Public Act 102-0111
 
HB0096 EnrolledLRB102 03765 HEP 13778 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 12-503 as follows:
 
    (625 ILCS 5/12-503)  (from Ch. 95 1/2, par. 12-503)
    Sec. 12-503. Windshields must be unobstructed and equipped
with wipers.
    (a) No person shall drive a motor vehicle with any sign,
poster, window application, reflective material, nonreflective
material or tinted film upon the front windshield, except that
a nonreflective tinted film may be used along the uppermost
portion of the windshield if such material does not extend
more than 6 inches down from the top of the windshield.
    (a-3) No new or used motor vehicle dealer shall permit a
driver to drive a motor vehicle offered for sale or lease off
the premises where the motor vehicle is being offered for sale
or lease, including when the driver is test driving the
vehicle, with signs, decals, paperwork, or other material on
the front windshield or on the windows immediately adjacent to
each side of the driver that would obstruct the driver's view
in violation of subsection (a) of this Section. For purposes
of this subsection (a-3), "test driving" means when a driver,
with permission of the new or used vehicle dealer or employee
of the new or used vehicle dealer, drives a vehicle owned and
held for sale or lease by a new or used vehicle dealer that the
driver is considering to purchase or lease.
    (a-5) No window treatment or tinting shall be applied to
the windows immediately adjacent to each side of the driver,
except:
        (1) On vehicles where none of the windows to the rear
    of the driver's seat are treated in a manner that allows
    less than 30% light transmittance, a nonreflective tinted
    film that allows at least 50% light transmittance, with a
    5% variance observed by any law enforcement official
    metering the light transmittance, may be used on the
    vehicle windows immediately adjacent to each side of the
    driver.
        (2) On vehicles where none of the windows to the rear
    of the driver's seat are treated in a manner that allows
    less than 35% light transmittance, a nonreflective tinted
    film that allows at least 35% light transmittance, with a
    5% variance observed by any law enforcement official
    metering the light transmittance, may be used on the
    vehicle windows immediately adjacent to each side of the
    driver.
        (3) (Blank).
        (4) On vehicles where a nonreflective smoked or tinted
    glass that was originally installed by the manufacturer on
    the windows to the rear of the driver's seat, a
    nonreflective tint that allows at least 50% light
    transmittance, with a 5% variance observed by a law
    enforcement official metering the light transmittance, may
    be used on the vehicle windows immediately adjacent to
    each side of the driver.
    (a-10) No person shall install or repair any material
prohibited by subsection (a) of this Section.
        (1) Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit a person
    from removing or altering any material prohibited by
    subsection (a) to make a motor vehicle comply with the
    requirements of this Section.
        (2) Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit a person
    from installing window treatment for a person with a
    medical condition described in subsection (g) of this
    Section. An installer who installs window treatment for a
    person with a medical condition described in subsection
    (g) must obtain a copy of the certified statement or
    letter written by a physician described in subsection (g)
    from the person with the medical condition prior to
    installing the window treatment. The copy of the certified
    statement or letter must be kept in the installer's
    permanent records.
    (b) On motor vehicles where window treatment has not been
applied to the windows immediately adjacent to each side of
the driver, the use of a perforated window screen or other
decorative window application on windows to the rear of the
driver's seat shall be allowed.
    (b-5) Any motor vehicle with a window to the rear of the
driver's seat treated in this manner shall be equipped with a
side mirror on each side of the motor vehicle which are in
conformance with Section 12-502.
    (c) No person shall drive a motor vehicle with any objects
placed or suspended between the driver and the front
windshield, rear window, side wings or side windows
immediately adjacent to each side of the driver which
materially obstructs the driver's view.
    (d) Every motor vehicle, except motorcycles, shall be
equipped with a device, controlled by the driver, for cleaning
rain, snow, moisture or other obstructions from the
windshield; and no person shall drive a motor vehicle with
snow, ice, moisture or other material on any of the windows or
mirrors, which materially obstructs the driver's clear view of
the highway.
    (e) No person shall drive a motor vehicle when the
windshield, side or rear windows are in such defective
condition or repair as to materially impair the driver's view
to the front, side or rear. A vehicle equipped with a side
mirror on each side of the vehicle which are in conformance
