SB3139 93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB093 20360 RCE 46128 b

93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2003 and 2004
SB3139

Introduced 2/6/2004, by Chris Lauzen

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

25 ILCS 130/1-3	from Ch. 63, par. 1001-3
25 ILCS 130/1-5	from Ch. 63, par. 1001-5
25 ILCS 130/Art. 4A heading new
25 ILCS 130/4A-1 new
35 ILCS 5/917	from Ch. 120, par. 9-917

Amends the Legislative Commission Reorganization Act of 1984. Creates the Illinois Tax Policy Commission as a legislative support services agency. Creates a board with legislative and public members. Provides for the Commission to study and evaluate tax policy and to make reports. Requires changes in tax laws to be submitted to and considered by the Commission. Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act to allow Commission members and staff to receive tax-related data that is otherwise confidential. Effective January 1, 2005.

FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning tax policy

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Legislative Commission Reorganization Act of 1984 is amended by changing Sections 1-3 and 1-5 and by adding the heading of Article 4A and Section 4A-1 as follows:

(25 ILCS 130/1-3) (from Ch. 63, par. 1001-3)

Sec. 1-3. Legislative support services agencies. The Joint Committee on Legislative Support Services is responsible for establishing general policy and coordinating activities among the legislative support services agencies. The legislative support services agencies include the following:

(1) Joint Committee on Administrative Rules;

(2) Illinois Economic and Fiscal Commission;

(3) Legislative Information System;

(4) Legislative Reference Bureau;

(5) Legislative Audit Commission;

(6) Legislative Printing Unit;

(7) Legislative Research Unit; and

(8) Office of the Architect of the Capitol; and .

(9) Illinois Tax Policy Commission.

(Source: P.A. 93-632, eff. 2-1-04.)

(25 ILCS 130/1-5) (from Ch. 63, par. 1001-5)

Sec. 1-5. Composition of agencies; directors.

(a)(1) Each legislative support services agency listed in Section 1-3 is hereafter in this Section referred to as the Agency.

(2) (Blank).

(2.1) (Blank).

(2.5) The Board of the Office of the Architect of the Capitol shall consist of the Secretary and Assistant Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk and Assistant Clerk of the House of Representatives.

(2.6) The Illinois Tax Policy Commission shall consist of 12 members. The Joint Committee shall appoint 8 members to include the following: 2 tax managers from corporations doing business in Illinois; 2 tax managers from partnerships, subchapter S corporations, limited liability companies, or sole proprietorships doing business in Illinois; 2 Illinois individual income taxpayers; and 2 academic economists from colleges and universities located in Illinois. The 4 remaining members shall be members of the General Assembly, of whom one shall be appointed by the President of the Senate, one by the Minority Leader of the Senate, one by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and one by the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives. All appointments shall be in writing and filed with the Secretary of State as a public record. Members of the Tax Policy Commission must be appointed during the month of January in each odd-numbered year for 2-year terms beginning February 1. Any vacancy on the Commission shall be filled by appointment for the balance of the term in the same manner as the original appointment. A vacancy shall exist when a public member no longer holds the respective position held at the time of the appointment or at the termination of a legislative member's term of office.

(3) The other legislative support services agencies shall each consist of 12 members of the General Assembly, of whom 3 shall be appointed by the President of the Senate, 3 shall be appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate, 3 shall be appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and 3 shall be appointed by the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives. All appointments shall be in writing and filed with the Secretary of State as a public record.

Members shall serve a 2-year term, and must be appointed by the Joint Committee during the month of January in each odd-numbered year for terms beginning February 1. Any vacancy in an Agency shall be filled by appointment for the balance of the term in the same manner as the original appointment. A vacancy shall exist when a member no longer holds the elected legislative office held at the time of the appointment or at the termination of the member's legislative service.

(b) (Blank).

(c) During the month of February of each odd-numbered year, the Joint Committee on Legislative Support Services shall select from the members of each agency, other than the Office of the Architect of the Capitol, 2 co-chairmen and such other officers as the Joint Committee deems necessary. The co-chairmen of each Agency shall serve for a 2-year term, beginning February 1 of the odd-numbered year, and the 2 co-chairmen shall not be members of or identified with the same house or the same political party. The co-chairmen of the Board of the Office of the Architect of the Capitol shall be the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of Representatives, each ex officio. The co-chairmen for the Illinois Tax Policy Commission shall be selected from among the 4 appointed members of the Illinois General Assembly.

