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| Public Act 097-0481
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| HB1518 Enrolled | LRB097 06549 HLH 46633 b |
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AN ACT concerning revenue.
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Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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represented in the General Assembly:
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Section 3. The Property Tax Code is amended by changing |
Sections 11-85 and 11-90 and by adding Section 11-80.1 as |
follows:
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(35 ILCS 200/11-80.1 new) |
Sec. 11-80.1. High-speed passenger rail project. Due to the |
importance of developing high-speed or faster rail service, the |
General Assembly finds that it should encourage freight |
railroad owners to participate in State and federal government |
programs, including cooperative agreements designed to |
increase the speed of passenger rail service, that |
participation in those programs should not result in increased |
property taxes, and that such an increase in property taxes |
could negatively impact the participation in those programs. |
Therefore, the Department shall take into consideration any |
potential increase in a property's overall valuation that is |
directly attributable to the investment, improvement, |
replacement, or expansion of railroad operating property on or |
after January 1, 2010, through State or federal government |
programs, including cooperative agreements, necessary for |
higher speed passenger rail transportation. Any such increase |
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in the property's overall valuation that is directly |
attributable to the investment, improvement, replacement, or |
expansion of railroad operating property on or after January 1, |
2010, through State or federal government programs necessary |
for higher speed passenger rail transportation, including |
cooperative agreements, shall be excluded from the valuation of |
its real property improvements under Section 11-80. This |
Section applies on and after the effective date of this |
amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly and through |
December 31, 2019.
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(35 ILCS 200/11-85)
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Sec. 11-85. Property schedules. Every railroad company |
shall, on or before
June 1 of each year, when required, make |
out and file with the Department a
statement or schedule |
showing the property held for right of way, whether
owned, |
leased, or operated under trackage right agreement, and the |
length of
the first, second, third and other main and all side |
tracks and turnouts, and
the number of acres of right of way in |
each county of this State and in each
taxing district of this |
State, through or into which the road may run. It shall
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describe all improvements and stations located on the right of |
way, giving the
quantity, quality, character and original cost |
of each. It shall also report
all non-operating personalty |
owned or controlled by the company on January 1,
giving the |
quantity, quality, character and location of the same. The |
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report shall also include any potential increase in the |
property's overall valuation that is directly attributable to |
the investment, improvement, replacement, or expansion of |
railroad operating property on or after January 1, 2010, |
through State or federal governmental programs, including |
cooperative agreements, necessary for higher speed passenger |
rail transportation through December 31, 2019. New companies
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shall make the statement on or before the June 1 after the |
location of their
road.
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When the statement has once been made, it is not necessary |
to report the
description as required above unless directed to |
do so by the Department, but
the company shall, on or before |
June 1, annually, report all additions or
changes in its |
property in this State as have occurred.
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The return required by this Section should be made by the |
using company, but
all property which is operated under one |
control shall be returned as provided
in this Section.
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(Source: P.A. 86-905; 88-455.)
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(35 ILCS 200/11-90)
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Sec. 11-90. Information schedules. Each year every |
railroad company in this
State shall return to the Department, |
in addition to any other information
required by this Code, |
sworn statements or schedules as follows:
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(a) The amount of capital stock authorized and the |
total number of
shares of capital stock.
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(b) The amount of capital stock issued and outstanding.
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(c) The market value, or if no market value then the |
estimated
value, of the shares of stock outstanding.
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(d) The total amount of all bonds outstanding and all |
other
indebtedness.
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(e) The market value, or if no market value then the |
estimated
value, of all bonds outstanding and all other |
indebtedness.
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(f) A statement in detail of the entire gross receipts |
and net
earnings of the company during the 5 calendar years |
preceding the
assessment date within this State, and of the |
entire system from all
sources.
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(g) The length of the first, second, third and other |
main tracks and
all side tracks and turnouts showing the |
proportions within this State and
elsewhere.
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(h) The reproduction cost of the property within |
Illinois and the
total reproduction cost of all property of |
the company. The
reproduction cost, so far as applicable, |
shall be as last determined by
the United States Interstate |
Commerce Commission, or other competent
authority, plus |
additions and betterments, less retirements and
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depreciation to the December 31 preceding the assessment |
date.
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(i) An enumeration and classification of all rolling |
stock and
car equipment owned or leased by the company. The |
classification shall show
type of equipment and |
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circumstances of ownership and use. The enumeration
shall |
include rolling stock used over the track of other |
companies under any
trackage right agreement. All other |
property used in connection with a trackage
right agreement |
shall be listed.