with Section 12-502 will be deemed to be in compliance in the
event the rear window of the vehicle is materially obscured.
    (f) Subsections (a), (a-5), (b), and (b-5) of this Section
shall not apply to:
        (1) (Blank).
        (2) those motor vehicles properly registered in
    another jurisdiction.
    (g) Subsections (a) and (a-5) of this Section shall not
apply to window treatment, including, but not limited to, a
window application, nonreflective material, or tinted film,
applied or affixed to a motor vehicle for which distinctive
license plates or license plate stickers have been issued
pursuant to subsection (k) of Section 3-412 of this Code, and
which:
        (1) is owned and operated by a person afflicted with
    or suffering from a medical disease, including, but not
    limited to, systemic or discoid lupus erythematosus,
    disseminated superficial actinic porokeratosis, light
    sensitivity as a result of a traumatic brain injury, or
    albinism, which would require that person to be shielded
    from the direct rays of the sun; or
        (2) is used in transporting a person when the person
    resides at the same address as the registered owner of the
    vehicle and the person is afflicted with or suffering from
    a medical disease which would require the person to be
    shielded from the direct rays of the sun, including, but
    not limited to, systemic or discoid lupus erythematosus,
    disseminated superficial actinic porokeratosis, light
    sensitivity as a result of a traumatic brain injury, or
    albinism.
        The owner must obtain a certified statement or letter
    written by a physician licensed to practice medicine in
    Illinois that such person owning and operating or being
    transported in a motor vehicle is afflicted with or
    suffers from such disease, including, but not limited to,
    systemic or discoid lupus erythematosus, disseminated
    superficial actinic porokeratosis, light sensitivity as a
    result of a traumatic brain injury, or albinism. However,
    no exemption from the requirements of subsection (a-5)
    shall be granted for any condition, such as light
    sensitivity, for which protection from the direct rays of
    the sun can be adequately obtained by the use of
    sunglasses or other eye protective devices.
        Such certification must be carried in the motor
    vehicle at all times. The certification shall be legible
    and shall contain the date of issuance, the name, address
    and signature of the attending physician, and the name,
    address, and medical condition of the person requiring
    exemption. The information on the certificate for a window
    treatment must remain current and shall be renewed every 4
    years by the attending physician. The owner shall also
    submit a copy of the certification to the Secretary of
    State. The Secretary of State may forward notice of
    certification to law enforcement agencies.
    (g-5) (Blank).
    (g-7) Installers shall only install window treatment
authorized by subsection (g) on motor vehicles for which
distinctive plates or license plate stickers have been issued
pursuant to subsection (k) of Section 3-412 of this Code. The
distinctive license plates or plate sticker must be on the
motor vehicle at the time of window treatment installation.
    (h) Subsection (a) of this Section shall not apply to
motor vehicle stickers or other certificates issued by State
or local authorities which are required to be displayed upon
motor vehicle windows to evidence compliance with requirements
concerning motor vehicles.
    (i) (Blank).
    (j) A person found guilty of violating subsection (a),
(a-3), (a-5), (a-10), (b), (b-5), or (g-7) of this Section
shall be guilty of a petty offense and fined no less than $50
nor more than $500. A second or subsequent violation of
subsection (a), (a-3), (a-5), (a-10), (b), (b-5), or (g-7) of
this Section shall be treated as a Class C misdemeanor and the
violator fined no less than $100 nor more than $500. Any person
convicted under subsection (a), (a-5), (b), or (b-5) of this
Section shall be ordered to alter any nonconforming windows
into compliance with this Section.
    (k) Except as provided in subsection (a-3) of this
Section, nothing in this Section shall create a cause of
action on behalf of a buyer against a vehicle dealer or
manufacturer who sells a motor vehicle with a window which is
in violation of this Section.
    (l) The Secretary of State shall provide a notice of the
requirements of this Section to a new resident applying for
vehicle registration in this State pursuant to Section 3-801
of this Code. The Secretary of State may comply with this
subsection by posting the requirements of this Section on the
Secretary of State's website.
    (m) A home rule unit may not regulate motor vehicles in a
manner inconsistent with this Section. This Section is a
limitation under subsection (i) of Section 6 of Article VII of
the Illinois Constitution on the concurrent exercise by home
rule units of powers and functions exercised by the State.
(Source: P.A. 100-346, eff. 1-1-18; 100-863, eff. 8-14-18.)

Effective Date: 1/1/2022