Digital licenses, shampoo bottles, $15 wage: Illinois’ new laws for 2025
New Years’ Day means hundreds of new laws on the books, including one allowing residents to get a digital version of their driver’s license.
Illinois state leaders are handing residents a list of new laws on New Year’s Day affecting the minimum wage, job listings, property taxes and even hotel shampoo bottles.
Of the hundreds of new laws in the new year, here are a few noteworthy ones:
Digital IDs
Illinoisans will soon have the option to download a digital version of their driver’s license to their phone. Residents will need a unique app on their phones to access the digital ID. There is an exception: law enforcement officers may still request the physical copy.
$15 minimum wage
Illinois’ minimum wage will reach $15 an hour on Jan. 1, 2025. That’s up from the current $14 per hour. The minimum wage for tipped workers will rise to $9 per hour. Also, companies with more than 15 employees will be required to post salary information on new job listings.
Statewide property tax study
The state of Illinois is launching a study into the property tax process. Illinoisans pay the second-highest property taxes in the nation. It doesn’t take a study to figure out most property tax pain stems from high pension costs.
Roughly 20% of all Illinois state spending goes to pensions, yet the state still is $143.7 billion shy of what it will eventually need for state workers’ retirements. Local governments are under the same pressure, with $70 billion in pension debt, and property tax levies are raised as a result.
Mini shampoo bottles
Mini shampoo bottles, mouthwash and other toiletries offered at hotels will be banned starting July 1, 2025, for hotels with more than 50 rooms. Smaller hotels have until 2026 to comply. Hotels will now transition to refillable containers instead of the small travel-size bottles.
Paying college athletes
Athletes can now earn money through name, image and likeness deals from universities. The details of the private deals cannot be publicized.
Want more?
Click here to read about more laws taking effect in 2025, published by the Illinois Municipal League.