fee plus a $75 public health review fee and a $30 processing fee. RCW 69.22.050(1)(a) caps annual gross sales at $35,000, measured per domestic residence and not per person, and WAC 16-149-040(1) repeats that figure in the rule WSDA filed on December 11, 2023. You may sell only shelf-stable items on your permit, only directly to the eater, and never by mail, shipping, consignment, wholesale or out of state.

Home Daycare

Washington licenses family home child care providers through DCYF and preempts local zoning that would treat licensed home daycares as commercial uses requiring special permits.

Home Kitchen Operations

Washington has no microenterprise home kitchen permit. WAC 246-215-08300 bars operating a food establishment without a permit from the local health jurisdiction, and the one permit exemption you can apply for, WAC 246-215-08305, expressly requires "not using any food prepared in a residential kitchen or other nonapproved facility" and limits you to ten listed foods such as popcorn, corn on the cob and cotton candy. Cooked meals from a home kitchen are lawful only where the operation falls outside the definition of "food establishment" in WAC 246-215-01115(50)(c), which carves out nonprofit bake sales, licensed family day care and adult family home kitchens, private events, potlucks, a youth beverage stand, and a two-bedroom owner-occupied bed and breakfast serving breakfast only.

Stop & Identify Laws

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.

Washington has no general stop-and-identify statute. Someone stopped on a sidewalk in Seattle, Spokane or Tacoma and asked who they are has no statutory duty to answer, and staying silent is not by itself an offense. The duty appears only once a vehicle is in the picture: RCW 46.61.021(3) requires anyone questioned during a traffic infraction investigation to identify themselves and give a current address, and RCW 46.61.020 makes it a misdemeanor for the driver or the person in charge of a vehicle to withhold a name and address or to supply a false one.

Vehicle Search & Consent

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.

Washington has no statute telling an adult driver what happens when an officer asks to search the car, and there is no logging or written-consent requirement of the kind Texas and Illinois adopted. It does have one hard statutory rule that no other part of the Revised Code of Washington matches: under RCW 13.40.740, a driver under 18 must be given access to an attorney before consenting to a search of a vehicle under their control, that consultation cannot be waived, and statements that follow a defective consultation are inadmissible in juvenile or adult criminal court. For adults the only statutory limit on a traffic stop is the closed list of things RCW 46.61.021(2) authorizes an officer to do while writing the ticket, and searching is not on it.

Composting

Washington requires jurisdictions over 25,000 to provide organics collection and bans certain organic waste disposal under RCW 70A.205.545.

Rainwater Harvesting

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.

Washington law expressly permits rooftop rainwater collection for onsite use without a water right permit, preempting any municipal prohibition on basic harvesting.

Tree Removal & Heritage Trees

Washington's Forest Practices Act (RCW 76.09) governs commercial timber harvest on forestlands statewide through Department of Natural Resources permits. Cities cannot regulate qualifying forest practices that follow state class IV applications.

Water Restrictions

Washington Department of Ecology administers water rights and may issue drought emergency orders that override local outdoor watering practices statewide.

Golf Carts & Low-Speed Vehicles

Illinois runs two different regimes and the answer depends entirely on which vehicle you own. A golf cart is a non-highway vehicle under 625 ILCS 5/11-1426.1, and driving one on any street, highway or roadway is unlawful unless a municipality, township, county or other unit of local government has first passed an ordinance or resolution authorising it on roads under its jurisdiction. Even then the cart may be driven only where the posted speed limit is 35 miles per hour or less. A low-speed vehicle, by contrast, is lawful by default on any Illinois street posted at 30 miles per hour or less under 625 ILCS 5/11-1426.2, and a local government has to act to prohibit it. Both require a valid driver license and mandatory insurance.

Washington splits small street-legal vehicles into three statutory classes by top speed, and the rules for each are different. A golf cart tops out at 20 mph and may use public streets only inside a golf cart zone a city or county has created by ordinance under RCW 46.08.175, on roads posted 25 mph or less. A neighborhood electric vehicle runs above 20 up to 25 mph and may use roads posted 35 mph or less statewide under RCW 46.61.725 without any local ordinance. A medium-speed electric vehicle, a class few states have, runs above 25 up to 35 mph, needs a roll cage or crush-proof body, and gets the same road access under RCW 46.61.723. NEVs and MSEVs must be registered, plated, insured and driven on a valid license; golf carts need none of those.

Construction Hours

Washington's noise code exempts temporary construction sounds during daytime hours from EDNA limits, while night construction still must comply with strict nighttime sound levels.

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.

Industrial sources in Washington must comply with EDNA limits set by WAC 173-60, with the receiving residential zone limited to 60 dBA daytime and 50 dBA nighttime.

Abandoned Vehicles

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.

