Bill Text: IL SB1251 | 2025-2026 | 104th General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Illinois Vehicle Code. Provides that it shall be grounds for dismissal of a standing, parking, compliance, automated speed enforcement system, or automated traffic law violation if the state registration number or vehicle make specified is incorrect. Effective immediately.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2025-02-02 - Chief Sponsor Changed to Sen. John F. Curran [SB1251 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2025-SB1251-Introduced.html

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104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026 SB1251 Introduced 1/24/2025, by Sen. Dan McConchie SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
625 ILCS 5/11-208.3 from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 11-208.3
Amends the Illinois Vehicle Code. Provides that it shall be grounds for dismissal of a standing, parking, compliance, automated speed enforcement system, or automated traffic law violation if the state registration number or vehicle make specified is incorrect. Effective immediately.
LRB104 05681 LNS 15711 b
A BILL FOR
SB1251 LRB104 05681 LNS 15711 b
AN ACT concerning transportation.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Illinois Vehicle Code is amended by
changing Section 11-208.3 as follows:
(625 ILCS 5/11-208.3) (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 11-208.3)
Sec. 11-208.3. Administrative adjudication of violations
of traffic regulations concerning the standing, parking, or
condition of vehicles, automated traffic law violations, and
automated speed enforcement system violations.
(a) Any municipality or county may provide by ordinance
for a system of administrative adjudication of vehicular
standing and parking violations and vehicle compliance
violations as described in this subsection, automated traffic
law violations as defined in Section 11-208.6, 11-208.9, or
11-1201.1, and automated speed enforcement system violations
as defined in Section 11-208.8. The administrative system
shall have as its purpose the fair and efficient enforcement
of municipal or county regulations through the administrative
adjudication of automated speed enforcement system or
automated traffic law violations and violations of municipal
or county ordinances regulating the standing and parking of
vehicles, the condition and use of vehicle equipment, and the

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display of municipal or county wheel tax licenses within the
municipality's or county's borders. The administrative system
shall only have authority to adjudicate civil offenses
carrying fines not in excess of $500 or requiring the
completion of a traffic education program, or both, that occur
after the effective date of the ordinance adopting such a
system under this Section. For purposes of this Section,
"compliance violation" means a violation of a municipal or
county regulation governing the condition or use of equipment
on a vehicle or governing the display of a municipal or county
wheel tax license.
(b) Any ordinance establishing a system of administrative
adjudication under this Section shall provide for:
(1) A traffic compliance administrator authorized to
adopt, distribute, and process parking, compliance, and
automated speed enforcement system or automated traffic
law violation notices and other notices required by this
Section, collect money paid as fines and penalties for
violation of parking and compliance ordinances and
automated speed enforcement system or automated traffic
law violations, and operate an administrative adjudication
system.
(2) A parking, standing, compliance, automated speed
enforcement system, or automated traffic law violation
notice that shall specify or include the date, time, and
place of violation of a parking, standing, compliance,

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automated speed enforcement system, or automated traffic
law regulation; the particular regulation violated; any
requirement to complete a traffic education program; the
fine and any penalty that may be assessed for late payment
or failure to complete a required traffic education
program, or both, when so provided by ordinance; the
vehicle make or a photograph of the vehicle; the state
registration number of the vehicle; and the identification
number of the person issuing the notice. With regard to
automated speed enforcement system or automated traffic
law violations, vehicle make shall be specified on the
automated speed enforcement system or automated traffic
law violation notice if the notice does not include a
photograph of the vehicle and the make is available and
readily discernible. It With regard to municipalities or
counties with a population of 1 million or more, it shall
be grounds for dismissal of a standing, parking,
compliance, automated speed enforcement system, or
automated traffic law parking violation if the state
registration number or vehicle make specified is
incorrect. The violation notice shall state that the
completion of any required traffic education program, the
payment of any indicated fine, and the payment of any
applicable penalty for late payment or failure to complete
a required traffic education program, or both, shall
operate as a final disposition of the violation. The

