103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
HB3544

 

Introduced 2/17/2023, by Rep. Amy L. Grant

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
5 ILCS 100/5-45.35 new
35 ILCS 5/240 new

    Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act. Creates an income tax credit for custodians of qualifying pupils for eligible education expenses related to online learning, including computers, printers, internet access, textbooks, tutors, and educational facilitators. Provides for an additional credit if the custodian is also an eligible teacher. Creates an income tax credit for employers of custodians of qualifying pupils for eligible expenditures paid by the employer on behalf of the custodian. Provides that the credit is exempt from the Act's automatic sunset provision. Amends the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act to provide for emergency rulemaking. Effective immediately.


LRB103 29743 HLH 56149 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB3544LRB103 29743 HLH 56149 b

1    AN ACT concerning revenue.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 3. The Illinois Administrative Procedure Act is
5amended by adding Section 5-45.35 as follows:
 
6    (5 ILCS 100/5-45.35 new)
7    Sec. 5-45.35. Emergency rulemaking. To provide for the
8expeditious and timely implementation of Section 232 of the
9Illinois Income Tax Act, emergency rules implementing that
10Section may be adopted in accordance with Section 5-45 by the
11Department of Revenue. The adoption of emergency rules
12authorized by Section 5-45 and this Section is deemed to be
13necessary for the public interest, safety, and welfare.
14    This Section is repealed on January 1, 2028.
 
15    Section 5. The Illinois Income Tax Act is amended by
16adding Section 240 as follows:
 
17    (35 ILCS 5/240 new)
18    Sec. 240. Remote learning education expense credit.
19    (a) The COVID-19 pandemic has created challenges for
20students and their families in the areas of child care, school
21attendance, school access, and the like.

 

 

HB3544- 2 -LRB103 29743 HLH 56149 b

1    This Section is intended to (i) assist students and
2families who are unable follow their normal school routine as
3a consequence of orders of the Department of Public Health
4relating to COVID-19, (ii) additionally support classroom
5instructors so that they can maximize time and opportunities
6for in-person instruction, and (iii) incentivize employers to
7accommodate working parents.
8    Because the nature and types of hardships experienced by
9school districts, parents, and students are wide and varied,
10the most efficient way to deliver relief that can be tailored
11to the particular individuals' needs is through an income tax
12credit.
13    The General Assembly finds that it will be costly and
14burdensome to the State of Illinois if parents must choose to
15become unemployed due to a lack of accommodation based on the
16inability of students to attend school in person.
17    (b) As used in this Section, the following words shall
18have the following meanings unless the context clearly
19requires otherwise, and shall be construed expansively in
20favor of the taxpayer for expenditures made in good faith
21wherever possible:
22    "Custodian" means, with respect to qualifying pupils, an
23Illinois resident who is a parent, the parents, a legal
24guardian, or the legal guardians of the qualifying pupils.
25    "COVID-19" means the illness caused by the coronavirus
26SARS-CoV-2.

 

 

HB3544- 3 -LRB103 29743 HLH 56149 b

1    "Educational activities" means any aspect of a qualifying
2pupil's education, including, but not limited to classroom
3instruction, remote learning and blended remote learning
4instruction, special education support, and tutoring and
5mentoring.
6    "Eligible expenditure" means costs by a custodian of a
7qualifying pupil or an employer associated with:
8        (1) the purchase of materials to support online
9    learning, including but not limited to, a personal
10    computer with internet access; a router or hotspot;
11    monthly expenses for internet access; a printer and
12    supportive accessories (print cartridge, toner); textbooks
13    and other supplies needed for education, up to a maximum
14    of $500 for the taxable year; and the costs of educational
15    activities;
16        (2) securing, for a qualifying pupil who is under the
17    age of 15, child care, independent tutoring, an
18    educational facilitator (whether individually or as part
19    of a learning pod, provided that the facilitator fee is
20    distributed pro rata per student), homeschool instruction,
21    alternative classroom instruction, or specialized services
22    relating to learning or behavioral issues identified in an
23    Individualized Education Program and the like, up to a
24    maximum of $5,000 per taxable year per household or per
25    child, whichever is less; and
26        (3) compliance with a mandatory 2-week quarantine

