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1 | AN ACT concerning taxes.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
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3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 5. The Property Tax Code is amended by changing | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
5 | Section 15-172 as follows:
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6 | (35 ILCS 200/15-172)
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7 | Sec. 15-172. Senior Citizens Assessment Freeze Homestead | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
8 | Exemption.
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9 | (a) This Section may be cited as the Senior Citizens | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
10 | Assessment
Freeze Homestead Exemption.
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11 | (b) As used in this Section:
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12 | "Adjusted household income" means household income minus | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
13 | legitimate medical expenses.
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14 | "Applicant" means an individual who has filed an | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
15 | application under this
Section.
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16 | "Base amount" means the base year equalized assessed value | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
17 | of the residence
plus the first year's equalized assessed value | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
18 | of any added improvements which
increased the assessed value of | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
19 | the residence after the base year.
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20 | "Base year" means the taxable year prior to the taxable | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
21 | year for which the
applicant first qualifies and applies for | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
22 | the exemption provided that in the
prior taxable year the | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
23 | property was improved with a permanent structure that
was | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
24 | occupied as a residence by the applicant who was liable for | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
25 | paying real
property taxes on the property and who was either | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
26 | (i) an owner of record of the
property or had legal or | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
27 | equitable interest in the property as evidenced by a
written | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
28 | instrument or (ii) had a legal or equitable interest as a | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
29 | lessee in the
parcel of property that was single family | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
30 | residence.
If in any subsequent taxable year for which the | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
31 | applicant applies and
qualifies for the exemption the equalized | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
32 | assessed value of the residence is
less than the equalized |
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1 | assessed value in the existing base year
(provided that such | ||||||
2 | equalized assessed value is not
based
on an
assessed value that | ||||||
3 | results from a temporary irregularity in the property that
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4 | reduces the
assessed value for one or more taxable years), then | ||||||
5 | that
subsequent taxable year shall become the base year until a | ||||||
6 | new base year is
established under the terms of this paragraph. | ||||||
7 | For taxable year 1999 only, the
Chief County Assessment Officer | ||||||
8 | shall review (i) all taxable years for which
the
applicant | ||||||
9 | applied and qualified for the exemption and (ii) the existing | ||||||
10 | base
year.
The assessment officer shall select as the new base | ||||||
11 | year the year with the
lowest equalized assessed value.
An | ||||||
12 | equalized assessed value that is based on an assessed value | ||||||
13 | that results
from a
temporary irregularity in the property that | ||||||
14 | reduces the assessed value for one
or more
taxable years shall | ||||||
15 | not be considered the lowest equalized assessed value.
The | ||||||
16 | selected year shall be the base year for
taxable year 1999 and | ||||||
17 | thereafter until a new base year is established under the
terms | ||||||
18 | of this paragraph.
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19 | "Chief County Assessment Officer" means the County | ||||||
20 | Assessor or Supervisor of
Assessments of the county in which | ||||||
21 | the property is located.
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22 | "Equalized assessed value" means the assessed value as | ||||||
23 | equalized by the
Illinois Department of Revenue.
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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.
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27 | "Household income" means the combined income of the members | ||||||
28 | of a household
for the calendar year preceding the taxable | ||||||
29 | year.
| ||||||
30 | "Income" has the same meaning as provided in Section 3.07 | ||||||
31 | of the Senior
Citizens and Disabled Persons Property Tax Relief | ||||||
32 | and Pharmaceutical Assistance
Act, except that, beginning in | ||||||
33 | assessment year 2001, "income" does not
include veteran's | ||||||
34 | benefits.
| ||||||
35 | "Internal Revenue Code of 1986" means the United States | ||||||
36 | Internal Revenue Code
of 1986 or any successor law or laws |
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| |||||||
1 | relating to federal income taxes in effect
for the year | ||||||
2 | preceding the taxable year.
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3 | "Legitimate medical expenses" are any medical expenses | ||||||
4 | paid by the applicant or a member of the applicant's household | ||||||
5 | during the calendar year preceding the taxable year that are | ||||||
6 | deductible as individual medical expenses under the federal | ||||||
7 | Internal Revenue Code.
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8 | "Life care facility that qualifies as a cooperative" means | ||||||
9 | a facility as
defined in Section 2 of the Life Care Facilities | ||||||
10 | Act.