Washington's RCW 46.55 governs how abandoned vehicles are impounded, noticed, redeemed, and auctioned, providing a uniform statewide framework that local jurisdictions must follow.

EV Charging

Illinois law guarantees renters and condo owners the right to install EV charging stations, preempting local restrictions on residential charging access at multi-unit buildings.

Washington prohibits homeowner and condominium associations from banning EV charging stations and requires EV-ready parking in new construction. RCW 64.38.062 covers HOAs and RCW 64.90.513 covers condominium and WUCIOA communities.

Towing & Impound Rights

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.

Washington caps what a private-property tow can cost. Under RCW 46.55.118, a class A, D or E tow truck operator's filed hourly towing rate cannot exceed 135 percent of the State Patrol's negotiated class A rate, daily storage cannot exceed 135 percent of the negotiated storage rate, and the after-hours release fee cannot exceed 100 percent of the negotiated fee. Every registered operator is bound, with a letter of appointment or not.

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

Washington RCW 59.18.650 requires landlords to have one of 16 enumerated lawful causes to terminate most residential tenancies statewide.

Landlord Entry & Notice

RCW 59.18.150 requires a Washington landlord to give at least two days' written notice before entering to inspect, repair, or maintain the unit, and at least one day's notice to show it to prospective tenants or buyers. Entry must be at reasonable times; no advance notice is required only in a genuine emergency.

Late Fees & Grace Periods

Under RCW 59.18.170, a Washington landlord may not charge any late fee on rent paid within five days of its due date; a fee may begin only once rent is more than five days past due. The statute sets no specific dollar cap, though some cities and counties impose stricter local limits.

Security Deposit Rules

Illinois sets no statewide cap on residential security deposits. Under the Security Deposit Return Act, 765 ILCS 710, a landlord of a building with 5 or more units who keeps any of a deposit for damage must furnish an itemized statement within 30 days of move-out, or return the deposit in full within 45 days, or owe double the deposit plus attorney's fees.

Washington sets no dollar cap on residential security deposits, but it controls how they are collected and returned. A landlord may collect a deposit only with a written rental agreement and a written move-in checklist describing the unit's condition. After the tenancy ends, the landlord has 30 days to refund the deposit with an itemized statement of deductions.

Squatter's Rights & Adverse Possession

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).

Washington's general adverse possession period is 10 years under RCW 4.16.020, requiring possession that is actual, open and notorious, exclusive, hostile, and continuous. A shorter 7-year period applies under RCW 7.28.070 when the occupant holds under good-faith color of title and pays all taxes legally assessed on the land for those seven years.

Agricultural Zoning Protection

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

Washington's Growth Management Act under RCW 36.70A.170 requires counties and cities to designate and protect agricultural lands of long-term commercial significance through zoning.

Farm Nuisance Protection

The Farm Nuisance Suit Act shields established Illinois farms from nuisance lawsuits when the operation predates surrounding non-agricultural land uses by at least one year.

Insurance Requirements

Washington requires short-term rental operators to maintain at least $1 million in primary liability insurance, or to operate through a platform providing equivalent coverage, under RCW 64.37.050. This statewide requirement applies regardless of local rules.

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.

Washington imposes statewide sales tax and lodging taxes on short-term rental stays under 30 days. Operators must register with the Department of Revenue, collect applicable taxes, and remit them regardless of local jurisdiction.

Political Signs

Illinois condominium law bars board rules that impair First Amendment rights, protecting unit owners' political sign displays, but no comparable statute covers HOA political signs; flag display is separately protected in both regimes.

Plastic Bag Rules

Washington RCW 70A.530 bans single-use plastic carryout bags statewide and requires retailers to charge a pass-through fee for compliant paper or reusable bags.

Plastic Straw Rules

Washington RCW 70A.550 limits single-use food service ware including plastic straws and utensils to upon-request distribution at restaurants and food service businesses.

Polystyrene Foam Rules

Washington RCW 70A.245 bans expanded polystyrene foam food service containers, packing peanuts, and coolers in phases starting June 2024 to combat plastic pollution.

HOA Restrictions

Illinois voids any association bylaw, board action, deed restriction or covenant that prohibits or has the effect of prohibiting a solar energy system, under 765 ILCS 165/15 and 765 ILCS 165/20(a). The Homeowners' Energy Policy Statement Act applies with the same force to a homeowners' association, a common interest community association and a condominium unit owners' association, so unlike Illinois fine and records law it does not split between the Condominium Property Act and the Common Interest Community Association Act. An association may set the configuration of panels on a given roof face, but it may not bar panels from any roof face and its configuration decision may not cut the system's estimated annual electrical production by more than 10%. Applications must be processed in 30 days, or 120 days if the association has not yet adopted a written energy policy statement, and a willful violation exposes the association to actual and consequential damages under 765 ILCS 165/35.