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(j) Any other information the Department may require to |
determine the
fair cash value of the property of any |
railroad company, or necessary to carry
out the provisions |
of this Code, including information pertaining to any |
potential increases in the property's overall valuation |
that is directly attributable to the investment, |
improvement, replacement, or expansion of railroad |
operating property on or after January 1, 2010, through |
State or federal governmental programs, including |
cooperative agreements, necessary for higher speed |
passenger rail transportation through December 31, 2019.
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Such statements or schedules shall conform to the |
instructions and forms
prescribed by the Department.
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In cases where a railroad company uses property owned by |
another, the return
shall be made by the using company and all |
property operated under one control
shall be returned as |
provided above.
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(Source: P.A. 86-905; 88-455.)
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Section 5. The Senior Citizens Real Estate Tax Deferral Act |
is amended by changing Sections 2 and 3 as follows:
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(320 ILCS 30/2) (from Ch. 67 1/2, par. 452)
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Sec. 2. Definitions. As used in this Act:
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(a) "Taxpayer" means an individual whose household income |
for the year
is no greater than: (i) $40,000 through tax year |
2005; and (ii) $50,000 for tax years year 2006 through 2011; |
and (iii) $55,000 for tax year 2012 and thereafter.
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(b) "Tax deferred property" means the property upon which |
real
estate taxes are deferred under this Act.
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(c) "Homestead" means the land and buildings thereon, |
including a
condominium or a dwelling unit in a multidwelling |
building that is owned and
operated as a cooperative, occupied |
by the taxpayer as his residence or which
are temporarily |
unoccupied by the taxpayer because such taxpayer is temporarily
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residing, for not more than 1 year, in a licensed facility as |
defined in
Section 1-113 of the Nursing Home Care Act.
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(d) "Real estate taxes" or "taxes" means the taxes on real |
property for
which the taxpayer would be liable under the |
Property Tax Code, including special service area taxes, and |
special assessments on
benefited real property for which the |
taxpayer would be liable to a unit of
local government.
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(e) "Department" means the Department of Revenue.
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(f) "Qualifying property" means a homestead which (a) the |
taxpayer or the
taxpayer and his spouse own in fee simple or |
are purchasing in fee simple under
a recorded instrument of |
sale, (b) is not income-producing property, (c) is not
subject |
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to a lien for unpaid real estate taxes when a claim under this |
Act is
filed, and (d) is not held in trust, other than an |
Illinois land trust with the taxpayer identified as the sole |
beneficiary, if the taxpayer is filing for the program for the |
first time effective as of the January 1, 2011 assessment year |
or tax year 2012 and thereafter.
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(g) "Equity interest" means the current assessed valuation |
of the qualified
property times the fraction necessary to |
convert that figure to full market
value minus any outstanding |
debts or liens on that property. In the case of
qualifying |
property not having a separate assessed valuation, the |
appraised
value as determined by a qualified real estate |
appraiser shall be used instead
of the current assessed |
valuation.
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(h) "Household income" has the meaning ascribed to that |
term in the Senior
Citizens and Disabled Persons Property Tax |
Relief and Pharmaceutical Assistance
Act.
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(i) "Collector" means the county collector or, if the taxes |
to be deferred
are special assessments, an official designated |
by a unit of local government
to collect special assessments.
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(Source: P.A. 94-794, eff. 5-22-06.)
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(320 ILCS 30/3) (from Ch. 67 1/2, par. 453)
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Sec. 3.
A taxpayer may, on or before March 1 of each year,
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apply to the county collector of the county where his |
qualifying
property is located, or to the official designated |
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by a unit of local
government to collect special assessments on |
the qualifying property, as the
case may be, for a deferral of |
all or a part of real estate taxes payable
during that year for |
the preceding year in the case of real estate taxes
other than |
special assessments, or for a deferral of any installments |
payable
during that year in the case of special assessments, on |
all or part of his
qualifying property. The application shall |
be on a form prescribed by the
Department and furnished by the |
collector,
(a) showing that the applicant
will be 65 years of |
age or older by June 1 of the year for which a tax
deferral is |
claimed, (b) describing the property and verifying that the
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property is qualifying property as defined in Section 2, (c) |
certifying
that the taxpayer has owned and occupied as his |
residence such
property or other qualifying property in the |
State for at least the last 3
years except for any periods |
during which the taxpayer may have temporarily
resided in a |
nursing or sheltered care home, and (d) specifying whether
the |
deferral is for all or a part of the taxes, and, if for a part, |
the amount
of deferral applied for. As to qualifying property |
not having a separate
assessed valuation, the taxpayer shall |
also file with the county collector a
written appraisal of the |
property prepared by a qualified real estate appraiser
together |
with a certificate signed by the appraiser stating that he has
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personally examined the property and setting forth the value of |
the land and
the value of the buildings thereon occupied by the |
taxpayer as his residence.
