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94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2005 and 2006 HB5538
Introduced 1/27/2006, by Rep. Suzanne Bassi SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: |
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35 ILCS 200/15-170 |
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35 ILCS 200/15-172 |
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35 ILCS 200/15-173 new |
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30 ILCS 805/8.30 new |
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Amends the Property Tax Code. Creates the Senior Citizens Tax Freeze
Homestead Exemption. Provides that, beginning with taxable year 2006, a
person who
meets requirements similar to the Senior Citizens Assessment Freeze
Homestead Exemption provisions, excluding the income restrictions in those
provisions, shall receive an exemption from property taxes in an amount equal
to the
difference between what the property tax bill for the residence would be in the
taxable
year minus the base amount. "Base amount" is defined as the property tax bill
for the
first year of eligibility for this exemption or the Senior Citizens Assessment
Freeze
Homestead Exemption, whichever is earlier, plus any increase in the bill
resulting from
any added improvements thereafter. Provides that the Senior Citizens Homestead
Exemption and the Senior Citizens Assessment Freeze Homestead Exemption do not
apply after taxable year 2006. Amends the State Mandates Act to require implementation
without reimbursement from the State. Effective immediately.
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CORRECTIONAL BUDGET AND IMPACT NOTE ACT MAY APPLY |
FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY |
HOUSING AFFORDABILITY IMPACT NOTE ACT MAY APPLY |
| STATE MANDATES ACT MAY REQUIRE REIMBURSEMENT MAY APPLY
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A BILL FOR
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HB5538 |
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LRB094 17204 BDD 52493 b |
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| AN ACT concerning taxes.
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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 5. The Property Tax Code is amended by changing
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| Sections 15-170 and 15-172 and by adding Section 15-173 as |
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| follows:
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| (35 ILCS 200/15-170)
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| Sec. 15-170. Senior Citizens Homestead Exemption. |
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| Beginning with taxable
year 2006, the provisions of this |
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| Section are superseded by Section 15-173 and
no longer apply.
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| An annual homestead
exemption limited, except as described here |
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| with relation to cooperatives or
life care facilities, to a
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| maximum reduction set forth below from the property's value, as |
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| equalized or
assessed by the Department, is granted for |
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| property that is occupied as a
residence by a person 65 years |
16 |
| of age or older who is liable for paying real
estate taxes on |
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| the property and is an owner of record of the property or has a
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| legal or equitable interest therein as evidenced by a written |
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| instrument,
except for a leasehold interest, other than a |
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| leasehold interest of land on
which a single family residence |
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| is located, which is occupied as a residence by
a person 65 |
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| years or older who has an ownership interest therein, legal,
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| equitable or as a lessee, and on which he or she is liable for |
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| the payment
of property taxes. Before taxable year 2004, the |
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| maximum reduction shall be $2,500 in counties with
3,000,000 or |
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| more inhabitants and $2,000 in all other counties. For taxable |
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| years 2004 and thereafter, the maximum reduction shall be |
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| $3,000 in all counties. For land
improved with an apartment |
29 |
| building owned and operated as a cooperative, the maximum |
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| reduction from the value of the property, as
equalized
by the |
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| Department, shall be multiplied by the number of apartments or |
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| units
occupied by a person 65 years of age or older who is |
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HB5538 |
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LRB094 17204 BDD 52493 b |
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| liable, by contract with
the owner or owners of record, for |
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| paying property taxes on the property and
is an owner of record |
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| of a legal or equitable interest in the cooperative
apartment |
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| building, other than a leasehold interest. For land improved |
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| with
a life care facility, the maximum reduction from the value |
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| of the property, as
equalized by the Department, shall be |
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| multiplied by the number of apartments or
units occupied by |
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| persons 65 years of age or older, irrespective of any legal,
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| equitable, or leasehold interest in the facility, who are |
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| liable, under a
contract with the owner or owners of record of |
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| the facility, for paying
property taxes on the property. In a
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| cooperative or a life care facility where a
homestead exemption |
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| has been granted, the cooperative association or the
management |
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| firm of the cooperative or facility shall credit the savings
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| resulting from that exemption only to
the apportioned tax |
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| liability of the owner or resident who qualified for
the |
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| exemption.
Any person who willfully refuses to so credit the |
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| savings shall be guilty of a
Class B misdemeanor. Under this |
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| Section and Sections 15-175 and 15-176, "life care
facility" |
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| means a facility as defined in Section 2 of the Life Care |
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| Facilities
Act, with which the applicant for the homestead |
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| exemption has a life care
contract as defined in that Act.