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notice also shall contain information as to the
availability of a hearing in which the violation may be
contested on its merits. The violation notice shall
specify the time and manner in which a hearing may be had.
(3) Service of a parking, standing, or compliance
violation notice by: (i) affixing the original or a
facsimile of the notice to an unlawfully parked or
standing vehicle; (ii) handing the notice to the operator
of a vehicle if he or she is present; or (iii) mailing the
notice to the address of the registered owner or lessee of
the cited vehicle as recorded with the Secretary of State
or the lessor of the motor vehicle within 30 days after the
Secretary of State or the lessor of the motor vehicle
notifies the municipality or county of the identity of the
owner or lessee of the vehicle, but not later than 90 days
after the date of the violation, except that in the case of
a lessee of a motor vehicle, service of a parking,
standing, or compliance violation notice may occur no
later than 210 days after the violation; and service of an
automated speed enforcement system or automated traffic
law violation notice by mail to the address of the
registered owner or lessee of the cited vehicle as
recorded with the Secretary of State or the lessor of the
motor vehicle within 30 days after the Secretary of State
or the lessor of the motor vehicle notifies the
municipality or county of the identity of the owner or

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lessee of the vehicle, but not later than 90 days after the
violation, except that in the case of a lessee of a motor
vehicle, service of an automated traffic law violation
notice may occur no later than 210 days after the
violation. A person authorized by ordinance to issue and
serve parking, standing, and compliance violation notices
shall certify as to the correctness of the facts entered
on the violation notice by signing his or her name to the
notice at the time of service or, in the case of a notice
produced by a computerized device, by signing a single
certificate to be kept by the traffic compliance
administrator attesting to the correctness of all notices
produced by the device while it was under his or her
control. In the case of an automated traffic law
violation, the ordinance shall require a determination by
a technician employed or contracted by the municipality or
county that, based on inspection of recorded images, the
motor vehicle was being operated in violation of Section
11-208.6, 11-208.9, or 11-1201.1 or a local ordinance. If
the technician determines that the vehicle entered the
intersection as part of a funeral procession or in order
to yield the right-of-way to an emergency vehicle, a
citation shall not be issued. In municipalities with a
population of less than 1,000,000 inhabitants and counties
with a population of less than 3,000,000 inhabitants, the
automated traffic law ordinance shall require that all

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determinations by a technician that a motor vehicle was
being operated in violation of Section 11-208.6, 11-208.9,
or 11-1201.1 or a local ordinance must be reviewed and
approved by a law enforcement officer or retired law
enforcement officer of the municipality or county issuing
the violation. In municipalities with a population of
1,000,000 or more inhabitants and counties with a
population of 3,000,000 or more inhabitants, the automated
traffic law ordinance shall require that all
determinations by a technician that a motor vehicle was
being operated in violation of Section 11-208.6, 11-208.9,
or 11-1201.1 or a local ordinance must be reviewed and
approved by a law enforcement officer or retired law
enforcement officer of the municipality or county issuing
the violation or by an additional fully trained reviewing
technician who is not employed by the contractor who
employs the technician who made the initial determination.
In the case of an automated speed enforcement system
violation, the ordinance shall require a determination by
a technician employed by the municipality, based upon an
inspection of recorded images, video or other
documentation, including documentation of the speed limit
and automated speed enforcement signage, and documentation
of the inspection, calibration, and certification of the
speed equipment, that the vehicle was being operated in
violation of Article VI of Chapter 11 of this Code or a

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similar local ordinance. If the technician determines that
the vehicle speed was not determined by a calibrated,
certified speed equipment device based upon the speed
equipment documentation, or if the vehicle was an
emergency vehicle, a citation may not be issued. The
automated speed enforcement ordinance shall require that
all determinations by a technician that a violation
occurred be reviewed and approved by a law enforcement
officer or retired law enforcement officer of the
municipality issuing the violation or by an additional
fully trained reviewing technician who is not employed by
the contractor who employs the technician who made the
initial determination. Routine and independent calibration
of the speeds produced by automated speed enforcement
systems and equipment shall be conducted annually by a
qualified technician. Speeds produced by an automated
speed enforcement system shall be compared with speeds
produced by lidar or other independent equipment. Radar or
lidar equipment shall undergo an internal validation test
no less frequently than once each week. Qualified
technicians shall test loop-based equipment no less
frequently than once a year. Radar equipment shall be
checked for accuracy by a qualified technician when the
unit is serviced, when unusual or suspect readings
persist, or when deemed necessary by a reviewing
technician. Radar equipment shall be checked with the

