SAFE AUTONOMOUS VEHICLE ACT

Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of HB1839

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104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2025 and 2026
HB1839

Introduced 1/29/2025, by Rep. Curtis J. Tarver, II

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

New Act

Creates the Safe Autonomous Vehicle Act. Provides definitions.
Provides that upon notification to the Secretary of State, a Motor Vehicle
Manufacturer may commence a safe autonomous vehicle project with a vehicle
installed with an Automated Driving System after providing notification to
the Secretary of State and after self-certification under certain
conditions. Provides that the Manufacturer shall determine the
geographical boundaries of the project and shall maintain incident records
and provide periodic summaries to the Secretary of State and the National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Provides that the Participating
Fleet in the program shall be insured by the Manufacturer who shall assume
liability for incidents where the automated driving system technology is
at fault for that incident. Provides that any person operates a vehicle
with automated driving system technology without first satisfying the
eligibility requirements in the Act shall be fined $10,000 for a first
violation and a second or subsequent violation is a Class A misdemeanor.
Preempts home rule powers. Effective immediately.
LRB104 08951 LNS 19006 b

A BILL FOR

HB1839
LRB104 08951 LNS 19006 b
1

AN ACT concerning transportation.

2

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3
represented in the General Assembly:

4

Section 1.
Short title.
This Act may be cited as the
Safe
5
Autonomous Vehicle (SAVE) Act.

6

Section 5.
Definitions.
As used in this Act:
7

"Automated Driving System" (ADS) means technology
8
installed on a motor vehicle that has the capability, on a
9
part-time or full-time basis, to drive the vehicle without the
10
need for supervision of the driving environment by a human
11
driver or operator, whether or not a human driver or operator
12
is in the vehicle.
13

"Automatic Crash Notification Technology" means a vehicle
14
service integrating wireless communications and vehicle
15
location technology for the purpose of determining the need
16
for or facilitating emergency medical response in the event of
17
a vehicle crash.
18

"Motor Vehicle Manufacturer" means a person who has
19
manufactured and distributed motor vehicles in the United
20
States that are certified to comply with all applicable
21
federal motor vehicle safety standards and that has submitted
22
appropriate manufacturer identification information to the
23
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration under 49 CFR

HB1839
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LRB104 08951 LNS 19006 b
1
part 566. "Motor Vehicle Manufacturer" also means a person
2
who:
3

(1) has manufactured ADS equipped vehicles in the
4

United States that are certified to comply with all
5

applicable federal and state laws;
6

(2) has operated ADS equipped vehicles using a test
7

driver and with an automated driving system on public
8

roads in the United States for at least 1,000,000 miles;
9

and
10

(3) has obtained an instrument of insurance, surety
11

bond, or proof of self-insurance in the amount of at least
12

$10,000,000, and has provided evidence of that insurance,
13

surety bond, or self-insurance to the Department in a form
14

and manner required by the Department.
15

"On-Demand Automated Motor Vehicle Network" means a
16
digital network, software application, or other means to
17
connect passengers to ADS equipped fleet vehicles for
18
transportation between points chosen by the passenger.
19

"Participating Fleet" means those ADS equipped vehicles
20
that are operating on the public roads and highways in a SAVE
21
Project.
22

"SAVE project" means an initiative authorizing eligible
23
Motor Vehicle Manufacturers to make ADS equipped vehicles
24
available to the public for operation on the public roads and
25
highways of this State in a manner to be determined by such
26
Motor Vehicle Manufacturers that is consistent with all of the

HB1839
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LRB104 08951 LNS 19006 b
1
provisions under this Act. Such operation may include, but is
2
not limited to, making an On-Demand Automated Vehicle Network
3
available to the public.
4

"Two-Way Vehicle Communication Technology" means a vehicle
5
service provided through a wireless communication device
6
embedded in a vehicle that enables two-way communication
7
between a vehicle occupant and the vehicle manufacturer.

8

Section 10.
SAVE Project commencement; boundaries and data
9
collection.
10

(a) Commencement.
11

(1) A Motor Vehicle Manufacturer's eligibility to
12

participate in a SAVE project is conditioned solely upon
13

meeting the requirements under Section 15 of this Act.
14

(2) A SAVE Project may be commenced by a Motor Vehicle
15

Manufacturer at any time after it provides notification to
16

the Secretary of State of self-certification under Section
17

15 of this Act. A Motor Vehicle Manufacturer's
18

notification to the Department shall also set forth the
19

geographical boundaries for the SAVE project as described
20

in subsection (b) of this Act.
21

(3) Any Motor Vehicle Manufacturer may engage in
22

multiple SAVE projects under this subsection (a).
23

(b) SAVE project boundaries. A Motor Vehicle Manufacturer
24
shall determine the geographical boundaries for a SAVE
25
project, which may include, but are not limited to, a

HB1839
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LRB104 08951 LNS 19006 b
1
designated area on the public roads or highways of this State,
2
including, but not limited to, a municipality, areas
3
maintained by regional authorities, university campuses,
4
developments catering to senior citizens, or other similar
5
geographic and demographic areas. The public operation of the
6
Participating Fleets shall be confined to the boundaries
7
selected by a Motor Vehicle Manufacturer.
8

(c) Data collection. For the duration of a SAVE project,
9
any participating Motor Vehicle Manufacturer shall maintain
10
incident records and provide periodic summaries to the
11
Department and the National Highway Traffic Safety
12
Administration (NHTSA) related to safety for the Participating
13
Fleet.
14

(d) Disclosure and consent. Individuals participating in
15
any SAVE Project are deemed to consent to the collection of
16
such data while they are in the vehicle and to the later
17
provision of anonymized data summaries to the Department and
18
NHTSA. Prior to the commencement of and during a SAVE Project,
19
any participating Motor Vehicle Manufacturer shall make
20
publicly available a privacy statement disclosing its data
21
handling practices in connection with the applicable
22
Participating Fleet.