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| When a homestead exemption has been granted under this |
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| Section and the person
qualifying subsequently becomes a |
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| resident of a facility licensed under the
Nursing Home Care |
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| Act, the exemption shall continue so long as the residence
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| continues to be occupied by the qualifying person's spouse if |
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| the spouse is 65
years of age or older, or if the residence |
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| remains unoccupied but is still
owned by the person qualified |
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| for the homestead exemption.
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| A person who will be 65 years of age
during the current |
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| assessment year
shall
be eligible to apply for the homestead |
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| exemption during that assessment
year.
Application shall be |
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| made during the application period in effect for the
county of |
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| his residence.
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| Beginning with assessment year 2003, for taxes payable in |
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HB5538 |
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LRB094 17204 BDD 52493 b |
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| 2004,
property
that is first occupied as a residence after |
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| January 1 of any assessment year by
a person who is eligible |
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| for the senior citizens homestead exemption under this
Section |
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| must be granted a pro-rata exemption for the assessment year. |
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| The
amount of the pro-rata exemption is the exemption
allowed |
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| in the county under this Section divided by 365 and multiplied |
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| by the
number of days during the assessment year the property |
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| is occupied as a
residence by a
person eligible for the |
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| exemption under this Section. The chief county
assessment |
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| officer must adopt reasonable procedures to establish |
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| eligibility
for this pro-rata exemption.
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| The assessor or chief county assessment officer may |
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| determine the eligibility
of a life care facility to receive |
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| the benefits provided by this Section, by
affidavit, |
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| application, visual inspection, questionnaire or other |
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| reasonable
methods in order to insure that the tax savings |
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| resulting from the exemption
are credited by the management |
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| firm to the apportioned tax liability of each
qualifying |
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| resident. The assessor may request reasonable proof that the
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| management firm has so credited the exemption.
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| The chief county assessment officer of each county with |
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| less than 3,000,000
inhabitants shall provide to each person |
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| allowed a homestead exemption under
this Section a form to |
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| designate any other person to receive a
duplicate of any notice |
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| of delinquency in the payment of taxes assessed and
levied |
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| under this Code on the property of the person receiving the |
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| exemption.
The duplicate notice shall be in addition to the |
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| notice required to be
provided to the person receiving the |
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| exemption, and shall be given in the
manner required by this |
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| Code. The person filing the request for the duplicate
notice |
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| shall pay a fee of $5 to cover administrative costs to the |
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| supervisor of
assessments, who shall then file the executed |
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| designation with the county
collector. Notwithstanding any |
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| other provision of this Code to the contrary,
the filing of |
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| such an executed designation requires the county collector to
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| provide duplicate notices as indicated by the designation. A |
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HB5538 |
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LRB094 17204 BDD 52493 b |
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| designation may
be rescinded by the person who executed such |
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| designation at any time, in the
manner and form required by the |
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| chief county assessment officer.
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| The assessor or chief county assessment officer may |
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| determine the
eligibility of residential property to receive |
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| the homestead exemption provided
by this Section by |
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| application, visual inspection, questionnaire or other
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| reasonable methods. The determination shall be made in |
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| accordance with
guidelines established by the Department.
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| In counties with less than 3,000,000 inhabitants, the |
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| county board may by
resolution provide that if a person has |
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| been granted a homestead exemption
under this Section, the |
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| person qualifying need not reapply for the exemption.
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| In counties with less than 3,000,000 inhabitants, if the |
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| assessor or chief
county assessment officer requires annual |
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| application for verification of
eligibility for an exemption |
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| once granted under this Section, the application
shall be |
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| mailed to the taxpayer.
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| The assessor or chief county assessment officer shall |
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| notify each person
who qualifies for an exemption under this |
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| Section that the person may also
qualify for deferral of real |
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| estate taxes under the Senior Citizens Real Estate
Tax Deferral |
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| Act. The notice shall set forth the qualifications needed for
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| deferral of real estate taxes, the address and telephone number |
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| of
county collector, and a
statement that applications for |
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| deferral of real estate taxes may be obtained
from the county |
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| collector.
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| Notwithstanding Sections 6 and 8 of the State Mandates Act, |
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| no
reimbursement by the State is required for the |
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| implementation of any mandate
created by this Section.
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| (Source: P.A. 92-196, eff. 1-1-02; 93-511, eff. 8-11-03; |
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| 93-715, eff. 7-12-04.)
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| (35 ILCS 200/15-172)
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| Sec. 15-172. Senior Citizens Assessment Freeze Homestead |
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| Exemption. Beginning with taxable year 2006, the provisions of |
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HB5538 |
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LRB094 17204 BDD 52493 b |
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| this Section are
superseded
by Section 15-173 and no longer |
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| apply.
