Bill Text: IL HB6858 | 2009-2010 | 96th General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Illinois Enterprise Zone Act. Provides that an Enterprise Zone may be extended for an additional 20 years upon application by the corporate authorities of the county or municipality that designated the Enterprise Zone. Amends the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act and the Public Utilities Act to make conforming changes in provisions concerning tax exemptions for businesses located in Enterprise Zones.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 4-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2010-12-01 - Added Chief Co-Sponsor Rep. Tom Cross [HB6858 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2009-HB6858-Introduced.html

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96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2009 and 2010 HB6858 Introduced 4/28/2010, by Rep. Timothy L. Schmitz SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
20 ILCS 655/5.3 from Ch. 67 1/2, par. 608
35 ILCS 120/1f from Ch. 120, par. 440f
220 ILCS 5/9-222.1 from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 9-222.1
Amends the Illinois Enterprise Zone Act. Provides that an Enterprise Zone may be extended for an additional 20 years upon application by the corporate authorities of the county or municipality that designated the Enterprise Zone. Amends the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act and the Public Utilities Act to make conforming changes in provisions concerning tax exemptions for businesses located in Enterprise Zones.
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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY
A BILL FOR
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AN ACT concerning State government.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Illinois Enterprise Zone Act is amended by
changing Section 5.3 as follows:
(20 ILCS 655/5.3) (from Ch. 67 1/2, par. 608)
Sec. 5.3. Certification of Enterprise Zones; Effective
date.
(a) Approval of designated Enterprise Zones shall be made
by the Department by certification of the designating
ordinance. The Department shall promptly issue a certificate
for each Enterprise Zone upon its approval. The certificate
shall be signed by the Director of the Department, shall make
specific reference to the designating ordinance, which shall be
attached thereto, and shall be filed in the office of the
Secretary of State. A certified copy of the Enterprise Zone
Certificate, or a duplicate original thereof, shall be recorded
in the office of recorder of deeds of the county in which the
Enterprise Zone lies.
(b) An Enterprise Zone shall be effective upon its
certification. The Department shall transmit a copy of the
certification to the Department of Revenue, and to the
designating municipality or county.

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Upon certification of an Enterprise Zone, the terms and
provisions of the designating ordinance shall be in effect, and
may not be amended or repealed except in accordance with
Section 5.4.
(c) An Enterprise Zone shall be in effect for 30 calendar
years, or for a lesser number of years specified in the
certified designating ordinance. Enterprise Zones shall
terminate at midnight of December 31 of the final calendar year
of the certified term, except as provided in Section 5.4. The
corporate authorities of the county or municipality that
adopted the ordinance designating the Enterprise Zone may apply
to the Department for a one-time extension of 20 additional
calendar years.
(d) No more than 12 Enterprise Zones may be certified by
the Department in calendar year 1984, no more than 12
Enterprise Zones may be certified by the Department in calendar
year 1985, no more than 13 Enterprise Zones may be certified by
the Department in calendar year 1986, no more than 15
Enterprise Zones may be certified by the Department in calendar
year 1987, and no more than 20 Enterprise Zones may be
certified by the Department in calendar year 1990. In other
calendar years, no more than 13 Enterprise Zones may be
certified by the Department. The Department may also designate
up to 8 additional Enterprise Zones outside the regular
application cycle if warranted by the extreme economic
circumstances as determined by the Department. The Department

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may also designate one additional Enterprise Zone outside the
regular application cycle if an aircraft manufacturer agrees to
locate an aircraft manufacturing facility in the proposed
Enterprise Zone. Notwithstanding any other provision of this
Act, no more than 89 Enterprise Zones may be certified by the
Department for the 10 calendar years commencing with 1983. The
7 additional Enterprise Zones authorized by Public Act 86-15
shall not lie within municipalities or unincorporated areas of
counties that abut or are contiguous to Enterprise Zones
certified pursuant to this Section prior to June 30, 1989. The
7 additional Enterprise Zones (excluding the additional
Enterprise Zone which may be designated outside the regular
application cycle) authorized by Public Act 86-1030 shall not
lie within municipalities or unincorporated areas of counties
that abut or are contiguous to Enterprise Zones certified
pursuant to this Section prior to February 28, 1990. Beginning
in calendar year 2004 and until December 31, 2008, one
additional enterprise zone may be certified by the Department.
In any calendar year, the Department may not certify more than
3 Zones located within the same municipality. The Department
may certify Enterprise Zones in each of the 10 calendar years
commencing with 1983. The Department may not certify more than
a total of 18 Enterprise Zones located within the same county
(whether within municipalities or within unincorporated
territory) for the 10 calendar years commencing with 1983.
Thereafter, the Department may not certify any additional