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11 | "Residence" means the principal dwelling place and | ||||||
12 | appurtenant structures
used for residential purposes in this | ||||||
13 | State occupied on January 1 of the
taxable year by a household | ||||||
14 | and so much of the surrounding land, constituting
the parcel | ||||||
15 | upon which the dwelling place is situated, as is used for
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16 | residential purposes. If the Chief County Assessment Officer | ||||||
17 | has established a
specific legal description for a portion of | ||||||
18 | property constituting the
residence, then that portion of | ||||||
19 | property shall be deemed the residence for the
purposes of this | ||||||
20 | Section.
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21 | "Taxable year" means the calendar year during which ad | ||||||
22 | valorem property taxes
payable in the next succeeding year are | ||||||
23 | levied.
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24 | (c) Beginning in taxable year 1994, a senior citizens | ||||||
25 | assessment freeze
homestead exemption is granted for real | ||||||
26 | property that is improved with a
permanent structure that is | ||||||
27 | occupied as a residence by an applicant who (i) is
65 years of | ||||||
28 | age or older during the taxable year, (ii) has a household | ||||||
29 | income
of $35,000 or less prior to taxable year 1999 or $40,000 | ||||||
30 | or less in taxable
years
year 1999 through 2003, or has an | ||||||
31 | adjusted household income of $40,000 or less in taxable years | ||||||
32 | 2004 and thereafter, (iii) is liable for paying real property | ||||||
33 | taxes on
the
property, and (iv) is an owner of record of the | ||||||
34 | property or has a legal or
equitable interest in the property | ||||||
35 | as evidenced by a written instrument. This
homestead exemption | ||||||
36 | shall also apply to a leasehold interest in a parcel of
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1 | property improved with a permanent structure that is a single | ||||||
2 | family residence
that is occupied as a residence by a person | ||||||
3 | who (i) is 65 years of age or older
during the taxable year, | ||||||
4 | (ii) has a household income of $35,000 or less prior
to taxable | ||||||
5 | year 1999 or $40,000 or less in taxable years
year 1999 through | ||||||
6 | 2003, or has an adjusted household income of $40,000 or less in | ||||||
7 | taxable years 2004 and thereafter,
(iii)
has a legal or | ||||||
8 | equitable ownership interest in the property as lessee, and | ||||||
9 | (iv)
is liable for the payment of real property taxes on that | ||||||
10 | property.
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11 | The amount of this exemption shall be the equalized | ||||||
12 | assessed value of the
residence in the taxable year for which | ||||||
13 | application is made minus the base
amount.
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14 | When the applicant is a surviving spouse of an applicant | ||||||
15 | for a prior year for
the same residence for which an exemption | ||||||
16 | under this Section has been granted,
the base year and base | ||||||
17 | amount for that residence are the same as for the
applicant for | ||||||
18 | the prior year.
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19 | Each year at the time the assessment books are certified to | ||||||
20 | the County Clerk,
the Board of Review or Board of Appeals shall | ||||||
21 | give to the County Clerk a list
of the assessed values of | ||||||
22 | improvements on each parcel qualifying for this
exemption that | ||||||
23 | were added after the base year for this parcel and that
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24 | increased the assessed value of the property.
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25 | In the case of land improved with an apartment building | ||||||
26 | owned and operated as
a cooperative or a building that is a | ||||||
27 | life care facility that qualifies as a
cooperative, the maximum | ||||||
28 | reduction from the equalized assessed value of the
property is | ||||||
29 | limited to the sum of the reductions calculated for each unit
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30 | occupied as a residence by a person or persons 65 years of age | ||||||
31 | or older with a
household income of $35,000 or less prior to | ||||||
32 | taxable year 1999 or $40,000 or
less in taxable years
year 1999 | ||||||
33 | through 2003, or has an adjusted household income of $40,000 or | ||||||
34 | less in taxable years 2004 and thereafter who is liable, by | ||||||
35 | contract with the
owner
or owners of record, for paying real | ||||||
36 | property taxes on the property and who is
an owner of record of |
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1 | a legal or equitable interest in the cooperative
apartment | ||||||
2 | building, other than a leasehold interest. In the instance of a
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3 | cooperative where a homestead exemption has been granted under | ||||||
4 | this Section,
the cooperative association or its management | ||||||
5 | firm shall credit the savings
resulting from that exemption | ||||||
6 | only to the apportioned tax liability of the
owner who | ||||||
7 | qualified for the exemption. Any person who willfully refuses | ||||||
8 | to
credit that savings to an owner who qualifies for the | ||||||
9 | exemption is guilty of a
Class B misdemeanor.
