If you searched for the new Illinois DUI laws this year, here is the answer most websites bury: the DUI statute itself did not change in 2026, and nothing taking effect on January 1, 2027 rewrites it either. The section that defines DUI and sets its penalties, 625 ILCS 5/11-501, has not been amended since July 1, 2023. Neither have the statutory summary suspension periods in 625 ILCS 5/6-208.1. What did change sits around the edges of a DUI case: how cannabis can ride in your car, who can charge you a fee when your car is impounded, what happens if you miss court, whether a public defender can help at your suspension hearing, and whether riding an electric scooter after drinking is legal.
That distinction matters because rumors move faster than statutes. One of the most common searches that leads people to DUI articles this year is some version of “new law every DUI is a felony.” It is not true in Illinois, and believing it pushes people toward bad decisions about their case. Here is what actually changed, what starts on January 1, 2027, and which widely reported bills never became law.
No, Every DUI Did Not Become a Felony
Under 625 ILCS 5/11-501(c)(1), a first DUI is a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to 364 days in jail and a fine of up to $2,500. A second DUI is also a Class A misdemeanor, with a mandatory minimum of 5 days in jail or 240 hours of community service under 11-501(c)(2). A DUI becomes a felony, called aggravated DUI, only when one of the factors listed in 11-501(d) applies. A third DUI is a Class 2 felony, with a range of 3 to 7 years. Other common triggers include a crash that causes great bodily harm, driving while your license is revoked or suspended for an earlier DUI, driving with no valid license or permit, and driving a car you knew or should have known was uninsured. A fourth DUI is a Class 2 felony with no probation, a fifth is a Class 1 felony with no probation, and a sixth or later is a Class X felony.
None of that changed in 2026. If someone tells you a first offense is now a felony, ask for the Public Act number. There isn’t one. The full penalty ladder, including the license revocation that follows each conviction, is laid out on our Joliet DUI defense page.
What Changed in 2026
The biggest change for drivers came in the cannabis overhaul, Public Act 104-0463, effective June 12, 2026. It doubled what an Illinois resident 21 or older may possess: from 30 to 60 grams of cannabis flower, from 500 to 1,000 milligrams of THC in infused products, and from 5 to 10 grams of concentrate. It also relaxed the rule that produced a lot of traffic-stop tickets. Cannabis bought from a licensed dispensary no longer has to be “inaccessible” in the car if it stays in its secured, sealed, odor-proof, child-resistant original packaging (410 ILCS 705/15-85(e)). The rest of the vehicle rules stand. A driver still may not use cannabis in the passenger area, cannabis that is not in a sealed, odor-proof, child-resistant container is still a Class A misdemeanor under 625 ILCS 5/11-502.15, and the THC limits for driving did not move. Under 625 ILCS 5/11-501.2(a)(6), the limit is still 5 nanograms of THC per milliliter of whole blood or 10 nanograms per milliliter of another bodily substance, and a driver can still be charged on observed impairment alone.
The second change hits the wallet. Public Act 104-0577, effective July 16, 2026, added the Illinois State Police to 625 ILCS 5/11-208.7, the section that allows an administrative fee when a vehicle is impounded for listed offenses, including DUI. Until this year, only counties and municipalities could adopt those fees. Now the State Police can impose one by administrative rule, on top of towing and storage charges. That matters in Will County, where the State Police patrol I-55, I-80 and I-355.
Third, the Clean Slate Act, Public Act 104-0459, effective June 1, 2026, shortened the waiting periods for sealing most records and set up automatic sealing starting in 2029. It did not open the door for DUI. A DUI conviction still cannot be sealed, and DUI court supervision still cannot be expunged. Our Illinois expungement and sealing guide covers what the act did change.
One reform people often misread came earlier. Public Acts 103-0789 and 104-0022 (the second effective July 1, 2025) stopped license suspensions for missed court dates on fine-only traffic tickets, which now end in an ex parte conviction instead. That reform does not reach DUI. Under 625 ILCS 5/6-308, if you miss court on an offense punishable by jail time, including DUI and driving while your license is suspended or revoked, the judge enters a failure-to-appear order and the Secretary of State suspends your license until you appear and resolve the case.