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Enterprise Zones, but may amend and rescind certifications of
existing Enterprise Zones in accordance with Section 5.4.
(e) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, if (i) the
county board of any county in which a current military base is
located, in part or in whole, or in which a military base that
has been closed within 20 years of the effective date of this
amendatory Act of 1998 is located, in part or in whole, adopts
a designating ordinance in accordance with Section 5 of this
Act to designate the military base in that county as an
enterprise zone and (ii) the property otherwise meets the
qualifications for an enterprise zone as prescribed in Section
4 of this Act, then the Department may certify the designating
ordinance or ordinances, as the case may be.
(Source: P.A. 92-16, eff. 6-28-01; 92-777, eff. 1-1-03; 93-436,
eff. 1-1-04.)
Section 7. The Retailers' Occupation Tax Act is amended by
changing Section 1f as follows:
(35 ILCS 120/1f) (from Ch. 120, par. 440f)
Sec. 1f. Except for High Impact Businesses, the exemption
stated in Sections 1d and 1e of this Act shall only apply to
business enterprises which:
(1) either (i) make investments which cause the
creation of a minimum of 200 full-time equivalent jobs in
Illinois or (ii) make investments which cause the retention

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of a minimum of 2000 full-time jobs in Illinois or (iii)
make investments of a minimum of $40,000,000 and retain at
least 90% of the jobs in place on the date on which the
exemption is granted and for the duration of the exemption;
and
(2) are located in an Enterprise Zone established
pursuant to the Illinois Enterprise Zone Act; and
(3) are certified by the Department of Commerce and
Economic Opportunity as complying with the requirements
specified in clauses (1), (2) and (3).
Any business enterprise seeking to avail itself of the
exemptions stated in Sections 1d or 1e, or both, shall make
application to the Department of Commerce and Economic
Opportunity in such form and providing such information as may
be prescribed by the Department of Commerce and Economic
Opportunity. However, no business enterprise shall be
required, as a condition for certification under clause (4) of
this Section, to attest that its decision to invest under
clause (1) of this Section and to locate under clause (2) of
this Section is predicated upon the availability of the
exemptions authorized by Sections 1d or 1e.
The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall
determine whether the business enterprise meets the criteria
prescribed in this Section. If the Department of Commerce and
Economic Opportunity determines that such business enterprise
meets the criteria, it shall issue a certificate of eligibility

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for exemption to the business enterprise in such form as is
prescribed by the Department of Revenue. The Department of
Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall act upon such
certification requests within 60 days after receipt of the
application, and shall file with the Department of Revenue a
copy of each certificate of eligibility for exemption.
The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall
have the power to promulgate rules and regulations to carry out
the provisions of this Section including the power to define
the amounts and types of eligible investments not specified in
this Section which business enterprises must make in order to
receive the exemptions stated in Sections 1d and 1e of this
Act; and to require that any business enterprise that is
granted a tax exemption repay the exempted tax if the business
enterprise fails to comply with the terms and conditions of the
certification.
Such certificate of eligibility for exemption shall be
presented by the business enterprise to its supplier when
making the initial purchase of tangible personal property for
which an exemption is granted by Section 1d or Section 1e, or
both, together with a certification by the business enterprise
that such tangible personal property is exempt from taxation
under Section 1d or Section 1e and by indicating the exempt
status of each subsequent purchase on the face of the purchase
order.
The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall