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| (a) This Section may be cited as the Senior Citizens |
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| Assessment
Freeze Homestead Exemption.
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| (b) As used in this Section:
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| "Applicant" means an individual who has filed an |
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| application under this
Section.
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| "Base amount" means the base year equalized assessed value |
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| of the residence
plus the first year's equalized assessed value |
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| of any added improvements which
increased the assessed value of |
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| the residence after the base year.
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| "Base year" means the taxable year prior to the taxable |
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| year for which the
applicant first qualifies and applies for |
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| the exemption provided that in the
prior taxable year the |
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| property was improved with a permanent structure that
was |
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| occupied as a residence by the applicant who was liable for |
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| paying real
property taxes on the property and who was either |
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| (i) an owner of record of the
property or had legal or |
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| equitable interest in the property as evidenced by a
written |
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| instrument or (ii) had a legal or equitable interest as a |
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| lessee in the
parcel of property that was single family |
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| residence.
If in any subsequent taxable year for which the |
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| applicant applies and
qualifies for the exemption the equalized |
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| assessed value of the residence is
less than the equalized |
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| assessed value in the existing base year
(provided that such |
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| equalized assessed value is not
based
on an
assessed value that |
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| results from a temporary irregularity in the property that
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| reduces the
assessed value for one or more taxable years), then |
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| that
subsequent taxable year shall become the base year until a |
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| new base year is
established under the terms of this paragraph. |
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| For taxable year 1999 only, the
Chief County Assessment Officer |
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| shall review (i) all taxable years for which
the
applicant |
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| applied and qualified for the exemption and (ii) the existing |
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| base
year.
The assessment officer shall select as the new base |
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| year the year with the
lowest equalized assessed value.
An |
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| equalized assessed value that is based on an assessed value |
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HB5538 |
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LRB094 17204 BDD 52493 b |
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| that results
from a
temporary irregularity in the property that |
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| reduces the assessed value for one
or more
taxable years shall |
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| not be considered the lowest equalized assessed value.
The |
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| selected year shall be the base year for
taxable year 1999 and |
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| thereafter until a new base year is established under the
terms |
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| of this paragraph.
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| "Chief County Assessment Officer" means the County |
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| Assessor or Supervisor of
Assessments of the county in which |
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| the property is located.
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| "Equalized assessed value" means the assessed value as |
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| equalized by the
Illinois Department of Revenue.
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| "Household" means the applicant, the spouse of the |
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| applicant, and all persons
using the residence of the applicant |
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| as their principal place of residence.
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| "Household income" means the combined income of the members |
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| of a household
for the calendar year preceding the taxable |
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| year.
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| "Income" has the same meaning as provided in Section 3.07 |
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| of the Senior
Citizens and Disabled Persons Property Tax Relief |
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| and Pharmaceutical Assistance
Act, except that, beginning in |
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| assessment year 2001, "income" does not
include veteran's |
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| benefits.
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| "Internal Revenue Code of 1986" means the United States |
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| Internal Revenue Code
of 1986 or any successor law or laws |
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| relating to federal income taxes in effect
for the year |
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| preceding the taxable year.
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| "Life care facility that qualifies as a cooperative" means |
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| a facility as
defined in Section 2 of the Life Care Facilities |
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| Act.
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| "Residence" means the principal dwelling place and |
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| appurtenant structures
used for residential purposes in this |
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| State occupied on January 1 of the
taxable year by a household |
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| and so much of the surrounding land, constituting
the parcel |
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| upon which the dwelling place is situated, as is used for
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| residential purposes. If the Chief County Assessment Officer |
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| has established a
specific legal description for a portion of |
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HB5538 |
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LRB094 17204 BDD 52493 b |
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| property constituting the
residence, then that portion of |
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| property shall be deemed the residence for the
purposes of this |
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| Section.
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| "Taxable year" means the calendar year during which ad |
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| valorem property taxes
payable in the next succeeding year are |
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| levied.
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| (c) Beginning in taxable year 1994, a senior citizens |
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| assessment freeze
homestead exemption is granted for real |
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| property that is improved with a
permanent structure that is |
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| occupied as a residence by an applicant who (i) is
65 years of |
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| age or older during the taxable year, (ii) has a household |
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| income
of $35,000 or less prior to taxable year 1999,
$40,000 |
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| or less in taxable years 1999 through 2003, and $45,000 or less |
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| in taxable year 2004 and thereafter, (iii) is liable for paying |
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| real property taxes on
the
property, and (iv) is an owner of |
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| record of the property or has a legal or
equitable interest in |
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| the property as evidenced by a written instrument. This
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| homestead exemption shall also apply to a leasehold interest in |
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| a parcel of
property improved with a permanent structure that |
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| is a single family residence
that is occupied as a residence by |
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| a person who (i) is 65 years of age or older
during the taxable |
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| year, (ii) has a household income of $35,000 or less prior
to |
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| taxable year 1999, $40,000 or less in taxable years 1999 |
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| through 2003, and $45,000 or less in taxable year 2004 and |
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| thereafter,
(iii)
has a legal or equitable ownership interest |
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| in the property as lessee, and (iv)
is liable for the payment |
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| of real property taxes on that property.