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internal frequency generator and the internal circuit test
whenever the radar is turned on. Technicians must be alert
for any unusual or suspect readings, and if unusual or
suspect readings of a radar unit persist, that unit shall
immediately be removed from service and not returned to
service until it has been checked by a qualified
technician and determined to be functioning properly.
Documentation of the annual calibration results, including
the equipment tested, test date, technician performing the
test, and test results, shall be maintained and available
for use in the determination of an automated speed
enforcement system violation and issuance of a citation.
The technician performing the calibration and testing of
the automated speed enforcement equipment shall be trained
and certified in the use of equipment for speed
enforcement purposes. Training on the speed enforcement
equipment may be conducted by law enforcement, civilian,
or manufacturer's personnel and if applicable may be
equivalent to the equipment use and operations training
included in the Speed Measuring Device Operator Program
developed by the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA). The vendor or technician who
performs the work shall keep accurate records on each
piece of equipment the technician calibrates and tests. As
used in this paragraph, "fully trained reviewing
technician" means a person who has received at least 40

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hours of supervised training in subjects which shall
include image inspection and interpretation, the elements
necessary to prove a violation, license plate
identification, and traffic safety and management. In all
municipalities and counties, the automated speed
enforcement system or automated traffic law ordinance
shall require that no additional fee shall be charged to
the alleged violator for exercising his or her right to an
administrative hearing, and persons shall be given at
least 25 days following an administrative hearing to pay
any civil penalty imposed by a finding that Section
11-208.6, 11-208.8, 11-208.9, or 11-1201.1 or a similar
local ordinance has been violated. The original or a
facsimile of the violation notice or, in the case of a
notice produced by a computerized device, a printed record
generated by the device showing the facts entered on the
notice, shall be retained by the traffic compliance
administrator, and shall be a record kept in the ordinary
course of business. A parking, standing, compliance,
automated speed enforcement system, or automated traffic
law violation notice issued, signed, and served in
accordance with this Section, a copy of the notice, or the
computer-generated record shall be prima facie correct and
shall be prima facie evidence of the correctness of the
facts shown on the notice. The notice, copy, or
computer-generated record shall be admissible in any

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subsequent administrative or legal proceedings.
(4) An opportunity for a hearing for the registered
owner of the vehicle cited in the parking, standing,
compliance, automated speed enforcement system, or
automated traffic law violation notice in which the owner
may contest the merits of the alleged violation, and
during which formal or technical rules of evidence shall
not apply; provided, however, that under Section 11-1306
of this Code the lessee of a vehicle cited in the violation
notice likewise shall be provided an opportunity for a
hearing of the same kind afforded the registered owner.
The hearings shall be recorded, and the person conducting
the hearing on behalf of the traffic compliance
administrator shall be empowered to administer oaths and
to secure by subpoena both the attendance and testimony of
witnesses and the production of relevant books and papers.
Persons appearing at a hearing under this Section may be
represented by counsel at their expense. The ordinance may
also provide for internal administrative review following
the decision of the hearing officer.
(5) Service of additional notices, sent by first class
United States mail, postage prepaid, to the address of the
registered owner of the cited vehicle as recorded with the
Secretary of State or, if any notice to that address is
returned as undeliverable, to the last known address
recorded in a United States Post Office approved database,

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or, under Section 11-1306 or subsection (p) of Section
11-208.6 or 11-208.9, or subsection (p) of Section
11-208.8 of this Code, to the lessee of the cited vehicle
at the last address known to the lessor of the cited
vehicle at the time of lease or, if any notice to that
address is returned as undeliverable, to the last known
address recorded in a United States Post Office approved
database. The service shall be deemed complete as of the
date of deposit in the United States mail. The notices
shall be in the following sequence and shall include, but
not be limited to, the information specified herein:
(i) A second notice of parking, standing, or
compliance violation if the first notice of the
violation was issued by affixing the original or a
facsimile of the notice to the unlawfully parked
vehicle or by handing the notice to the operator. This
notice shall specify or include the date and location
of the violation cited in the parking, standing, or
compliance violation notice, the particular regulation
violated, the vehicle make or a photograph of the
vehicle, the state registration number of the vehicle,
any requirement to complete a traffic education
program, the fine and any penalty that may be assessed
for late payment or failure to complete a traffic
education program, or both, when so provided by
ordinance, the availability of a hearing in which the

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violation may be contested on its merits, and the time
and manner in which the hearing may be had. The notice
of violation shall also state that failure to complete
a required traffic education program, to pay the
indicated fine and any applicable penalty, or to
appear at a hearing on the merits in the time and
manner specified, will result in a final determination
of violation liability for the cited violation in the
amount of the fine or penalty indicated, and that,
upon the occurrence of a final determination of
violation liability for the failure, and the
exhaustion of, or failure to exhaust, available
administrative or judicial procedures for review, any
incomplete traffic education program or any unpaid
fine or penalty, or both, will constitute a debt due
and owing the municipality or county.
(ii) A notice of final determination of parking,
standing, compliance, automated speed enforcement
system, or automated traffic law violation liability.
This notice shall be sent following a final
determination of parking, standing, compliance,
automated speed enforcement system, or automated
traffic law violation liability and the conclusion of
judicial review procedures taken under this Section.
The notice shall state that the incomplete traffic
education program or the unpaid fine or penalty, or

