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| | 103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
HB1274 Introduced , by Rep. Amy Elik SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
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| 35 ILCS 200/15-170 | | 35 ILCS 200/15-172 | |
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Amends the Property Tax Code. Provides that, for taxable years 2024 and thereafter, the maximum reduction under the senior citizens homestead exemption is $8,000 in all counties (currently, $8,000 in counties with 3,000,000 or more inhabitants and counties that are contiguous to a county of 3,000,000 or more inhabitants and $5,000 in all other counties). Provides that the maximum income limitation for the senior citizens assessment freeze homestead exemption is $75,000 (currently, $65,000). Effective immediately.
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| | A BILL FOR |
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| | HB1274 | | LRB103 04790 HLH 49800 b |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning revenue.
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| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
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| 4 | | Section 5. The Property Tax Code is amended by changing |
| 5 | | Sections 15-170 and 15-172 as follows:
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| 6 | | (35 ILCS 200/15-170) |
| 7 | | Sec. 15-170. Senior citizens homestead exemption. |
| 8 | | (a) An annual homestead
exemption limited, except as |
| 9 | | described here with relation to cooperatives or
life care |
| 10 | | facilities, to a
maximum reduction set forth below from the |
| 11 | | property's value, as equalized or
assessed by the Department, |
| 12 | | is granted for property that is occupied as a
residence by a |
| 13 | | person 65 years of age or older who is liable for paying real
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| 14 | | estate taxes on the property and is an owner of record of the |
| 15 | | property or has a
legal or equitable interest therein as |
| 16 | | evidenced by a written instrument,
except for a leasehold |
| 17 | | interest, other than a leasehold interest of land on
which a |
| 18 | | single family residence is located, which is occupied as a |
| 19 | | residence by
a person 65 years or older who has an ownership |
| 20 | | interest therein, legal,
equitable or as a lessee, and on |
| 21 | | which he or she is liable for the payment
of property taxes. |
| 22 | | Before taxable year 2004, the maximum reduction shall be |
| 23 | | $2,500 in counties with
3,000,000 or more inhabitants and |
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| 1 | | $2,000 in all other counties. For taxable years 2004 through |
| 2 | | 2005, the maximum reduction shall be $3,000 in all counties. |
| 3 | | For taxable years 2006 and 2007, the maximum reduction shall |
| 4 | | be $3,500. For taxable years 2008 through 2011, the maximum |
| 5 | | reduction is $4,000 in all counties.
For taxable year 2012, |
| 6 | | the maximum reduction is $5,000 in counties with
3,000,000 or |
| 7 | | more inhabitants and $4,000 in all other counties. For taxable |
| 8 | | years 2013 through 2016, the maximum reduction is $5,000 in |
| 9 | | all counties. For taxable years 2017 through 2022, the maximum |
| 10 | | reduction is $8,000 in counties with 3,000,000 or more |
| 11 | | inhabitants and $5,000 in all other counties. For taxable year |
| 12 | | years 2023 and thereafter, the maximum reduction is $8,000 in |
| 13 | | counties with 3,000,000 or more inhabitants and counties that |
| 14 | | are contiguous to a county of 3,000,000 or more inhabitants |
| 15 | | and $5,000 in all other counties. For taxable years 2024 and |
| 16 | | thereafter, the maximum reduction is $8,000 in all counties. |
| 17 | | (b) For land
improved with an apartment building owned and |
| 18 | | operated as a cooperative, the maximum reduction from the |
| 19 | | value of the property, as
equalized
by the Department, shall |
| 20 | | be multiplied by the number of apartments or units
occupied by |
| 21 | | a person 65 years of age or older who is liable, by contract |
| 22 | | with
the owner or owners of record, for paying property taxes |
| 23 | | on the property and
is an owner of record of a legal or |
| 24 | | equitable interest in the cooperative
apartment building, |
| 25 | | other than a leasehold interest. For land improved with
a life |
| 26 | | care facility, the maximum reduction from the value of the |
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| 1 | | property, as
equalized by the Department, shall be multiplied |
| 2 | | by the number of apartments or
units occupied by persons 65 |
| 3 | | years of age or older, irrespective of any legal,
equitable, |
| 4 | | or leasehold interest in the facility, who are liable, under a
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| 5 | | contract with the owner or owners of record of the facility, |
| 6 | | for paying
property taxes on the property. In a
cooperative or |
| 7 | | a life care facility where a
homestead exemption has been |
| 8 | | granted, the cooperative association or the
management firm of |
| 9 | | the cooperative or facility shall credit the savings
resulting |
| 10 | | from that exemption only to
the apportioned tax liability of |
| 11 | | the owner or resident who qualified for
the exemption.