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determine the period during which such exemption from the taxes
imposed under this Act is in effect which shall not exceed 50
20 years.
(Source: P.A. 94-793, eff. 5-19-06.)
Section 10. The Public Utilities Act is amended by changing
Section 9-222.1 as follows:
(220 ILCS 5/9-222.1) (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 9-222.1)
Sec. 9-222.1. A business enterprise which is located within
an area designated by a county or municipality as an enterprise
zone pursuant to the Illinois Enterprise Zone Act or located in
a federally designated Foreign Trade Zone or Sub-Zone shall be
exempt from the additional charges added to the business
enterprise's utility bills as a pass-on of municipal and State
utility taxes under Sections 9-221 and 9-222 of this Act, to
the extent such charges are exempted by ordinance adopted in
accordance with paragraph (e) of Section 8-11-2 of the Illinois
Municipal Code in the case of municipal utility taxes, and to
the extent such charges are exempted by the percentage
specified by the Department of Commerce and Economic
Opportunity in the case of State utility taxes, provided such
business enterprise meets the following criteria:
(1) it (i) makes investments which cause the creation
of a minimum of 200 full-time equivalent jobs in Illinois;
(ii) makes investments of at least $175,000,000 which cause

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the creation of a minimum of 150 full-time equivalent jobs
in Illinois; (iii) makes investments that cause the
retention of a minimum of 300 full-time equivalent jobs in
the manufacturing sector, as defined by the North American
Industry Classification System, in an area in Illinois in
which the unemployment rate is above 9% and makes an
application to the Department within 3 months after the
effective date of this amendatory Act of the 96th General
Assembly and certifies relocation of the 300 full-time
equivalent jobs within 36 months after the application;
(iv) makes investments which cause the retention of a
minimum of 1,000 full-time jobs in Illinois; or (v) makes
an application to the Department within 2 months after the
effective date of this amendatory Act of the 96th General
Assembly and makes investments that cause the retention of
a minimum of 500 full-time equivalent jobs in 2009 and
2010, 675 full-time jobs in Illinois in 2011, 850 full-time
jobs in 2012, and 1,000 full-time jobs in 2013, in the
manufacturing sector as defined by the North American
Industry Classification System; and
(2) it is either (i) located in an Enterprise Zone
established pursuant to the Illinois Enterprise Zone Act or
(ii) located in a federally designated Foreign Trade Zone
or Sub-Zone and is designated a High Impact Business by the
Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity; and
(3) it is certified by the Department of Commerce and

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Economic Opportunity as complying with the requirements
specified in clauses (1) and (2) of this Section.
The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall
determine the period during which such exemption from the
charges imposed under Section 9-222 is in effect which shall
not exceed 50 30 years or the certified term of the enterprise
zone (including any extensions granted under subsection (c) of
Section 5.3 of the Illinois Enterprise Zone Act), whichever
period is shorter, except that the exemption period for a
business enterprise qualifying under item (iii) of clause (1)
of this Section shall not exceed 50 30 years.
The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall
have the power to promulgate rules and regulations to carry out
the provisions of this Section including procedures for
complying with the requirements specified in clauses (1) and
(2) of this Section and procedures for applying for the
exemptions authorized under this Section; to define the amounts
and types of eligible investments which business enterprises
must make in order to receive State utility tax exemptions
pursuant to Sections 9-222 and 9-222.1 of this Act; to approve
such utility tax exemptions for business enterprises whose
investments are not yet placed in service; and to require that
business enterprises granted tax exemptions repay the exempted
tax should the business enterprise fail to comply with the
terms and conditions of the certification. However, no business
enterprise shall be required, as a condition for certification

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under clause (3) of this Section, to attest that its decision
to invest under clause (1) of this Section and to locate under
clause (2) of this Section is predicated upon the availability
of the exemptions authorized by this Section.
A business enterprise shall be exempt, in whole or in part,
from the pass-on charges of municipal utility taxes imposed
under Section 9-221, only if it meets the criteria specified in
clauses (1) through (3) of this Section and the municipality
has adopted an ordinance authorizing the exemption under
paragraph (e) of Section 8-11-2 of the Illinois Municipal Code.
Upon certification of the business enterprises by the
Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, the
Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity shall notify
the Department of Revenue of such certification. The Department
of Revenue shall notify the public utilities of the exemption
status of business enterprises from the pass-on charges of
State and municipal utility taxes. Such exemption status shall
be effective within 3 months after certification of the
business enterprise.
(Source: P.A. 96-716, eff. 8-25-09; 96-865, eff. 1-21-10.)