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The amount of this exemption shall be the equalized |
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| assessed value of the
residence in the taxable year for which |
30 |
| application is made minus the base
amount.
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| When the applicant is a surviving spouse of an applicant |
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| for a prior year for
the same residence for which an exemption |
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| under this Section has been granted,
the base year and base |
34 |
| amount for that residence are the same as for the
applicant for |
35 |
| the prior year.
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| Each year at the time the assessment books are certified to |
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HB5538 |
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LRB094 17204 BDD 52493 b |
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| the County Clerk,
the Board of Review or Board of Appeals shall |
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| give to the County Clerk a list
of the assessed values of |
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| improvements on each parcel qualifying for this
exemption that |
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| were added after the base year for this parcel and that
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| increased the assessed value of the property.
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| In the case of land improved with an apartment building |
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| owned and operated as
a cooperative or a building that is a |
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| life care facility that qualifies as a
cooperative, the maximum |
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| reduction from the equalized assessed value of the
property is |
10 |
| limited to the sum of the reductions calculated for each unit
|
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| occupied as a residence by a person or persons (i) 65 years of |
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| age or older, (ii) with a
household income of $35,000 or less |
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| prior to taxable year 1999, $40,000 or
less in taxable years |
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| 1999 through 2003, and $45,000 or less in taxable year 2004 and |
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| thereafter, (iii) who is liable, by contract with the
owner
or |
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| owners of record, for paying real property taxes on the |
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| property, and (iv) who is
an owner of record of a legal or |
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| equitable interest in the cooperative
apartment building, |
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| other than a leasehold interest. In the instance of a
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| cooperative where a homestead exemption has been granted under |
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| this Section,
the cooperative association or its management |
22 |
| firm shall credit the savings
resulting from that exemption |
23 |
| only to the apportioned tax liability of the
owner who |
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| qualified for the exemption. Any person who willfully refuses |
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| to
credit that savings to an owner who qualifies for the |
26 |
| exemption is guilty of a
Class B misdemeanor.
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| When a homestead exemption has been granted under this |
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| Section and an
applicant then becomes a resident of a facility |
29 |
| licensed under the Nursing Home
Care Act, the exemption shall |
30 |
| be granted in subsequent years so long as the
residence (i) |
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| continues to be occupied by the qualified applicant's spouse or
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| (ii) if remaining unoccupied, is still owned by the qualified |
33 |
| applicant for the
homestead exemption.
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| Beginning January 1, 1997, when an individual dies who |
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| would have qualified
for an exemption under this Section, and |
36 |
| the surviving spouse does not
independently qualify for this |
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HB5538 |
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LRB094 17204 BDD 52493 b |
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| exemption because of age, the exemption under
this Section |
2 |
| shall be granted to the surviving spouse for the taxable year
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| preceding and the taxable
year of the death, provided that, |
4 |
| except for age, the surviving spouse meets
all
other |
5 |
| qualifications for the granting of this exemption for those |
6 |
| years.
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| When married persons maintain separate residences, the |
8 |
| exemption provided for
in this Section may be claimed by only |
9 |
| one of such persons and for only one
residence.
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10 |
| For taxable year 1994 only, in counties having less than |
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| 3,000,000
inhabitants, to receive the exemption, a person shall |
12 |
| submit an application by
February 15, 1995 to the Chief County |
13 |
| Assessment Officer
of the county in which the property is |
14 |
| located. In counties having 3,000,000
or more inhabitants, for |
15 |
| taxable year 1994 and all subsequent taxable years, to
receive |
16 |
| the exemption, a person
may submit an application to the Chief |
17 |
| County
Assessment Officer of the county in which the property |
18 |
| is located during such
period as may be specified by the Chief |
19 |
| County Assessment Officer. The Chief
County Assessment Officer |
20 |
| in counties of 3,000,000 or more inhabitants shall
annually |
21 |
| give notice of the application period by mail or by |
22 |
| publication. In
counties having less than 3,000,000 |
23 |
| inhabitants, beginning with taxable year
1995 and thereafter, |
24 |
| to receive the exemption, a person
shall
submit an
application |
25 |
| by July 1 of each taxable year to the Chief County Assessment
|
26 |
| Officer of the county in which the property is located. A |
27 |
| county may, by
ordinance, establish a date for submission of |
28 |
| applications that is
different than
July 1.