Any |
| 12 | | person who willfully refuses to so credit the savings shall be |
| 13 | | guilty of a
Class B misdemeanor. Under this Section and |
| 14 | | Sections 15-175, 15-176, and 15-177, "life care
facility" |
| 15 | | means a facility, as defined in Section 2 of the Life Care |
| 16 | | Facilities
Act, with which the applicant for the homestead |
| 17 | | exemption has a life care
contract as defined in that Act. |
| 18 | | (c) When a homestead exemption has been granted under this |
| 19 | | Section and the person
qualifying subsequently becomes a |
| 20 | | resident of a facility licensed under the Assisted Living and |
| 21 | | Shared Housing Act, the Nursing Home Care Act, the Specialized |
| 22 | | Mental Health Rehabilitation Act of 2013, the ID/DD Community |
| 23 | | Care Act, or the MC/DD Act, the exemption shall continue so |
| 24 | | long as the residence
continues to be occupied by the |
| 25 | | qualifying person's spouse if the spouse is 65
years of age or |
| 26 | | older, or if the residence remains unoccupied but is still
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| 1 | | owned by the person qualified for the homestead exemption. |
| 2 | | (d) A person who will be 65 years of age
during the current |
| 3 | | assessment year
shall
be eligible to apply for the homestead |
| 4 | | exemption during that assessment
year.
Application shall be |
| 5 | | made during the application period in effect for the
county of |
| 6 | | his residence. |
| 7 | | (e) Beginning with assessment year 2003, for taxes payable |
| 8 | | in 2004,
property
that is first occupied as a residence after |
| 9 | | January 1 of any assessment year by
a person who is eligible |
| 10 | | for the senior citizens homestead exemption under this
Section |
| 11 | | must be granted a pro-rata exemption for the assessment year. |
| 12 | | The
amount of the pro-rata exemption is the exemption
allowed |
| 13 | | in the county under this Section divided by 365 and multiplied |
| 14 | | by the
number of days during the assessment year the property |
| 15 | | is occupied as a
residence by a
person eligible for the |
| 16 | | exemption under this Section. The chief county
assessment |
| 17 | | officer must adopt reasonable procedures to establish |
| 18 | | eligibility
for this pro-rata exemption. |
| 19 | | (f) The assessor or chief county assessment officer may |
| 20 | | determine the eligibility
of a life care facility to receive |
| 21 | | the benefits provided by this Section, by
affidavit, |
| 22 | | application, visual inspection, questionnaire or other |
| 23 | | reasonable
methods in order to insure that the tax savings |
| 24 | | resulting from the exemption
are credited by the management |
| 25 | | firm to the apportioned tax liability of each
qualifying |
| 26 | | resident. The assessor may request reasonable proof that the
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| 1 | | management firm has so credited the exemption. |
| 2 | | (g) The chief county assessment officer of each county |
| 3 | | with less than 3,000,000
inhabitants shall provide to each |
| 4 | | person allowed a homestead exemption under
this Section a form |
| 5 | | to designate any other person to receive a
duplicate of any |
| 6 | | notice of delinquency in the payment of taxes assessed and
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| 7 | | levied under this Code on the property of the person receiving |
| 8 | | the exemption.
The duplicate notice shall be in addition to |
| 9 | | the notice required to be
provided to the person receiving the |
| 10 | | exemption, and shall be given in the
manner required by this |
| 11 | | Code. The person filing the request for the duplicate
notice |
| 12 | | shall pay a fee of $5 to cover administrative costs to the |
| 13 | | supervisor of
assessments, who shall then file the executed |
| 14 | | designation with the county
collector. Notwithstanding any |
| 15 | | other provision of this Code to the contrary,
the filing of |
| 16 | | such an executed designation requires the county collector to
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| 17 | | provide duplicate notices as indicated by the designation. A |
| 18 | | designation may
be rescinded by the person who executed such |
| 19 | | designation at any time, in the
manner and form required by the |
| 20 | | chief county assessment officer. |
| 21 | | (h) The assessor or chief county assessment officer may |
| 22 | | determine the
eligibility of residential property to receive |
| 23 | | the homestead exemption provided
by this Section by |
| 24 | | application, visual inspection, questionnaire or other
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| 25 | | reasonable methods. The determination shall be made in |
| 26 | | accordance with
guidelines established by the Department. |
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| 1 | | (i) In counties with 3,000,000 or more inhabitants, for |
| 2 | | taxable years 2010 through 2018, and beginning again in |
| 3 | | taxable year 2024, each taxpayer who has been granted an |
| 4 | | exemption under this Section must reapply on an annual basis. |
| 5 | | If a reapplication is required, then the chief county |
| 6 | | assessment officer shall mail the application to the taxpayer |
| 7 | | at least 60 days prior to the last day of the application |
| 8 | | period for the county. |
| 9 | | For taxable years 2019 through 2023, in counties with |
| 10 | | 3,000,000 or more inhabitants, a taxpayer who has been granted |
| 11 | | an exemption under this Section need not reapply. However, if |