Each Agency, except the Illinois Tax Policy Commission, shall meet twice annually or more often upon the call of the chair or any 9 members (or any 3 members in the case of the Office of the Architect of the Capitol). A quorum of the Agency shall consist of a majority of the appointed members.

The Illinois Tax Policy Commission shall meet quarterly, or more often upon the call of the chair or any 9 members. A quorum of the Agency shall consist of a majority of the appointed members.

(d) Members of each Agency shall serve without compensation, but shall be reimbursed for expenses incurred in carrying out the duties of the Agency pursuant to rules and regulations adopted by the Joint Committee on Legislative Support Services.

(e) Beginning February 1, 1985, and every 2 years thereafter, the Joint Committee shall select an Executive Director who shall be the chief executive officer and staff director of each Agency. The Executive Director shall receive a salary as fixed by the Joint Committee and shall be authorized to employ and fix the compensation of necessary professional, technical and secretarial staff and prescribe their duties, sign contracts, and issue vouchers for the payment of obligations pursuant to rules and regulations adopted by the Joint Committee on Legislative Support Services. The Executive Director and other employees of the Agency shall not be subject to the Personnel Code.

The executive director of the Office of the Architect of the Capitol shall be known as the Architect of the Capitol.

(Source: P.A. 93-632, eff. 2-1-04.)

(25 ILCS 130/Art. 4A heading new)

ARTICLE 4A.

(25 ILCS 130/4A-1 new)

Sec. 4A-1. Illinois Tax Policy Commission.

(a) The Illinois Tax Policy Commission is hereby established as a legislative support services agency. The Commission is subject to the provisions of this Act. It shall have the powers, duties, and functions that may be provided by law.

(b) The Commission shall, in cooperation with the Illinois Economic and Fiscal Commission and the Illinois Department of Revenue, make a continuing study of the laws, rules, and practices pertaining to the various State and local tax laws and related requirements for individual taxpayers and business taxpayers.

(c) The Commission shall evaluate existing laws, rules, and practices and shall review and make recommendations on proposed changes to those laws, rules, and practices.

(d) The Commission shall report to the General Assembly annually or as it deems necessary or useful on the results of its studies and the performance of its duties.

(e) The Commission may request assistance from any other entity, including but not limited to the Illinois Economic and Fiscal Commission, the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, and the Illinois Department of Revenue, necessary or useful for the performance of its duties.

(f) Upon successful completion of any background investigation required of then current Department of Revenue employees and upon signing a confidentiality statement under the penalty of perjury, members and staff of the Illinois Tax Policy Commission may receive tax-related data otherwise not available under State and federal confidentiality limitations. Any such data that is disclosed must be necessary for the comprehensive research and analysis of tax laws and any proposed changes to those laws.

(g) All proposed legislation to create or change a tax exemption, credit, or deduction, as well as any proposed legislation to increase or decrease the rate of any tax imposed or collected under the auspices of the Illinois Department of Revenue, including but not limited to the Illinois Income Tax Act, the Retailer's Occupation Tax Act, the Use Tax Act, the Service Use Tax Act, and the Service Occupation Tax Act, must be submitted to and considered and analyzed by the Illinois Tax Policy Commission. To demonstrate completion of its deliberation, the Commission shall issue a report of its findings, by majority vote of the Commission.

Section 10. The Illinois Income Tax Act is amended by changing Section 917 as follows:

(35 ILCS 5/917) (from Ch. 120, par. 9-917)

Sec. 917. Confidentiality and information sharing.

(a) Confidentiality. Except as provided in this Section, all information received by the Department from returns filed under this Act, or from any investigation conducted under the provisions of this Act, shall be confidential, except for official purposes within the Department or pursuant to official procedures for collection of any State tax or pursuant to an investigation or audit by the Illinois State Scholarship Commission of a delinquent student loan or monetary award or enforcement of any civil or criminal penalty or sanction imposed by this Act or by another statute imposing a State tax, and any person who divulges any such information in any manner, except for such purposes and pursuant to order of the Director or in accordance with a proper judicial order, shall be guilty of a Class A misdemeanor. However, the provisions of this paragraph are not applicable to information furnished to a licensed attorney representing the taxpayer where an appeal or a protest has been filed on behalf of the taxpayer.

(b) Public information. Nothing contained in this Act shall prevent the Director from publishing or making available to the public the names and addresses of persons filing returns under this Act, or from publishing or making available reasonable statistics concerning the operation of the tax wherein the contents of returns are grouped into aggregates in such a way that the information contained in any individual return shall not be disclosed.