The applicant shall |
29 |
| submit with the
application an affidavit of the applicant's |
30 |
| total household income, age,
marital status (and if married the |
31 |
| name and address of the applicant's spouse,
if known), and |
32 |
| principal dwelling place of members of the household on January
|
33 |
| 1 of the taxable year. The Department shall establish, by rule, |
34 |
| a method for
verifying the accuracy of affidavits filed by |
35 |
| applicants under this Section.
The applications shall be |
36 |
| clearly marked as applications for the Senior
Citizens |
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HB5538 |
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LRB094 17204 BDD 52493 b |
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| Assessment Freeze Homestead Exemption.
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| Notwithstanding any other provision to the contrary, in |
3 |
| counties having fewer
than 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an |
4 |
| applicant fails
to file the application required by this |
5 |
| Section in a timely manner and this
failure to file is due to a |
6 |
| mental or physical condition sufficiently severe so
as to |
7 |
| render the applicant incapable of filing the application in a |
8 |
| timely
manner, the Chief County Assessment Officer may extend |
9 |
| the filing deadline for
a period of 30 days after the applicant |
10 |
| regains the capability to file the
application, but in no case |
11 |
| may the filing deadline be extended beyond 3
months of the |
12 |
| original filing deadline. In order to receive the extension
|
13 |
| provided in this paragraph, the applicant shall provide the |
14 |
| Chief County
Assessment Officer with a signed statement from |
15 |
| the applicant's physician
stating the nature and extent of the |
16 |
| condition, that, in the
physician's opinion, the condition was |
17 |
| so severe that it rendered the applicant
incapable of filing |
18 |
| the application in a timely manner, and the date on which
the |
19 |
| applicant regained the capability to file the application.
|
20 |
| Beginning January 1, 1998, notwithstanding any other |
21 |
| provision to the
contrary, in counties having fewer than |
22 |
| 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an applicant
fails to file the |
23 |
| application required by this Section in a timely manner and
|
24 |
| this failure to file is due to a mental or physical condition |
25 |
| sufficiently
severe so as to render the applicant incapable of |
26 |
| filing the application in a
timely manner, the Chief County |
27 |
| Assessment Officer may extend the filing
deadline for a period |
28 |
| of 3 months. In order to receive the extension provided
in this |
29 |
| paragraph, the applicant shall provide the Chief County |
30 |
| Assessment
Officer with a signed statement from the applicant's |
31 |
| physician stating the
nature and extent of the condition, and |
32 |
| that, in the physician's opinion, the
condition was so severe |
33 |
| that it rendered the applicant incapable of filing the
|
34 |
| application in a timely manner.
|
35 |
| In counties having less than 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an |
36 |
| applicant was
denied an exemption in taxable year 1994 and the |
|
|
|
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|
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| denial occurred due to an
error on the part of an assessment
|
2 |
| official, or his or her agent or employee, then beginning in |
3 |
| taxable year 1997
the
applicant's base year, for purposes of |
4 |
| determining the amount of the exemption,
shall be 1993 rather |
5 |
| than 1994. In addition, in taxable year 1997, the
applicant's |
6 |
| exemption shall also include an amount equal to (i) the amount |
7 |
| of
any exemption denied to the applicant in taxable year 1995 |
8 |
| as a result of using
1994, rather than 1993, as the base year, |
9 |
| (ii) the amount of any exemption
denied to the applicant in |
10 |
| taxable year 1996 as a result of using 1994, rather
than 1993, |
11 |
| as the base year, and (iii) the amount of the exemption |
12 |
| erroneously
denied for taxable year 1994.
|
13 |
| For purposes of this Section, a person who will be 65 years |
14 |
| of age during the
current taxable year shall be eligible to |
15 |
| apply for the homestead exemption
during that taxable year. |
16 |
| Application shall be made during the application
period in |
17 |
| effect for the county of his or her residence.
|
18 |
| The Chief County Assessment Officer may determine the |
19 |
| eligibility of a life
care facility that qualifies as a |
20 |
| cooperative to receive the benefits
provided by this Section by |
21 |
| use of an affidavit, application, visual
inspection, |
22 |
| questionnaire, or other reasonable method in order to insure |
23 |
| that
the tax savings resulting from the exemption are credited |
24 |
| by the management
firm to the apportioned tax liability of each |
25 |
| qualifying resident. The Chief
County Assessment Officer may |
26 |
| request reasonable proof that the management firm
has so |
27 |
| credited that exemption.