| 12 | | the property ceases to be qualified for the exemption under |
| 13 | | this Section in any year for which a reapplication is not |
| 14 | | required under this Section, then the owner of record of the |
| 15 | | property shall notify the chief county assessment officer that |
| 16 | | the property is no longer qualified. In addition, for taxable |
| 17 | | years 2019 through 2023, the chief county assessment officer |
| 18 | | of a county with 3,000,000 or more inhabitants shall enter |
| 19 | | into an intergovernmental agreement with the county clerk of |
| 20 | | that county and the Department of Public Health, as well as any |
| 21 | | other appropriate governmental agency, to obtain information |
| 22 | | that documents the death of a taxpayer who has been granted an |
| 23 | | exemption under this Section. Notwithstanding any other |
| 24 | | provision of law, the county clerk and the Department of |
| 25 | | Public Health shall provide that information to the chief |
| 26 | | county assessment officer. The Department of Public Health |
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| 1 | | shall supply this information no less frequently than every |
| 2 | | calendar quarter. Information concerning the death of a |
| 3 | | taxpayer may be shared with the county treasurer. The chief |
| 4 | | county assessment officer shall also enter into a data |
| 5 | | exchange agreement with the Social Security Administration or |
| 6 | | its agent to obtain access to the information regarding deaths |
| 7 | | in possession of the Social Security Administration. The chief |
| 8 | | county assessment officer shall, subject to the notice |
| 9 | | requirements under subsection (m) of Section 9-275, terminate |
| 10 | | the exemption under this Section if the information obtained |
| 11 | | indicates that the property is no longer qualified for the |
| 12 | | exemption. In counties with 3,000,000 or more inhabitants, the |
| 13 | | assessor and the county recorder of deeds shall establish |
| 14 | | policies and practices for the regular exchange of information |
| 15 | | for the purpose of alerting the assessor whenever the transfer |
| 16 | | of ownership of any property receiving an exemption under this |
| 17 | | Section has occurred. When such a transfer occurs, the |
| 18 | | assessor shall mail a notice to the new owner of the property |
| 19 | | (i) informing the new owner that the exemption will remain in |
| 20 | | place through the year of the transfer, after which it will be |
| 21 | | canceled, and (ii) providing information pertaining to the |
| 22 | | rules for reapplying for the exemption if the owner qualifies. |
| 23 | | In counties with 3,000,000 or more inhabitants, the chief |
| 24 | | county assessment official shall conduct audits of all |
| 25 | | exemptions granted under this Section no later than December |
| 26 | | 31, 2022 and no later than December 31, 2024. The audit shall |
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| 1 | | be designed to ascertain whether any senior homestead |
| 2 | | exemptions have been granted erroneously. If it is determined |
| 3 | | that a senior homestead exemption has been erroneously applied |
| 4 | | to a property, the chief county assessment officer shall make |
| 5 | | use of the appropriate provisions of Section 9-275 in relation |
| 6 | | to the property that received the erroneous homestead |
| 7 | | exemption. |
| 8 | | (j) In counties with less than 3,000,000 inhabitants, the |
| 9 | | county board may by
resolution provide that if a person has |
| 10 | | been granted a homestead exemption
under this Section, the |
| 11 | | person qualifying need not reapply for the exemption. |
| 12 | | In counties with less than 3,000,000 inhabitants, if the |
| 13 | | assessor or chief
county assessment officer requires annual |
| 14 | | application for verification of
eligibility for an exemption |
| 15 | | once granted under this Section, the application
shall be |
| 16 | | mailed to the taxpayer. |
| 17 | | (l) The assessor or chief county assessment officer shall |
| 18 | | notify each person
who qualifies for an exemption under this |
| 19 | | Section that the person may also
qualify for deferral of real |
| 20 | | estate taxes under the Senior Citizens Real Estate
Tax |
| 21 | | Deferral Act. The notice shall set forth the qualifications |
| 22 | | needed for
deferral of real estate taxes, the address and |
| 23 | | telephone number of
county collector, and a
statement that |
| 24 | | applications for deferral of real estate taxes may be obtained
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| 25 | | from the county collector. |
| 26 | | (m) Notwithstanding Sections 6 and 8 of the State Mandates |
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| 1 | | Act, no
reimbursement by the State is required for the |
| 2 | | implementation of any mandate
created by this Section. |
| 3 | | (Source: P.A. 101-453, eff. 8-23-19; 101-622, eff. 1-14-20; |
| 4 | | 102-895, eff. 5-23-22.)
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| 5 | | (35 ILCS 200/15-172)
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| 6 | | Sec. 15-172. Low-Income Senior Citizens Assessment Freeze |
| 7 | | Homestead Exemption.
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| 8 | | (a) This Section may be cited as the Low-Income Senior |
| 9 | | Citizens Assessment
Freeze Homestead Exemption.
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| 10 | | (b) As used in this Section:
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| 11 | | "Applicant" means an individual who has filed an |
| 12 | | application under this
Section.