Washington RCW 64.38.055 voids homeowner association rules prohibiting solar panel installation, allowing only reasonable placement rules. RCW 64.90.510 gives the same protection to condominium and WUCIOA communities. The RCW 64.38.055 protection expires January 1, 2028.

Panel Permits

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

Washington RCW 64.38.055 and RCW 64.90.510 bar HOAs and condominium associations from prohibiting solar panels. State policy under RCW 64.04.140 encourages solar energy and authorizes solar easements. Cities may still require building and electrical permits.

Fencing & Safety Requirements

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.

Washington WAC 246-260 regulates public spas and hot tubs at hotels, apartments, gyms, and HOAs, requiring permits, water testing, temperature limits, and posted bather safety warnings under RCW 70.90 statewide.

Flavored Tobacco Bans

Washington has not enacted a statewide flavored tobacco ban, leaving flavor restrictions to limited Department of Health authority and federal FDA enforcement on flavored vapor cartridges.

Tobacco Age Restrictions

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.

Washington RCW 26.28.080 sets the minimum age for purchasing tobacco and vapor products at 21, aligning with federal Tobacco 21 standards statewide.

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.

Washington requires curbside recycling availability in urban areas under RCW 70A.205 and mandates organics collection for businesses under RCW 70A.205.545. Counties and cities must implement state-mandated waste reduction plans.

Lane Splitting & Filtering

Lane splitting is not lawful in Illinois. The Vehicle Code never uses the phrase, but 625 ILCS 5/11-703(c) makes the maneuver itself unlawful: a two-wheeled vehicle passing on the left of one vehicle may not at the same time pass on the right of another vehicle going the same way unless an unobstructed lane of traffic is available to complete the pass safely. Threading between two occupied lines of stopped traffic on the Kennedy or the Eisenhower is exactly what that sentence forbids. A separate section, 625 ILCS 5/11-704(b), adds a hard measurement for passing on the right: a two-wheeled vehicle needs at least 8 feet of unobstructed pavement to the right of the vehicle it is passing.

Lane splitting is expressly illegal in Washington. RCW 46.61.608(3) states flatly that no person shall operate a motorcycle between lanes of traffic or between adjacent lines or rows of vehicles, and subsection (2) separately bars a rider from overtaking and passing within the same lane as the vehicle being overtaken. There is no filtering exception for stopped traffic, no speed-differential allowance, and no local opt-in. The only carve-outs in the section are for police officers on duty and for passing a pedestrian or bicyclist at three feet or more. A violation is a traffic infraction, not a crime, under RCW 46.63.020.

Radar Detector Rules

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.

Nothing in Washington law restricts a radar detector in a private passenger vehicle. Chapter 46.37 RCW, the vehicle equipment chapter that fixes fog lamp mounting heights to the inch and tint reflectance to the percentage point, contains no reference to radar detectors, nor does chapter 46.61 RCW, the rules of the road, and RCW 46.37.010(3) affirmatively preserves the use of additional accessories that are not inconsistent with the chapter or with State Patrol rules. The real prohibition is for commercial motor vehicles. WAC 446-65-010(1)(s) adopts 49 C.F.R. Part 392 in its entirety for motor carriers operating in intrastate or interstate commerce, and 49 C.F.R. 392.71 bans a radar detector from being used in, or even contained in, a commercial motor vehicle.

Window Tint Limits

Illinois bans tinted film on the front windshield except a nonreflective strip running no more than 6 inches down from the top, and bars any window treatment on the windows immediately adjacent to each side of the driver unless the car meets one of the exceptions in 625 ILCS 5/12-503(a-5). Those exceptions are conditional on the back of the car: front side windows may run at 50% light transmittance if no window behind the driver's seat is below 30%, or at 35% if no window behind the driver's seat is below 35%, each with a 5% variance the officer's meter must allow. The Vehicle Code sets no darkness floor at all for windows behind the driver's seat. Because Illinois runs no periodic safety inspection for ordinary passenger cars, tint is checked at the roadside with a meter rather than at an annual test.

Washington lets you tint every window except the windshield down to 24 percent light transmission, with outward reflectance capped at 35 percent, but RCW 46.37.430(5)(a) measures that as net film screening, meaning the aftermarket film plus whatever tint the manufacturer already built into the glass. Only one sheet of film per window is allowed, and mirror finish, red, gold, yellow and black films are banned outright. The windshield takes only a transparent strip along the top edge that stops at the AS-1 line or six inches down, whichever comes first. Because Washington runs no periodic safety inspection for private cars, the rule is enforced entirely at the roadside, and the shop that installed the film faces a criminal charge while the driver faces an infraction.