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The collector shall grant the tax deferral provided such |
deferral does not
exceed funds available in the Senior Citizens |
Real Estate Deferred Tax
Revolving Fund and provided that the |
owner or owners of such real property have
entered into a tax |
deferral and recovery agreement with the collector on behalf
of |
the county or other unit of local government, which agreement |
expressly
states:
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(1) That the total amount of taxes deferred under this Act, |
plus
interest, for the year for which a tax deferral is claimed |
as well
as for those previous years for which taxes are not |
delinquent and
for which such deferral has been claimed may not |
exceed 80%
of the taxpayer's equity interest in the property |
for which taxes are
to be deferred and that, if the total |
deferred taxes plus interest equals
80% of the taxpayer's |
equity interest in the property, the taxpayer shall
thereafter |
pay the annual interest due on such deferred taxes plus |
interest
so that total deferred taxes plus interest will not |
exceed such 80% of the
taxpayer's equity interest in the |
property. Effective as of the January 1, 2011 assessment year |
or tax year 2012 and thereafter, the total amount of any such |
deferral shall not exceed $5,000 per taxpayer in each tax year.
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(2) That any real estate taxes deferred under this Act and |
any
interest accrued thereon at the rate of 6% per year are a |
lien on the real
estate and improvements thereon until paid. No |
sale or transfer of such
real property may be legally closed |
and recorded until the taxes
which would otherwise have been |
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due on the property, plus accrued
interest, have been paid |
unless the collector certifies in
writing that an arrangement |
for prompt payment of the amount due
has been made with his |
office. The same shall apply if the
property is to be made the |
subject of a contract of sale.
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(3) That upon the death of the taxpayer claiming the |
deferral
the heirs-at-law, assignees or legatees shall have |
first
priority to the real property upon which taxes have been |
deferred
by paying in full the total taxes which would |
otherwise have been due,
plus interest. However, if such |
heir-at-law, assignee, or legatee
is a surviving spouse, the |
tax deferred status of the
property shall be continued during |
the life of that surviving spouse
if the spouse is 55 years of |
age or older within 6 months of the
date of death of the |
taxpayer and enters into a tax deferral and
recovery agreement |
before the time when deferred taxes become due
under this |
Section. Any additional taxes deferred, plus interest,
on the |
real property under a tax deferral and recovery agreement
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signed by a surviving spouse shall be added to the taxes and |
interest
which would otherwise have been due, and the payment |
of which has been
postponed during the life of such surviving |
spouse, in determining
the 80% equity requirement provided by |
this Section.
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(4) That if the taxes due, plus interest, are not paid by |
the heir-at-law,
assignee or legatee or if payment is not |
postponed during the life of a
surviving spouse, the deferred |
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taxes and interest shall be recovered from the
estate of the |
taxpayer within one year of the date of his death. In addition,
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deferred real estate taxes and any interest accrued thereon are |
due within 90
days after any tax deferred property ceases to be |
qualifying property as
defined in Section 2.
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If payment is not made when required by this Section, |
foreclosure proceedings
may be instituted under the Property |
Tax Code.
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(5) That any joint owner has given written prior approval |
for such
agreement,
which written approval shall be made a part |
of such agreement.
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(6) That a guardian for a person under legal disability |
appointed for a
taxpayer who otherwise qualifies under this Act |
may act for the taxpayer in
complying with this Act.
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(7) That a taxpayer or his agent has provided to the |
satisfaction of the
collector, sufficient evidence that the |
qualifying property on which the taxes
are to be deferred is |
insured against fire or casualty loss for at least the
total |
amount of taxes which have been deferred.
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If the taxes to be deferred are special assessments, the |
unit of local
government making the assessments shall forward a |
copy of the agreement
entered into pursuant to this Section and |
the bills for such assessments to
the county collector of the |
county in which the qualifying property is located.
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(Source: P.A. 90-170, eff. 7-23-97; 91-357, eff. 7-29-99.)
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Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon |