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| 13 | | "Base amount" means the base year equalized assessed value |
| 14 | | of the residence
plus the first year's equalized assessed |
| 15 | | value of any added improvements which
increased the assessed |
| 16 | | value of the residence after the base year.
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| 17 | | "Base year" means the taxable year prior to the taxable |
| 18 | | year for which the
applicant first qualifies and applies for |
| 19 | | the exemption provided that in the
prior taxable year the |
| 20 | | property was improved with a permanent structure that
was |
| 21 | | occupied as a residence by the applicant who was liable for |
| 22 | | paying real
property taxes on the property and who was either |
| 23 | | (i) an owner of record of the
property or had legal or |
| 24 | | equitable interest in the property as evidenced by a
written |
| 25 | | instrument or (ii) had a legal or equitable interest as a |
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| 1 | | lessee in the
parcel of property that was single family |
| 2 | | residence.
If in any subsequent taxable year for which the |
| 3 | | applicant applies and
qualifies for the exemption the |
| 4 | | equalized assessed value of the residence is
less than the |
| 5 | | equalized assessed value in the existing base year
(provided |
| 6 | | that such equalized assessed value is not
based
on an
assessed |
| 7 | | value that results from a temporary irregularity in the |
| 8 | | property that
reduces the
assessed value for one or more |
| 9 | | taxable years), then that
subsequent taxable year shall become |
| 10 | | the base year until a new base year is
established under the |
| 11 | | terms of this paragraph. For taxable year 1999 only, the
Chief |
| 12 | | County Assessment Officer shall review (i) all taxable years |
| 13 | | for which
the
applicant applied and qualified for the |
| 14 | | exemption and (ii) the existing base
year.
The assessment |
| 15 | | officer shall select as the new base year the year with the
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| 16 | | lowest equalized assessed value.
An equalized assessed value |
| 17 | | that is based on an assessed value that results
from a
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| 18 | | temporary irregularity in the property that reduces the |
| 19 | | assessed value for one
or more
taxable years shall not be |
| 20 | | considered the lowest equalized assessed value.
The selected |
| 21 | | year shall be the base year for
taxable year 1999 and |
| 22 | | thereafter until a new base year is established under the
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| 23 | | terms of this paragraph.
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| 24 | | "Chief County Assessment Officer" means the County |
| 25 | | Assessor or Supervisor of
Assessments of the county in which |
| 26 | | the property is located.
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| 1 | | "Equalized assessed value" means the assessed value as |
| 2 | | equalized by the
Illinois Department of Revenue.
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| 3 | | "Household" means the applicant, the spouse of the |
| 4 | | applicant, and all persons
using the residence of the |
| 5 | | applicant as their principal place of residence.
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| 6 | | "Household income" means the combined income of the |
| 7 | | members of a household
for the calendar year preceding the |
| 8 | | taxable year.
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| 9 | | "Income" has the same meaning as provided in Section 3.07 |
| 10 | | of the Senior
Citizens and Persons with Disabilities Property |
| 11 | | Tax Relief
Act, except that, beginning in assessment year |
| 12 | | 2001, "income" does not
include veteran's benefits.
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| 13 | | "Internal Revenue Code of 1986" means the United States |
| 14 | | Internal Revenue Code
of 1986 or any successor law or laws |
| 15 | | relating to federal income taxes in effect
for the year |
| 16 | | preceding the taxable year.
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| 17 | | "Life care facility that qualifies as a cooperative" means |
| 18 | | a facility as
defined in Section 2 of the Life Care Facilities |
| 19 | | Act.
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| 20 | | "Maximum income limitation" means: |
| 21 | | (1) $35,000 prior
to taxable year 1999; |
| 22 | | (2) $40,000 in taxable years 1999 through 2003; |
| 23 | | (3) $45,000 in taxable years 2004 through 2005; |
| 24 | | (4) $50,000 in taxable years 2006 and 2007; |
| 25 | | (5) $55,000 in taxable years 2008 through 2016;
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| 26 | | (6) for taxable year 2017, (i) $65,000 for qualified |
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| 1 | | property located in a county with 3,000,000 or more |
| 2 | | inhabitants and (ii) $55,000 for qualified property |
| 3 | | located in a county with fewer than 3,000,000 inhabitants; |
| 4 | | and |
| 5 | | (7) for taxable years 2018 through 2023 and |
| 6 | | thereafter, $65,000 for all qualified property; and . |
| 7 | | (8) for taxable years 2024 and thereafter, $75,000 for
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| 8 | | all qualified property. |
| 9 | | As an alternative income valuation, a homeowner who is |
| 10 | | enrolled in any of the following programs may be presumed to |
| 11 | | have household income that does not exceed the maximum income |
| 12 | | limitation for that tax year as required by this Section: Aid |
| 13 | | to the Aged, Blind or Disabled (AABD) Program or the |
| 14 | | Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), both of |
| 15 | | which are administered by the Department of Human Services; |
| 16 | | the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which |
| 17 | | is administered by the Department of Commerce and Economic |
| 18 | | Opportunity; The Benefit Access program, which is administered |
| 19 | | by the Department on Aging; and the Senior Citizens Real |
| 20 | | Estate Tax Deferral Program. |
| 21 | | A chief county assessment officer may indicate that he or |
| 22 | | she has verified an applicant's income eligibility for this |
| 23 | | exemption but may not report which program or programs, if |
| 24 | | any, enroll the applicant. Release of personal information |
| 25 | | submitted pursuant to this Section shall be deemed an |
| 26 | | unwarranted invasion of personal privacy under the Freedom of |
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| 1 | | Information Act. |
| 2 | | "Residence" means the principal dwelling place and |
| 3 | | appurtenant structures
used for residential purposes in this |
| 4 | | State occupied on January 1 of the
taxable year by a household |
| 5 | | and so much of the surrounding land, constituting
the parcel |
| 6 | | upon which the dwelling place is situated, as is used for
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| 7 | | residential purposes. If the Chief County Assessment Officer |
| 8 | | has established a
specific legal description for a portion of |
| 9 | | property constituting the
residence, then that portion of |
| 10 | | property shall be deemed the residence for the
purposes of |
| 11 | | this Section.