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both, is a debt due and owing the municipality or
county. The notice shall contain warnings that failure
to complete any required traffic education program or
to pay any fine or penalty due and owing the
municipality or county, or both, within the time
specified may result in the municipality's or county's
filing of a petition in the Circuit Court to have the
incomplete traffic education program or unpaid fine or
penalty, or both, rendered a judgment as provided by
this Section, or, where applicable, may result in
suspension of the person's driver's license for
failure to complete a traffic education program.
(6) A notice of impending driver's license suspension.
This notice shall be sent to the person liable for failure
to complete a required traffic education program. The
notice shall state that failure to complete a required
traffic education program within 45 days of the notice's
date will result in the municipality or county notifying
the Secretary of State that the person is eligible for
initiation of suspension proceedings under Section 6-306.5
of this Code. The notice shall also state that the person
may obtain a photostatic copy of an original ticket
imposing a fine or penalty by sending a self-addressed,
stamped envelope to the municipality or county along with
a request for the photostatic copy. The notice of
impending driver's license suspension shall be sent by

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first class United States mail, postage prepaid, to the
address recorded with the Secretary of State or, if any
notice to that address is returned as undeliverable, to
the last known address recorded in a United States Post
Office approved database.
(7) Final determinations of violation liability. A
final determination of violation liability shall occur
following failure to complete the required traffic
education program or to pay the fine or penalty, or both,
after a hearing officer's determination of violation
liability and the exhaustion of or failure to exhaust any
administrative review procedures provided by ordinance.
Where a person fails to appear at a hearing to contest the
alleged violation in the time and manner specified in a
prior mailed notice, the hearing officer's determination
of violation liability shall become final: (A) upon denial
of a timely petition to set aside that determination, or
(B) upon expiration of the period for filing the petition
without a filing having been made.
(8) A petition to set aside a determination of
parking, standing, compliance, automated speed enforcement
system, or automated traffic law violation liability that
may be filed by a person owing an unpaid fine or penalty. A
petition to set aside a determination of liability may
also be filed by a person required to complete a traffic
education program. The petition shall be filed with and

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ruled upon by the traffic compliance administrator in the
manner and within the time specified by ordinance. The
grounds for the petition may be limited to: (A) the person
not having been the owner or lessee of the cited vehicle on
the date the violation notice was issued, (B) the person
having already completed the required traffic education
program or paid the fine or penalty, or both, for the
violation in question, and (C) excusable failure to appear
at or request a new date for a hearing. With regard to
municipalities or counties with a population of 1 million
or more, it shall be grounds for dismissal of a parking
violation if the state registration number or vehicle
make, only if specified in the violation notice, is
incorrect. After the determination of parking, standing,
compliance, automated speed enforcement system, or
automated traffic law violation liability has been set
aside upon a showing of just cause, the registered owner
shall be provided with a hearing on the merits for that
violation.
(9) Procedures for non-residents. Procedures by which
persons who are not residents of the municipality or
county may contest the merits of the alleged violation
without attending a hearing.
(10) A schedule of civil fines for violations of
vehicular standing, parking, compliance, automated speed
enforcement system, or automated traffic law regulations

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enacted by ordinance pursuant to this Section, and a
schedule of penalties for late payment of the fines or
failure to complete required traffic education programs,
provided, however, that the total amount of the fine and
penalty for any one violation shall not exceed $250,
except as provided in subsection (c) of Section 11-1301.3
of this Code.
(11) Other provisions as are necessary and proper to
carry into effect the powers granted and purposes stated
in this Section.
(b-5) An automated speed enforcement system or automated
traffic law ordinance adopted under this Section by a
municipality or county shall require that the determination to
issue a citation be vested solely with the municipality or
county and that such authority may not be delegated to any
vendor retained by the municipality or county. Any contract or
agreement violating such a provision in the ordinance is null
and void.
(c) Any municipality or county establishing vehicular
standing, parking, compliance, automated speed enforcement
system, or automated traffic law regulations under this
Section may also provide by ordinance for a program of vehicle
immobilization for the purpose of facilitating enforcement of
those regulations. The program of vehicle immobilization shall
provide for immobilizing any eligible vehicle upon the public
way by presence of a restraint in a manner to prevent operation