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10 | When a homestead exemption has been granted under this | ||||||
11 | Section and an
applicant then becomes a resident of a facility | ||||||
12 | licensed under the Nursing Home
Care Act, the exemption shall | ||||||
13 | be granted in subsequent years so long as the
residence (i) | ||||||
14 | continues to be occupied by the qualified applicant's spouse or
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15 | (ii) if remaining unoccupied, is still owned by the qualified | ||||||
16 | applicant for the
homestead exemption.
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17 | Beginning January 1, 1997, when an individual dies who | ||||||
18 | would have qualified
for an exemption under this Section, and | ||||||
19 | the surviving spouse does not
independently qualify for this | ||||||
20 | exemption because of age, the exemption under
this Section | ||||||
21 | shall be granted to the surviving spouse for the taxable year
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22 | preceding and the taxable
year of the death, provided that, | ||||||
23 | except for age, the surviving spouse meets
all
other | ||||||
24 | qualifications for the granting of this exemption for those | ||||||
25 | years.
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26 | When married persons maintain separate residences, the | ||||||
27 | exemption provided for
in this Section may be claimed by only | ||||||
28 | one of such persons and for only one
residence.
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29 | For taxable year 1994 only, in counties having less than | ||||||
30 | 3,000,000
inhabitants, to receive the exemption, a person shall | ||||||
31 | submit an application by
February 15, 1995 to the Chief County | ||||||
32 | Assessment Officer
of the county in which the property is | ||||||
33 | located. In counties having 3,000,000
or more inhabitants, for | ||||||
34 | taxable year 1994 and all subsequent taxable years, to
receive | ||||||
35 | the exemption, a person may submit an application to the Chief | ||||||
36 | County
Assessment Officer of the county in which the property |
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1 | is located during such
period as may be specified by the Chief | ||||||
2 | County Assessment Officer. The Chief
County Assessment Officer | ||||||
3 | in counties of 3,000,000 or more inhabitants shall
annually | ||||||
4 | give notice of the application period by mail or by | ||||||
5 | publication. In
counties having less than 3,000,000 | ||||||
6 | inhabitants, beginning with taxable year
1995 and thereafter, | ||||||
7 | to receive the exemption, a person shall submit an
application | ||||||
8 | by July 1 of each taxable year to the Chief County Assessment
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9 | Officer of the county in which the property is located. A | ||||||
10 | county may, by
ordinance, establish a date for submission of | ||||||
11 | applications that is
different than
July 1.
The applicant shall | ||||||
12 | submit with the
application an affidavit of the applicant's | ||||||
13 | total household income (beginning with taxable year 2004, | ||||||
14 | adjusted household income) , age,
marital status (and if married | ||||||
15 | the name and address of the applicant's spouse,
if known), and | ||||||
16 | principal dwelling place of members of the household on January
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17 | 1 of the taxable year. The Department shall establish, by rule, | ||||||
18 | a method for
verifying the accuracy of affidavits filed by | ||||||
19 | applicants under this Section.
The applications shall be | ||||||
20 | clearly marked as applications for the Senior
Citizens | ||||||
21 | Assessment Freeze Homestead Exemption.
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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 30 days after the applicant | ||||||
30 | regains the capability to file the
application, but in no case | ||||||
31 | may the filing deadline be extended beyond 3
months of the | ||||||
32 | original filing deadline. In order to receive the extension
| ||||||
33 | provided in this paragraph, the applicant shall provide the | ||||||
34 | Chief County
Assessment Officer with a signed statement from | ||||||
35 | the applicant's physician
stating the nature and extent of the | ||||||
36 | condition, that, in the
physician's opinion, the condition was |
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1 | so severe that it rendered the applicant
incapable of filing | ||||||
2 | the application in a timely manner, and the date on which
the | ||||||
3 | applicant regained the capability to file the application.
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4 | Beginning January 1, 1998, notwithstanding any other | ||||||
5 | provision to the
contrary, in counties having fewer than | ||||||
6 | 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an applicant
fails to file the | ||||||
7 | application required by this Section in a timely manner and
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8 | this failure to file is due to a mental or physical condition | ||||||
9 | sufficiently
severe so as to render the applicant incapable of | ||||||
10 | filing the application in a
timely manner, the Chief County | ||||||
11 | Assessment Officer may extend the filing
deadline for a period | ||||||
12 | of 3 months. In order to receive the extension provided
in this | ||||||
13 | paragraph, the applicant shall provide the Chief County | ||||||
14 | Assessment
Officer with a signed statement from the applicant's | ||||||
15 | physician stating the
nature and extent of the condition, and | ||||||
16 | that, in the physician's opinion, the
condition was so severe | ||||||
17 | that it rendered the applicant incapable of filing the
| ||||||
18 | application in a timely manner.