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| 12 | | "Taxable year" means the calendar year during which ad |
| 13 | | valorem property taxes
payable in the next succeeding year are |
| 14 | | levied.
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| 15 | | (c) Beginning in taxable year 1994, a low-income senior |
| 16 | | citizens assessment freeze
homestead exemption is granted for |
| 17 | | real property that is improved with a
permanent structure that |
| 18 | | is occupied as a residence by an applicant who (i) is
65 years |
| 19 | | of age or older during the taxable year, (ii) has a household |
| 20 | | income that does not exceed the maximum income limitation, |
| 21 | | (iii) is liable for paying real property taxes on
the
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| 22 | | property, and (iv) is an owner of record of the property or has |
| 23 | | a legal or
equitable interest in the property as evidenced by a |
| 24 | | written instrument. This
homestead exemption shall also apply |
| 25 | | to a leasehold interest in a parcel of
property improved with a |
| 26 | | permanent structure that is a single family residence
that is |
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| 1 | | occupied as a residence by a person who (i) is 65 years of age |
| 2 | | or older
during the taxable year, (ii) has a household income |
| 3 | | that does not exceed the maximum income limitation,
(iii)
has |
| 4 | | a legal or equitable ownership interest in the property as |
| 5 | | lessee, and (iv)
is liable for the payment of real property |
| 6 | | taxes on that property.
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| 7 | | In counties of 3,000,000 or more inhabitants, the amount |
| 8 | | of the exemption for all taxable years is the equalized |
| 9 | | assessed value of the
residence in the taxable year for which |
| 10 | | application is made minus the base
amount. In all other |
| 11 | | counties, the amount of the exemption is as follows: (i) |
| 12 | | through taxable year 2005 and for taxable year 2007 and |
| 13 | | thereafter, the amount of this exemption shall be the |
| 14 | | equalized assessed value of the
residence in the taxable year |
| 15 | | for which application is made minus the base
amount; and (ii) |
| 16 | | for
taxable year 2006, the amount of the exemption is as |
| 17 | | follows:
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| 18 | | (1) For an applicant who has a household income of |
| 19 | | $45,000 or less, the amount of the exemption is the |
| 20 | | equalized assessed value of the
residence in the taxable |
| 21 | | year for which application is made minus the base
amount. |
| 22 | | (2) For an applicant who has a household income |
| 23 | | exceeding $45,000 but not exceeding $46,250, the amount of |
| 24 | | the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
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| 25 | | residence in the taxable year for which application is |
| 26 | | made minus the base
amount (ii) multiplied by 0.8. |
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| 1 | | (3) For an applicant who has a household income |
| 2 | | exceeding $46,250 but not exceeding $47,500, the amount of |
| 3 | | the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
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| 4 | | residence in the taxable year for which application is |
| 5 | | made minus the base
amount (ii) multiplied by 0.6. |
| 6 | | (4) For an applicant who has a household income |
| 7 | | exceeding $47,500 but not exceeding $48,750, the amount of |
| 8 | | the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
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| 9 | | residence in the taxable year for which application is |
| 10 | | made minus the base
amount (ii) multiplied by 0.4. |
| 11 | | (5) For an applicant who has a household income |
| 12 | | exceeding $48,750 but not exceeding $50,000, the amount of |
| 13 | | the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
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| 14 | | residence in the taxable year for which application is |
| 15 | | made minus the base
amount (ii) multiplied by 0.2.
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| 16 | | When the applicant is a surviving spouse of an applicant |
| 17 | | for a prior year for
the same residence for which an exemption |
| 18 | | under this Section has been granted,
the base year and base |
| 19 | | amount for that residence are the same as for the
applicant for |
| 20 | | the prior year.