(c) Governmental agencies. The Director may make available to the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States or his delegate, or the proper officer or his delegate of any other state imposing a tax upon or measured by income, for exclusively official purposes, information received by the Department in the administration of this Act, but such permission shall be granted only if the United States or such other state, as the case may be, grants the Department substantially similar privileges. The Director may exchange information with the Illinois Department of Public Aid and the Department of Human Services (acting as successor to the Department of Public Aid under the Department of Human Services Act) for the purpose of verifying sources and amounts of income and for other purposes directly connected with the administration of this Act and the Illinois Public Aid Code. The Director may exchange information with the Director of the Department of Employment Security for the purpose of verifying sources and amounts of income and for other purposes directly connected with the administration of this Act and Acts administered by the Department of Employment Security. The Director may make available to the Illinois Industrial Commission information regarding employers for the purpose of verifying the insurance coverage required under the Workers' Compensation Act and Workers' Occupational Diseases Act.

The Director may make available to any State agency, including the Illinois Supreme Court, which licenses persons to engage in any occupation, information that a person licensed by such agency has failed to file returns under this Act or pay the tax, penalty and interest shown therein, or has failed to pay any final assessment of tax, penalty or interest due under this Act. The Director may make available to any State agency, including the Illinois Supreme Court, information regarding whether a bidder, contractor, or an affiliate of a bidder or contractor has failed to file returns under this Act or pay the tax, penalty, and interest shown therein, or has failed to pay any final assessment of tax, penalty, or interest due under this Act, for the limited purpose of enforcing bidder and contractor certifications. For purposes of this Section, the term "affiliate" means any entity that (1) directly, indirectly, or constructively controls another entity, (2) is directly, indirectly, or constructively controlled by another entity, or (3) is subject to the control of a common entity. For purposes of this subsection (a), an entity controls another entity if it owns, directly or individually, more than 10% of the voting securities of that entity. As used in this subsection (a), the term "voting security" means a security that (1) confers upon the holder the right to vote for the election of members of the board of directors or similar governing body of the business or (2) is convertible into, or entitles the holder to receive upon its exercise, a security that confers such a right to vote. A general partnership interest is a voting security.

The Director may make available to any State agency, including the Illinois Supreme Court, units of local government, and school districts, information regarding whether a bidder or contractor is an affiliate of a person who is not collecting and remitting Illinois Use taxes, for the limited purpose of enforcing bidder and contractor certifications.

The Director may also make available to the Secretary of State information that a corporation which has been issued a certificate of incorporation by the Secretary of State has failed to file returns under this Act or pay the tax, penalty and interest shown therein, or has failed to pay any final assessment of tax, penalty or interest due under this Act. An assessment is final when all proceedings in court for review of such assessment have terminated or the time for the taking thereof has expired without such proceedings being instituted. For taxable years ending on or after December 31, 1987, the Director may make available to the Director or principal officer of any Department of the State of Illinois, information that a person employed by such Department has failed to file returns under this Act or pay the tax, penalty and interest shown therein. For purposes of this paragraph, the word "Department" shall have the same meaning as provided in Section 3 of the State Employees Group Insurance Act of 1971.

Subject to the provisions of Section 4A-1 of the Legislative Commission Reorganization Act of 1984, the Director shall make available to qualified members and staff of the Illinois Tax Policy Commission all information necessary for the purposes set forth in that Section 4A-1.

(d) The Director shall make available for public inspection in the Department's principal office and for publication, at cost, administrative decisions issued on or after January 1, 1995. These decisions are to be made available in a manner so that the following taxpayer information is not disclosed:

(1) The names, addresses, and identification numbers of the taxpayer, related entities, and employees.

(2) At the sole discretion of the Director, trade secrets or other confidential information identified as such by the taxpayer, no later than 30 days after receipt of an administrative decision, by such means as the Department shall provide by rule.

The Director shall determine the appropriate extent of the deletions allowed in paragraph (2). In the event the taxpayer does not submit deletions, the Director shall make only the deletions specified in paragraph (1).

The Director shall make available for public inspection and publication an administrative decision within 180 days after the issuance of the administrative decision. The term "administrative decision" has the same meaning as defined in Section 3-101 of Article III of the Code of Civil Procedure. Costs collected under this Section shall be paid into the Tax Compliance and Administration Fund.

(e) Nothing contained in this Act shall prevent the Director from divulging information to any person pursuant to a request or authorization made by the taxpayer, by an authorized representative of the taxpayer, or, in the case of information related to a joint return, by the spouse filing the joint return with the taxpayer.

(Source: P.A. 93-25, eff. 6-20-03.)

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January 1, 2005.