|
28 |
| Except as provided in this Section, all information |
29 |
| received by the chief
county assessment officer or the |
30 |
| Department from applications filed under this
Section, or from |
31 |
| any investigation conducted under the provisions of this
|
32 |
| Section, shall be confidential, except for official purposes or
|
33 |
| pursuant to official procedures for collection of any State or |
34 |
| local tax or
enforcement of any civil or criminal penalty or |
35 |
| sanction imposed by this Act or
by any statute or ordinance |
36 |
| 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
|
2 |
| judicial order, is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
|
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 |
| (d) Each Chief County Assessment Officer shall annually |
11 |
| publish a notice
of availability of the exemption provided |
12 |
| under this Section. The notice
shall be published at least 60 |
13 |
| days but no more than 75 days prior to the date
on which the |
14 |
| application must be submitted to the Chief County Assessment
|
15 |
| Officer of the county in which the property is located. The |
16 |
| notice shall
appear in a newspaper of general circulation in |
17 |
| the county.
|
18 |
| Notwithstanding Sections 6 and 8 of the State Mandates Act, |
19 |
| no reimbursement by the State is required for the |
20 |
| implementation of any mandate created by this Section.
|
21 |
| (Source: P.A. 93-715, eff. 7-12-04.)
|
22 |
| (35 ILCS 200/15-173 new)
|
23 |
| Sec. 15-173. Senior Citizens Tax Freeze Homestead |
24 |
| Exemption.
|
25 |
| (a) This Section may be cited as the Senior Citizens Tax
|
26 |
| Freeze Homestead Exemption.
|
27 |
| (b) As used in this Section:
|
28 |
| "Applicant" means an individual who has filed an |
29 |
| application under this
Section.
|
30 |
| "Base amount" means the base year property tax bill for the |
31 |
| residence
plus any increase in the property tax bill due to any |
32 |
| added improvements that
increased the assessed value of the |
33 |
| residence after the base year.
|
34 |
| "Base year" means the taxable year prior to the taxable |
35 |
| year for which the
applicant first qualifies and applies for |
|
|
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| the exemption under this Section or
Section 15-172, whichever |
2 |
| is earlier, provided that in the
prior taxable year the |
3 |
| property was improved with a permanent structure that
was |
4 |
| occupied as a residence by the applicant who was liable for |
5 |
| paying real
property taxes on the property and who was either |
6 |
| (i) an owner of record of the
property or had legal or |
7 |
| equitable interest in the property as evidenced by a
written |
8 |
| instrument or (ii) had a legal or equitable interest as a |
9 |
| lessee in the
parcel of property that was single family |
10 |
| residence.
If in any subsequent taxable year for which the |
11 |
| applicant applies and
qualifies for the exemption the property |
12 |
| tax bill for the residence would be
less than the property tax |
13 |
| bill in the existing base year
(provided that the reduced |
14 |
| property tax bill is not
based
on an
assessed value that |
15 |
| results from a temporary irregularity in the property that
|
16 |
| reduces the
assessed value for one or more taxable years), then |
17 |
| that
subsequent taxable year shall become the base year until a |
18 |
| new base year is
established under the terms of this paragraph.
|
19 |
| "Chief County Assessment Officer" means the County |
20 |
| Assessor or Supervisor of
Assessments of the county in which |
21 |
| the property is located.
|
22 |
| "Equalized assessed value" means the assessed value as |
23 |
| equalized by the
Illinois Department of Revenue.
|
24 |
| "Household" means the applicant, the spouse of the |
25 |
| applicant, and all persons
using the residence of the applicant |
26 |
| as their principal place of residence.
|
27 |
| "Life care facility that qualifies as a cooperative" means |
28 |
| a facility as
defined in Section 2 of the Life Care Facilities |
29 |
| Act.
|
30 |
| "Residence" means the principal dwelling place and |
31 |
| appurtenant structures
used for residential purposes in this |
32 |
| State occupied on January 1 of the
taxable year by a household |
33 |
| and so much of the surrounding land, constituting
the parcel |
34 |
| upon which the dwelling place is situated, as is used for
|
35 |
| residential purposes. If the Chief County Assessment Officer |
36 |
| has established a
specific legal description for a portion of |
|
|
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|
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| property constituting the
residence, then that portion of |
2 |
| property shall be deemed the residence for the
purposes of this |
3 |
| Section.
|
4 |
| "Taxable year" means the calendar year during which ad |
5 |
| valorem property taxes
payable in the next succeeding year are |
6 |
| levied.