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| 21 | | Each year at the time the assessment books are certified |
| 22 | | to the County Clerk,
the Board of Review or Board of Appeals |
| 23 | | shall give to the County Clerk a list
of the assessed values of |
| 24 | | improvements on each parcel qualifying for this
exemption that |
| 25 | | were added after the base year for this parcel and that
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| 26 | | increased the assessed value of the property.
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| 1 | | In the case of land improved with an apartment building |
| 2 | | owned and operated as
a cooperative or a building that is a |
| 3 | | life care facility that qualifies as a
cooperative, the |
| 4 | | maximum reduction from the equalized assessed value of the
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| 5 | | property is limited to the sum of the reductions calculated |
| 6 | | for each unit
occupied as a residence by a person or persons |
| 7 | | (i) 65 years of age or older, (ii) with a
household income that |
| 8 | | does not exceed the maximum income limitation, (iii) who is |
| 9 | | liable, by contract with the
owner
or owners of record, for |
| 10 | | paying real property taxes on the property, and (iv) who is
an |
| 11 | | owner of record of a legal or equitable interest in the |
| 12 | | cooperative
apartment building, other than a leasehold |
| 13 | | interest. In the instance of a
cooperative where a homestead |
| 14 | | exemption has been granted under this Section,
the cooperative |
| 15 | | association or its management firm shall credit the savings
|
| 16 | | resulting from that exemption only to the apportioned tax |
| 17 | | liability of the
owner who qualified for the exemption. Any |
| 18 | | person who willfully refuses to
credit that savings to an |
| 19 | | owner who qualifies for the exemption is guilty of a
Class B |
| 20 | | misdemeanor.
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| 21 | | When a homestead exemption has been granted under this |
| 22 | | Section and an
applicant then becomes a resident of a facility |
| 23 | | licensed under the Assisted Living and Shared Housing Act, the |
| 24 | | Nursing Home
Care Act, the Specialized Mental Health |
| 25 | | Rehabilitation Act of 2013, the ID/DD Community Care Act, or |
| 26 | | the MC/DD Act, the exemption shall be granted in subsequent |
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| 1 | | years so long as the
residence (i) continues to be occupied by |
| 2 | | the qualified applicant's spouse or
(ii) if remaining |
| 3 | | unoccupied, is still owned by the qualified applicant for the
|
| 4 | | homestead exemption.
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| 5 | | Beginning January 1, 1997, when an individual dies who |
| 6 | | would have qualified
for an exemption under this Section, and |
| 7 | | the surviving spouse does not
independently qualify for this |
| 8 | | exemption because of age, the exemption under
this Section |
| 9 | | shall be granted to the surviving spouse for the taxable year
|
| 10 | | preceding and the taxable
year of the death, provided that, |
| 11 | | except for age, the surviving spouse meets
all
other |
| 12 | | qualifications for the granting of this exemption for those |
| 13 | | years.
|
| 14 | | When married persons maintain separate residences, the |
| 15 | | exemption provided for
in this Section may be claimed by only |
| 16 | | one of such persons and for only one
residence.
|
| 17 | | For taxable year 1994 only, in counties having less than |
| 18 | | 3,000,000
inhabitants, to receive the exemption, a person |
| 19 | | shall submit an application by
February 15, 1995 to the Chief |
| 20 | | County Assessment Officer
of the county in which the property |
| 21 | | is located. In counties having 3,000,000
or more inhabitants, |
| 22 | | for taxable year 1994 and all subsequent taxable years, to
|
| 23 | | receive the exemption, a person
may submit an application to |
| 24 | | the Chief County
Assessment Officer of the county in which the |
| 25 | | property is located during such
period as may be specified by |
| 26 | | the Chief County Assessment Officer. The Chief
County |
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| 1 | | Assessment Officer in counties of 3,000,000 or more |
| 2 | | inhabitants shall
annually give notice of the application |
| 3 | | period by mail or by publication. In
counties having less than |
| 4 | | 3,000,000 inhabitants, beginning with taxable year
1995 and |
| 5 | | thereafter, to receive the exemption, a person
shall
submit an
|
| 6 | | application by July 1 of each taxable year to the Chief County |
| 7 | | Assessment
Officer of the county in which the property is |
| 8 | | located. A county may, by
ordinance, establish a date for |
| 9 | | submission of applications that is
different than
July 1.
The |
| 10 | | applicant shall submit with the
application an affidavit of |
| 11 | | the applicant's total household income, age,
marital status |
| 12 | | (and if married the name and address of the applicant's |
| 13 | | spouse,
if known), and principal dwelling place of members of |
| 14 | | the household on January
1 of the taxable year. The Department |
| 15 | | shall establish, by rule, a method for
verifying the accuracy |
| 16 | | of affidavits filed by applicants under this Section, and the |
| 17 | | Chief County Assessment Officer may conduct audits of any |
| 18 | | taxpayer claiming an exemption under this Section to verify |
| 19 | | that the taxpayer is eligible to receive the exemption. Each |
| 20 | | application shall contain or be verified by a written |
| 21 | | declaration that it is made under the penalties of perjury. A |
| 22 | | taxpayer's signing a fraudulent application under this Act is |
| 23 | | perjury, as defined in Section 32-2 of the Criminal Code of |
| 24 | | 2012.
