The 9 Do's and Don'ts of Political Yard Signs, So You Don't Get Fined

This past week, as the presidential debates have wrapped up, early voting has started and the election is drawing closer, one thing has been on the rise: theft of yard signs.

In Elmhurst, one woman filed a police report because her Hillary Clinton sign was snatched from her lawn. In Downers Grove, Democrats are claiming their signs are being uprooted, but Republicans’ are staying put. The Village of Woodridge had to issue a statement this week reminding residents of campaign sign laws.

This campaign has been vicious, and signs are no exception. Across the country in Washington, a Trump supporter who grew so tired of people stealing his sign rigged it to deliver an electric shock when anyone touched it.

So, it feels like a good time to revisit Illinois’ Senate Bill 0655, which created the Campaign Sign Regulation Act back in 2012. You can read the full text of the act here, but I doubt you want to do that, so we summarized it up for you. Read on if you want to know what’s legal versus the illegalities of political yard signs.

The main points:

• You CAN’T remove someone else’s signs from their property. It’s absolutely illegal. Even if they are breaking one or more of the rules listed below, you must call a local office to remove the sign.
• You CAN’T just put a sign on someone else’s private property. This is also illegal.
• Campaign signs CAN’T be more than 2 feet by 3 feet in size.
• Campaign signs MUST be made of biodegradable material.
• You CAN’T have more than one political sign per candidate per public office on your property.
• You CAN’T post signs on any public property.
• You CAN’T post your signs closer than 20 feet from your property line or street.
• If you’re breaking one of these rules, you CAN have your sign removed by your county board or corporate authorities.
• If you’re breaking one of these rules, you also CAN be fined $2 per day per illegally posted sign. It’s considered a petty offense. All money collected from these fines is put toward the Common School Fund.

Happy supporting!

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Image via Shutterstock.