What Takes Effect January 1, 2027
Two new laws reach DUI cases directly. Public Act 104-0482 lets a public defender appointed in a DUI criminal case choose to represent the same client at the statutory summary suspension hearing from that arrest (55 ILCS 5/3-4006). It is a permission, not a guarantee; the law says it creates no right to counsel at the suspension hearing. The change matters because that hearing is a separate civil proceeding with its own deadline. The written request for a hearing must be filed within 90 days after the notice of suspension (625 ILCS 5/2-118.1(b)), and the 90 days run whether or not anyone has looked at the case.
The second is Public Act 104-0854. It treats electric scooters, electric skateboards and similar “electric micromobility devices” as motor vehicles under the Illinois Vehicle Code and adds a direct rule: a person may not operate one while under the influence of alcohol or any drug (625 ILCS 5/11-1435(j)). Riders must be at least 16, and a device ridden in violation of the section can be confiscated and impounded. How prosecutors will charge impaired riders is something the courts will sort out after the law takes effect. The safe assumption is to treat a scooter the way you would treat a car.
Bills That Made Headlines but Did Not Become Law
House Bill 4333 would have lowered the legal limit from 0.08 to 0.05. It was sent back to the House Rules Committee on March 27, 2026 and has not passed, so the limit for drivers 21 and older is still 0.08. House Bill 2658 would have given people with DUI convictions broader restricted driving permits, up to six days a week, twelve hours a day, within 200 miles of home, with an ignition interlock. It passed the House 104-0 in April 2025 but has sat in the Senate Assignments Committee since April 14, 2025. Until something changes, the existing permit rules apply, including the rules for drivers with four or more DUI convictions explained on our reinstatement page for four DUI convictions. Bills in the 104th General Assembly stay technically alive until it adjourns in January 2027, so either could still move in the fall veto session. As of this writing, neither has.
What This Means If You Were Arrested This Year
Because the core law did not change, the defenses did not change either. A Will County DUI still turns on the same questions: whether the officer had a lawful reason to stop you, whether the field sobriety tests were given and scored the way the training requires, whether the breath or blood test was handled according to the regulations, and whether the State can prove impairment rather than just drinking. As a former Will County prosecutor, Attorney Jack Zaremba reviewed these cases from the other side of the courtroom, and the costliest mistake he sees is not a legal one. It is waiting. The 90-day window to challenge the summary suspension closes on schedule, and a first offender who lets it pass gives up the earliest chance to save the license. Eligible first offenders can still drive during the suspension with a Monitoring Device Driving Permit, which requires a breath-alcohol ignition interlock.
If you were arrested for DUI in Joliet or anywhere in Will County, the law that applies to you is the one on the books, not the one in the headlines. Contact the Law Offices of Jack L. Zaremba, P.C. for a free consultation at 815-740-4025 or through our contact page.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a new DUI law in Illinois for 2026?
No new law changed the DUI statute itself. 625 ILCS 5/11-501 has not been amended since July 1, 2023, so the penalties, the 0.08 limit and the summary suspension periods are the same. The 2026 changes affect cannabis in vehicles, State Police impound fees and record sealing.
Did Illinois make every DUI a felony?
No. A first or second DUI is still a Class A misdemeanor unless an aggravating factor applies, such as a crash that causes great bodily harm or driving on a license revoked for an earlier DUI. A third DUI is a Class 2 felony.
Did Illinois lower the legal limit to 0.05?
No. House Bill 4333 would have lowered it, but it was sent back to the House Rules Committee in March 2026 and has not passed. The legal limit for drivers 21 and older is still 0.08.
Did the cannabis DUI rules change in 2026?
No. The June 2026 cannabis law raised possession limits and lets drivers carry dispensary cannabis in its sealed original packaging without making it inaccessible, but it did not change the THC limits for driving or the ban on using cannabis in a vehicle.
Can you be charged for riding an electric scooter drunk in Illinois?
Starting January 1, 2027, Public Act 104-0854 treats electric scooters and similar devices as motor vehicles and makes it illegal to ride one while under the influence of alcohol or any drug. The device can also be impounded.
Can a DUI be sealed under the Clean Slate Act?
No. The Clean Slate Act shortened waiting periods and created automatic sealing starting in 2029, but a DUI conviction still cannot be sealed and DUI court supervision still cannot be expunged.
This post is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Results vary by case.