23

Section 15.
SAVE project eligibility.
Only Motor Vehicle
24
Manufacturers are eligible to participate in a SAVE Project
25
and they are responsible for the safe operation of the

HB1839
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LRB104 08951 LNS 19006 b
1
Participating Fleet. In order for a Motor Vehicle Manufacturer
2
to be authorized to participate in a SAVE Project, it must
3
self-certify to the conditions set forth below:
4

(a) the Participating Fleet is owned or controlled by the
5
Motor Vehicle Manufacturer and is equipped with the following
6
attributes:
7

(1) Automated Driving Systems;
8

(2) Automatic Crash Notification Technology;
9

(3) a data recording system with capacity to record
10

the ADS system status and other vehicle attributes such as
11

speed, direction, and location at a specified time period
12

determined by the Motor Vehicle Manufacturer prior to a
13

crash; and
14

(4) Two-Way Vehicle Communication Technology;
15

(b) the Participating Fleet complies with all applicable
16
federal and State laws; and
17

(c) subject to Section 20 of this Act, the vehicles in the
18
Participating Fleet are capable of being operated in
19
compliance with applicable traffic and motor vehicle laws of
20
this State.

21

Section 20.
Traffic and motor vehicle laws.
22

(a) When engaged, the ADS shall be considered the driver
23
or operator for purposes of assessing conformance to
24
applicable traffic or motor vehicle laws, and shall be deemed
25
to be validly licensed to operate a motor vehicle under

HB1839
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LRB104 08951 LNS 19006 b
1
Section 6-101 of the Illinois Vehicle Code and Section 15 of
2
the Transportation Network Providers Act; and shall be deemed
3
to satisfy all the applicable requirements to be licensed
4
under the Illinois Vehicle Code and any physical acts required
5
of a driver or operator, including, but not limited to those
6
required under Section 6-112 of the Illinois Vehicle Code. No
7
motor vehicle laws of this State shall be construed as
8
prohibiting an ADS from being the operator or driver of a motor
9
vehicle, and no motor vehicle laws of this State shall be
10
construed as requiring a licensed human driver to operate a
11
vehicle that is being operated by an ADS under this Section.
12

(b) SAVE project vehicles shall be insured by the
13
applicable Motor Vehicle Manufacturer consistent with the
14
Illinois Insurance Code.
15

(c) For a SAVE project in which the ADS is in control of
16
the vehicle, the applicable Motor Vehicle Manufacturer shall
17
assume liability for incidents where the ADS technology is at
18
fault for such incident, but in all cases consistent with
19
existing insurance law and other laws.
20

(d) A Motor Vehicle Manufacturer is immune from any
21
liability for damages that arise out of any modification made
22
by another person to a vehicle manufactured by the Motor
23
Vehicle Manufacturer, or a system or component of the vehicle
24
installed by the manufacturer, or to any ADS or automated
25
technology, without the Motor Vehicle Manufacturer's written
26
consent.

HB1839
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LRB104 08951 LNS 19006 b
1

(e) An ADS installed on a motor vehicle that is equipped
2
with Automatic Crash Notification Technology shall be deemed
3
to be in compliance with all applicable requirements under
4
Article IV of Chapter 11 of the Illinois Vehicle Code if the
5
Automatic Crash Notification Technology allows a
6
representative of the Motor Vehicle Manufacturer to promptly
7
connect with law enforcement to report the crash.
8

(f) The requirements under Section 12-603.1 of the
9
Illinois Vehicle Code shall be the responsibility of and apply
10
only to human occupants of a motor vehicle. The requirements
11
of the Child Passenger Protection Act shall be the
12
responsibility of and apply only to the parent or guardian of
13
the child.
14

(g) The provisions of Section 11-1401 of the Illinois
15
Vehicle Code shall not apply to an ADS installed on a vehicle
16
in a Participating Fleet.
17

(h) Except as otherwise provided in this Act, SAVE
18
Projects are governed exclusively by this Act.

19

Section 25.
Enforcement.
20

(a) Notwithstanding Section 10 of this Act, any person who
21
operates or has operated an ADS-operated vehicle on a public
22
road or highway in this State or another state or territory of
23
the United States without satisfying the applicable
24
eligibility requirements, or in express violation of a statute
25
or regulation requiring a valid driver's license, permit, or

HB1839
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LRB104 08951 LNS 19006 b
1
other applicable form of authority to operate a motor vehicle,
2
shall not operate an ADS-operated vehicle in this state.
3

(b) Evidence.
4

(1) A copy of the citation or other official
5

documentation, notice, or information indicating operation
6

without a valid driver's license, permit, or other
7

applicable form of authority to operate, a motor vehicle
8

shall constitute sufficient evidence to prove violation.
9

(2) A vehicle operating on public roads without a
10

human driver present in the vehicle shall be presumed to
11

be equipped with ADS and subject to the requirements of
12

this Act.
13

(c) Any person who violates subsection (a) of this Section
14
is subject to a fine of $ 10,000.
15

(d) A second or subsequent violation of subsection (a) of
16
this Section is a Class A misdemeanor.

17

Section 30.
Home rule.
The regulation of SAVE projects is
18
the exclusive power and function of the State. A home rule unit
19
may not regulate SAVE projects. This Section is a denial and
20
limitation of home rule powers and functions under subsection
21
(h) of Article VII of the Illinois Constitution.

22

Section 99.
Effective date.
This Act takes effect upon
23
becoming law.

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