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of the vehicle. Any ordinance establishing a program of
vehicle immobilization under this Section shall provide:
(1) Criteria for the designation of vehicles eligible
for immobilization. A vehicle shall be eligible for
immobilization when the registered owner of the vehicle
has accumulated the number of incomplete traffic education
programs or unpaid final determinations of parking,
standing, compliance, automated speed enforcement system,
or automated traffic law violation liability, or both, as
determined by ordinance.
(2) A notice of impending vehicle immobilization and a
right to a hearing to challenge the validity of the notice
by disproving liability for the incomplete traffic
education programs or unpaid final determinations of
parking, standing, compliance, automated speed enforcement
system, or automated traffic law violation liability, or
both, listed on the notice.
(3) The right to a prompt hearing after a vehicle has
been immobilized or subsequently towed without the
completion of the required traffic education program or
payment of the outstanding fines and penalties on parking,
standing, compliance, automated speed enforcement system,
or automated traffic law violations, or both, for which
final determinations have been issued. An order issued
after the hearing is a final administrative decision
within the meaning of Section 3-101 of the Code of Civil

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Procedure.
(4) A post immobilization and post-towing notice
advising the registered owner of the vehicle of the right
to a hearing to challenge the validity of the impoundment.
(d) Judicial review of final determinations of parking,
standing, compliance, automated speed enforcement system, or
automated traffic law violations and final administrative
decisions issued after hearings regarding vehicle
immobilization and impoundment made under this Section shall
be subject to the provisions of the Administrative Review Law.
(e) Any fine, penalty, incomplete traffic education
program, or part of any fine or any penalty remaining unpaid
after the exhaustion of, or the failure to exhaust,
administrative remedies created under this Section and the
conclusion of any judicial review procedures shall be a debt
due and owing the municipality or county and, as such, may be
collected in accordance with applicable law. Completion of any
required traffic education program and payment in full of any
fine or penalty resulting from a standing, parking,
compliance, automated speed enforcement system, or automated
traffic law violation shall constitute a final disposition of
that violation.
(f) After the expiration of the period within which
judicial review may be sought for a final determination of
parking, standing, compliance, automated speed enforcement
system, or automated traffic law violation, the municipality

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or county may commence a proceeding in the Circuit Court for
purposes of obtaining a judgment on the final determination of
violation. Nothing in this Section shall prevent a
municipality or county from consolidating multiple final
determinations of parking, standing, compliance, automated
speed enforcement system, or automated traffic law violations
against a person in a proceeding. Upon commencement of the
action, the municipality or county shall file a certified copy
or record of the final determination of parking, standing,
compliance, automated speed enforcement system, or automated
traffic law violation, which shall be accompanied by a
certification that recites facts sufficient to show that the
final determination of violation was issued in accordance with
this Section and the applicable municipal or county ordinance.
Service of the summons and a copy of the petition may be by any
method provided by Section 2-203 of the Code of Civil
Procedure or by certified mail, return receipt requested,
provided that the total amount of fines and penalties for
final determinations of parking, standing, compliance,
automated speed enforcement system, or automated traffic law
violations does not exceed $2500. If the court is satisfied
that the final determination of parking, standing, compliance,
automated speed enforcement system, or automated traffic law
violation was entered in accordance with the requirements of
this Section and the applicable municipal or county ordinance,
and that the registered owner or the lessee, as the case may

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be, had an opportunity for an administrative hearing and for
judicial review as provided in this Section, the court shall
render judgment in favor of the municipality or county and
against the registered owner or the lessee for the amount
indicated in the final determination of parking, standing,
compliance, automated speed enforcement system, or automated
traffic law violation, plus costs. The judgment shall have the
same effect and may be enforced in the same manner as other
judgments for the recovery of money.
(g) The fee for participating in a traffic education
program under this Section shall not exceed $25.
A low-income individual required to complete a traffic
education program under this Section who provides proof of
eligibility for the federal earned income tax credit under
Section 32 of the Internal Revenue Code or the Illinois earned
income tax credit under Section 212 of the Illinois Income Tax
Act shall not be required to pay any fee for participating in a
required traffic education program.
(h) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the
contrary, a person shall not be liable for violations, fees,
fines, or penalties under this Section during the period in
which the motor vehicle was stolen or hijacked, as indicated
in a report to the appropriate law enforcement agency filed in
a timely manner.
(Source: P.A. 102-558, eff. 8-20-21; 102-905, eff. 1-1-23;
103-364, eff. 7-28-23.)

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Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.