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19 | In counties having less than 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an | ||||||
20 | applicant was
denied an exemption in taxable year 1994 and the | ||||||
21 | denial occurred due to an
error on the part of an assessment
| ||||||
22 | official, or his or her agent or employee, then beginning in | ||||||
23 | taxable year 1997
the
applicant's base year, for purposes of | ||||||
24 | determining the amount of the exemption,
shall be 1993 rather | ||||||
25 | than 1994. In addition, in taxable year 1997, the
applicant's | ||||||
26 | exemption shall also include an amount equal to (i) the amount | ||||||
27 | of
any exemption denied to the applicant in taxable year 1995 | ||||||
28 | as a result of using
1994, rather than 1993, as the base year, | ||||||
29 | (ii) the amount of any exemption
denied to the applicant in | ||||||
30 | taxable year 1996 as a result of using 1994, rather
than 1993, | ||||||
31 | as the base year, and (iii) the amount of the exemption | ||||||
32 | erroneously
denied for taxable year 1994.
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33 | For purposes of this Section, a person who will be 65 years | ||||||
34 | of age during the
current taxable year shall be eligible to | ||||||
35 | apply for the homestead exemption
during that taxable year. | ||||||
36 | Application shall be made during the application
period in |
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1 | effect for the county of his or her residence.
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2 | The Chief County Assessment Officer may determine the | ||||||
3 | eligibility of a life
care facility that qualifies as a | ||||||
4 | cooperative to receive the benefits
provided by this Section by | ||||||
5 | use of an affidavit, application, visual
inspection, | ||||||
6 | questionnaire, or other reasonable method in order to insure | ||||||
7 | that
the tax savings resulting from the exemption are credited | ||||||
8 | by the management
firm to the apportioned tax liability of each | ||||||
9 | qualifying resident. The Chief
County Assessment Officer may | ||||||
10 | request reasonable proof that the management firm
has so | ||||||
11 | credited that exemption.
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12 | Except as provided in this Section, all information | ||||||
13 | received by the chief
county assessment officer or the | ||||||
14 | Department from applications filed under this
Section, or from | ||||||
15 | any investigation conducted under the provisions of this
| ||||||
16 | Section, shall be confidential, except for official purposes or
| ||||||
17 | pursuant to official procedures for collection of any State or | ||||||
18 | local tax or
enforcement of any civil or criminal penalty or | ||||||
19 | sanction imposed by this Act or
by any statute or ordinance | ||||||
20 | imposing a State or local tax. Any person who
divulges any such | ||||||
21 | information in any manner, except in accordance with a proper
| ||||||
22 | judicial order, is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
| ||||||
23 | Nothing contained in this Section shall prevent the | ||||||
24 | Director or chief county
assessment officer from publishing or | ||||||
25 | making available reasonable statistics
concerning the | ||||||
26 | operation of the exemption contained in this Section in which
| ||||||
27 | the contents of claims are grouped into aggregates in such a | ||||||
28 | way that
information contained in any individual claim shall | ||||||
29 | not be disclosed.
| ||||||
30 | (d) Each Chief County Assessment Officer shall annually | ||||||
31 | publish a notice
of availability of the exemption provided | ||||||
32 | under this Section. The notice
shall be published at least 60 | ||||||
33 | days but no more than 75 days prior to the date
on which the | ||||||
34 | application must be submitted to the Chief County Assessment
| ||||||
35 | Officer of the county in which the property is located. The | ||||||
36 | notice shall
appear in a newspaper of general circulation in |
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1 | the county.
| ||||||
2 | (Source: P.A. 90-14, eff. 7-1-97; 90-204, eff. 7-25-97; 90-523, | ||||||
3 | eff.
11-13-97; 90-524, eff. 1-1-98; 90-531, eff. 1-1-98; | ||||||
4 | 90-655, eff. 7-30-98;
91-45, eff. 6-30-99; 91-56, eff. 6-30-99; | ||||||
5 | 91-819, eff. 6-13-00.)
| ||||||
6 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||||||
7 | becoming law.
|