|
7 |
| (c) Beginning in taxable year 2006, a senior citizens tax |
8 |
| freeze
homestead exemption is granted for real property that is |
9 |
| improved with a
permanent structure that is occupied as a |
10 |
| residence by an applicant who (i) is
65 years of age or older |
11 |
| during the taxable year, (ii) is liable for paying
real |
12 |
| property taxes on
the
property, and (iii) is an owner of record |
13 |
| of the property or has a legal or
equitable interest in the |
14 |
| property as evidenced by a written instrument. This
homestead |
15 |
| exemption shall also apply to a leasehold interest in a parcel |
16 |
| of
property improved with a permanent structure that is a |
17 |
| single family residence
that is occupied as a residence by a |
18 |
| person who (i) is 65 years of age or older
during the taxable |
19 |
| year, (ii)
has a legal or equitable ownership interest in the |
20 |
| property as lessee, and
(iii)
is liable for the payment of real |
21 |
| property taxes on that property.
|
22 |
| The amount of this exemption shall be what the property tax |
23 |
| bill for the
residence would be in the taxable year for which |
24 |
| application is made minus the
base
amount.
|
25 |
| When the applicant is a surviving spouse of an applicant |
26 |
| for a prior year for
the same residence for which an exemption |
27 |
| under this Section has been granted,
the base year and base |
28 |
| amount for that residence are the same as for the
applicant for |
29 |
| the prior year.
|
30 |
| Each year at the time the assessment books are certified to |
31 |
| the County Clerk,
the Board of Review or Board of Appeals shall |
32 |
| give to the County Clerk a list
of the assessed values of |
33 |
| improvements on each parcel qualifying for this
exemption that |
34 |
| were added after the base year for this parcel and that
|
35 |
| increased the assessed value of the property.
|
36 |
| In the case of land improved with an apartment building |
|
|
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1 |
| owned and operated as
a cooperative or a building that is a |
2 |
| life care facility that qualifies as a
cooperative, the maximum |
3 |
| reduction in the property tax bill for the
property is limited |
4 |
| to the sum of the reductions calculated for each unit
occupied |
5 |
| as a residence by a person or persons 65 years of age or older
|
6 |
| who is liable, by contract with the
owner
or owners of record, |
7 |
| for paying real property taxes on the property and who is
an |
8 |
| owner of record of a legal or equitable interest in the |
9 |
| cooperative
apartment building, other than a leasehold |
10 |
| interest. In the instance of a
cooperative where a homestead |
11 |
| exemption has been granted under this Section,
the cooperative |
12 |
| association or its management firm shall credit the savings
|
13 |
| resulting from that exemption only to the apportioned tax |
14 |
| liability of the
owner who qualified for the exemption. Any |
15 |
| person who willfully refuses to
credit that savings to an owner |
16 |
| who qualifies for the exemption is guilty of a
Class B |
17 |
| misdemeanor.
|
18 |
| When a homestead exemption has been granted under this |
19 |
| Section and an
applicant then becomes a resident of a facility |
20 |
| licensed under the Nursing Home
Care Act, the exemption shall |
21 |
| be granted in subsequent years so long as the
residence (i) |
22 |
| continues to be occupied by the qualified applicant's spouse or
|
23 |
| (ii) if remaining unoccupied, is still owned by the qualified |
24 |
| applicant for the
homestead exemption.
|
25 |
| When an individual dies who would have qualified
for an |
26 |
| exemption under this Section, and the surviving spouse does not
|
27 |
| independently qualify for this exemption because of age, the |
28 |
| exemption under
this Section shall be granted to the surviving |
29 |
| spouse for the taxable year
preceding and the taxable
year of |
30 |
| the death, provided that, except for age, the surviving spouse |
31 |
| meets
all qualifications for the granting of this exemption for |
32 |
| those years.
|
33 |
| When married persons maintain separate residences, the |
34 |
| exemption provided for
in this Section may be claimed by only |
35 |
| one of such persons and for only one
residence.
|
36 |
| In counties having 3,000,000
or more inhabitants, to
|
|
|
|
HB5538 |
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LRB094 17204 BDD 52493 b |
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|
1 |
| receive the exemption, a person may submit an application to |
2 |
| the Chief County
Assessment Officer of the county in which the |
3 |
| property is located during such
period as may be specified by |
4 |
| the Chief County Assessment Officer. The Chief
County |
5 |
| Assessment Officer in counties of 3,000,000 or more inhabitants |
6 |
| shall
annually give notice of the application period by mail or |
7 |
| by publication. In
counties having less than 3,000,000 |
8 |
| inhabitants, to receive the exemption, a
person shall submit an
|
9 |
| application by July 1 of each taxable year to the Chief County |
10 |
| Assessment
Officer of the county in which the property is |
11 |
| located. A county may, by
ordinance, establish a date for |
12 |
| submission of applications that is
different than
July 1.