The applications shall be clearly marked as applications |
| 25 | | for the Low-Income Senior
Citizens Assessment Freeze Homestead |
| 26 | | Exemption and must contain a notice that any taxpayer who |
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| 1 | | receives the exemption is subject to an audit by the Chief |
| 2 | | County Assessment Officer.
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| 3 | | Notwithstanding any other provision to the contrary, in |
| 4 | | counties having fewer
than 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an |
| 5 | | applicant fails
to file the application required by this |
| 6 | | Section in a timely manner and this
failure to file is due to a |
| 7 | | mental or physical condition sufficiently severe so
as to |
| 8 | | render the applicant incapable of filing the application in a |
| 9 | | timely
manner, the Chief County Assessment Officer may extend |
| 10 | | the filing deadline for
a period of 30 days after the applicant |
| 11 | | regains the capability to file the
application, but in no case |
| 12 | | may the filing deadline be extended beyond 3
months of the |
| 13 | | original filing deadline. In order to receive the extension
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| 14 | | provided in this paragraph, the applicant shall provide the |
| 15 | | Chief County
Assessment Officer with a signed statement from |
| 16 | | the applicant's physician, advanced practice registered nurse, |
| 17 | | or physician assistant
stating the nature and extent of the |
| 18 | | condition, that, in the
physician's, advanced practice |
| 19 | | registered nurse's, or physician assistant's opinion, the |
| 20 | | condition was so severe that it rendered the applicant
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| 21 | | incapable of filing the application in a timely manner, and |
| 22 | | the date on which
the applicant regained the capability to |
| 23 | | file the application.
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| 24 | | Beginning January 1, 1998, notwithstanding any other |
| 25 | | provision to the
contrary, in counties having fewer than |
| 26 | | 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an applicant
fails to file the |
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| 1 | | application required by this Section in a timely manner and
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| 2 | | this failure to file is due to a mental or physical condition |
| 3 | | sufficiently
severe so as to render the applicant incapable of |
| 4 | | filing the application in a
timely manner, the Chief County |
| 5 | | Assessment Officer may extend the filing
deadline for a period |
| 6 | | of 3 months. In order to receive the extension provided
in this |
| 7 | | paragraph, the applicant shall provide the Chief County |
| 8 | | Assessment
Officer with a signed statement from the |
| 9 | | applicant's physician, advanced practice registered nurse, or |
| 10 | | physician assistant stating the
nature and extent of the |
| 11 | | condition, and that, in the physician's, advanced practice |
| 12 | | registered nurse's, or physician assistant's opinion, the
|
| 13 | | condition was so severe that it rendered the applicant |
| 14 | | incapable of filing the
application in a timely manner.
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| 15 | | In counties having less than 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an |
| 16 | | applicant was
denied an exemption in taxable year 1994 and the |
| 17 | | denial occurred due to an
error on the part of an assessment
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| 18 | | official, or his or her agent or employee, then beginning in |
| 19 | | taxable year 1997
the
applicant's base year, for purposes of |
| 20 | | determining the amount of the exemption,
shall be 1993 rather |
| 21 | | than 1994. In addition, in taxable year 1997, the
applicant's |
| 22 | | exemption shall also include an amount equal to (i) the amount |
| 23 | | of
any exemption denied to the applicant in taxable year 1995 |
| 24 | | as a result of using
1994, rather than 1993, as the base year, |
| 25 | | (ii) the amount of any exemption
denied to the applicant in |
| 26 | | taxable year 1996 as a result of using 1994, rather
than 1993, |
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| 1 | | as the base year, and (iii) the amount of the exemption |
| 2 | | erroneously
denied for taxable year 1994.
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| 3 | | For purposes of this Section, a person who will be 65 years |
| 4 | | of age during the
current taxable year shall be eligible to |
| 5 | | apply for the homestead exemption
during that taxable year. |
| 6 | | Application shall be made during the application
period in |
| 7 | | effect for the county of his or her residence.