The |
13 |
| applicant shall submit with the
application an affidavit of the |
14 |
| applicant's age,
marital status (and if married the name and |
15 |
| address of the applicant's spouse,
if known), and principal |
16 |
| dwelling place of members of the household on January
1 of the |
17 |
| taxable year. The Department shall establish, by rule, a method |
18 |
| for
verifying the accuracy of affidavits filed by applicants |
19 |
| under this Section.
The applications shall be clearly marked as |
20 |
| applications for the Senior
Citizens Tax Freeze Homestead |
21 |
| Exemption.
|
22 |
| Notwithstanding any other provision to the
contrary, in |
23 |
| counties having fewer than 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an |
24 |
| applicant
fails to file the application required by this |
25 |
| Section in a timely manner and
this failure to file is due to a |
26 |
| mental or physical condition sufficiently
severe so as to |
27 |
| render the applicant incapable of filing the application in a
|
28 |
| timely manner, the Chief County Assessment Officer may extend |
29 |
| the filing
deadline for a period of 3 months. In order to |
30 |
| receive the extension provided
in this paragraph, the applicant |
31 |
| shall provide the Chief County Assessment
Officer with a signed |
32 |
| statement from the applicant's physician stating the
nature and |
33 |
| extent of the condition, and that, in the physician's opinion, |
34 |
| the
condition was so severe that it rendered the applicant |
35 |
| incapable of filing the
application in a timely manner.
|
36 |
| For purposes of this Section, a person who will be 65 years |
|
|
|
HB5538 |
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LRB094 17204 BDD 52493 b |
|
|
1 |
| of age during the
current taxable year shall be eligible to |
2 |
| apply for the homestead exemption
under this Section during |
3 |
| that taxable year. Application shall be made during
the |
4 |
| application
period in effect for the county of his or her |
5 |
| residence.
|
6 |
| The Chief County Assessment Officer may determine the |
7 |
| eligibility of a life
care facility that qualifies as a |
8 |
| cooperative to receive the benefits
provided by this Section by |
9 |
| use of an affidavit, application, visual
inspection, |
10 |
| questionnaire, or other reasonable method in order to insure |
11 |
| that
the tax savings resulting from the exemption are credited |
12 |
| by the management
firm to the apportioned tax liability of each |
13 |
| qualifying resident. The Chief
County Assessment Officer may |
14 |
| request reasonable proof that the management firm
has so |
15 |
| credited that exemption.
|
16 |
| Except as provided in this Section, all information |
17 |
| received by the chief
county assessment officer or the |
18 |
| Department from applications filed under this
Section, or from |
19 |
| any investigation conducted under the provisions of this
|
20 |
| Section, shall be confidential, except for official purposes or
|
21 |
| pursuant to official procedures for collection of any State or |
22 |
| local tax or
enforcement of any civil or criminal penalty or |
23 |
| sanction imposed by this Act or
by any statute or ordinance |
24 |
| imposing a State or local tax. Any person who
divulges any such |
25 |
| information in any manner, except in accordance with a proper
|
26 |
| judicial order, is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
|
27 |
| Nothing contained in this Section shall prevent the |
28 |
| Director or chief county
assessment officer from publishing or |
29 |
| making available reasonable statistics
concerning the |
30 |
| operation of the exemption contained in this Section in which
|
31 |
| the contents of claims are grouped into aggregates in such a |
32 |
| way that
information contained in any individual claim shall |
33 |
| not be disclosed.
|
34 |
| (d) Each Chief County Assessment Officer shall annually |
35 |
| publish a notice
of availability of the exemption provided |
36 |
| under this Section. The notice
shall be published at least 60 |
|
|
|
HB5538 |
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LRB094 17204 BDD 52493 b |
|
|
1 |
| days but no more than 75 days prior to the date
on which the |
2 |
| application must be submitted to the Chief County Assessment
|
3 |
| Officer of the county in which the property is located. The |
4 |
| notice shall
appear in a newspaper of general circulation in |
5 |
| the county.
|
6 |
| (e) Notwithstanding Sections 6 and 8 of the State Mandates |
7 |
| Act, no
reimbursement by the State is required for the |
8 |
| implementation of any mandate
created by
this Section.
|
9 |
| Section 90. The State Mandates Act is amended by adding |
10 |
| Section 8.30 as
follows:
|
11 |
| (30 ILCS 805/8.30 new)
|
12 |
| Sec. 8.30. Exempt mandate. Notwithstanding Sections 6 and 8 |
13 |
| of this
Act, no reimbursement by the State is required for the |
14 |
| implementation of
any mandate created by this amendatory Act of |
15 |
| the 94th General Assembly.
|
16 |
| Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon |
17 |
| becoming law. |