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| 8 | | The Chief County Assessment Officer may determine the |
| 9 | | eligibility of a life
care facility that qualifies as a |
| 10 | | cooperative to receive the benefits
provided by this Section |
| 11 | | by use of an affidavit, application, visual
inspection, |
| 12 | | questionnaire, or other reasonable method in order to insure |
| 13 | | that
the tax savings resulting from the exemption are credited |
| 14 | | by the management
firm to the apportioned tax liability of |
| 15 | | each qualifying resident. The Chief
County Assessment Officer |
| 16 | | may request reasonable proof that the management firm
has so |
| 17 | | credited that exemption.
|
| 18 | | Except as provided in this Section, all information |
| 19 | | received by the chief
county assessment officer or the |
| 20 | | Department from applications filed under this
Section, or from |
| 21 | | any investigation conducted under the provisions of this
|
| 22 | | Section, shall be confidential, except for official purposes |
| 23 | | or
pursuant to official procedures for collection of any State |
| 24 | | or local tax or
enforcement of any civil or criminal penalty or |
| 25 | | sanction imposed by this Act or
by any statute or ordinance |
| 26 | | imposing a State or local tax. Any person who
divulges any such |
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| 1 | | information in any manner, except in accordance with a proper
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| 2 | | judicial order, is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
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| 3 | | Nothing contained in this Section shall prevent the |
| 4 | | Director or chief county
assessment officer from publishing or |
| 5 | | making available reasonable statistics
concerning the |
| 6 | | operation of the exemption contained in this Section in which
|
| 7 | | the contents of claims are grouped into aggregates in such a |
| 8 | | way that
information contained in any individual claim shall |
| 9 | | not be disclosed. |
| 10 | | Notwithstanding any other provision of law, for taxable |
| 11 | | year 2017 and thereafter, in counties of 3,000,000 or more |
| 12 | | inhabitants, the amount of the exemption shall be the greater |
| 13 | | of (i) the amount of the exemption otherwise calculated under |
| 14 | | this Section or (ii) $2,000.
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| 15 | | (c-5) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, each |
| 16 | | chief county assessment officer may approve this exemption for |
| 17 | | the 2020 taxable year, without application, for any property |
| 18 | | that was approved for this exemption for the 2019 taxable |
| 19 | | year, provided that: |
| 20 | | (1) the county board has declared a local disaster as |
| 21 | | provided in the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act |
| 22 | | related to the COVID-19 public health emergency; |
| 23 | | (2) the owner of record of the property as of January |
| 24 | | 1, 2020 is the same as the owner of record of the property |
| 25 | | as of January 1, 2019; |
| 26 | | (3) the exemption for the 2019 taxable year has not |
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| 1 | | been determined to be an erroneous exemption as defined by |
| 2 | | this Code; and |
| 3 | | (4) the applicant for the 2019 taxable year has not |
| 4 | | asked for the exemption to be removed for the 2019 or 2020 |
| 5 | | taxable years. |
| 6 | | Nothing in this subsection shall preclude or impair the |
| 7 | | authority of a chief county assessment officer to conduct |
| 8 | | audits of any taxpayer claiming an exemption under this |
| 9 | | Section to verify that the taxpayer is eligible to receive the |
| 10 | | exemption as provided elsewhere in this Section. |
| 11 | | (c-10) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, each |
| 12 | | chief county assessment officer may approve this exemption for |
| 13 | | the 2021 taxable year, without application, for any property |
| 14 | | that was approved for this exemption for the 2020 taxable |
| 15 | | year, if: |
| 16 | | (1) the county board has declared a local disaster as |
| 17 | | provided in the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act |
| 18 | | related to the COVID-19 public health emergency; |
| 19 | | (2) the owner of record of the property as of January |
| 20 | | 1, 2021 is the same as the owner of record of the property |
| 21 | | as of January 1, 2020; |
| 22 | | (3) the exemption for the 2020 taxable year has not |
| 23 | | been determined to be an erroneous exemption as defined by |
| 24 | | this Code; and |
| 25 | | (4) the taxpayer for the 2020 taxable year has not |
| 26 | | asked for the exemption to be removed for the 2020 or 2021 |
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| 1 | | taxable years. |
| 2 | | Nothing in this subsection shall preclude or impair the |
| 3 | | authority of a chief county assessment officer to conduct |
| 4 | | audits of any taxpayer claiming an exemption under this |
| 5 | | Section to verify that the taxpayer is eligible to receive the |
| 6 | | exemption as provided elsewhere in this Section. |
| 7 | | (d) Each Chief County Assessment Officer shall annually |
| 8 | | publish a notice
of availability of the exemption provided |
| 9 | | under this Section. The notice
shall be published at least 60 |
| 10 | | days but no more than 75 days prior to the date
on which the |
| 11 | | application must be submitted to the Chief County Assessment
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| 12 | | Officer of the county in which the property is located. The |
| 13 | | notice shall
appear in a newspaper of general circulation in |
| 14 | | the county.
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| 15 | | Notwithstanding Sections 6 and 8 of the State Mandates |
| 16 | | Act, no reimbursement by the State is required for the |
| 17 | | implementation of any mandate created by this Section.
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| 18 | | (Source: P.A. 101-635, eff. 6-5-20; 102-136, eff. 7-23-21; |
| 19 | | 102-895, eff. 5-23-22.)
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| 20 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon |
| 21 | | becoming law.
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