 

 

HB3544- 4 -LRB103 29743 HLH 56149 b

1    period associated with COVID-19, whether imposed by an
2    employer, the State of Illinois, or a county health
3    department, including the costs of testing, clinical
4    support, and vaccination (if available), up to $3,000 per
5    year.
6    "Eligible expenditure adjustment" means the eligible
7expenditure reduced by 25%. The eligible expenditure
8adjustment shall apply for any parent or household that had an
9adjusted gross income for the taxable year of over $150,000
10for an individual and $300,000 for spouses filing a joint
11return.
12    "Eligible teacher" means an individual licensed under
13Article 21B of the School Code who is teaching at the school
14grade level of kindergarten through grade 12 and is also the
15custodian of a qualifying pupil under the age of 14 who cannot
16attend school anywhere within the custodian's school district
17for in-person instruction on a regular school day.
18    "Qualifying pupil" means an individual who (i) is a
19resident of the State of Illinois, (ii) is under the age of 21
20at the close of the school year for which a credit is sought,
21and (iii) during the school year for which a credit is sought,
22was a full-time pupil enrolled in a kindergarten through grade
2312 education program at any school, as defined in this
24Section.
25    "Regular school day" means the calendar days Monday
26through Friday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., which occur on the day

 

 

HB3544- 5 -LRB103 29743 HLH 56149 b

1after Labor Day but before Memorial Day, but not any official
2government holidays within that time period.
3    "School" means any public or nonpublic elementary or
4secondary school in Illinois that is in compliance with Title
5VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and attendance at which
6satisfies the requirements of Section 26-1 of the School Code,
7except that nothing shall be construed to require a child to
8attend any particular public or nonpublic school to qualify
9for the credit under this Section.
10    (c) For taxable years beginning on or after January 1,
112023, a taxpayer who is a custodian of a qualifying pupil is
12eligible to receive a nonrefundable credit against the taxes
13imposed by subsections (a) and (b) of Section 201 in an amount
14equal to 100% of the eligible expenditures (as adjusted by the
15eligible expenditure adjustment, if applicable), subject to
16the maximum allowable credits under this Section. Eligible
17teachers are eligible for an additional $75 credit per week,
18not to exceed $2,000 per year, if the eligible teacher's
19qualifying pupil cannot attend in-person instruction because
20of orders involving the Department of Public Health, a county
21health department, or the State Board of Education relating to
22COVID-19.
23    The credit under this Section shall not apply to
24expenditures incurred after orders preventing in-person
25instruction for the qualifying pupil are lifted. No taxpayer
26shall be entitled to claim a tax credit under this Section for

 

 

HB3544- 6 -LRB103 29743 HLH 56149 b

1the same eligible expenditures claimed by another taxpayer. If
22 or more custodians claim tax credits for the same qualified
3pupil, the total of which exceeds the amounts in this
4subsection, then the total amount of the credit allowed shall
5be allocated in amounts proportionate to teach eligible
6taxpayer's share of the total amount of the eligible
7expenditures for the eligible qualifying pupil.
8    The employer of a custodian of a qualifying pupil is also
9entitled to a credit against the taxes imposed by subsections
10(a) and (b) of Section 201 in an amount equal to 100% of the
11eligible expenditures paid by the employer on behalf of the
12custodian of the qualifying pupil, but not to exceed a maximum
13in each taxable year of $2,000 for each employee on whose
14behalf an expenditure is made, plus 50% of the maximum
15unemployment insurance payment that the employer would
16otherwise pay to the State under the Unemployment Insurance
17Act for that employee.
18    (d) The Department of Revenue and the State Board of
19Education shall jointly adopt rules, including emergency
20rules, for the implementation of this Section.
21    (e) The Department of Revenue shall annually, no later
22than November 1, file a report with the Governor and the
23General Assembly and publish on the Department of Revenue's
24website the total amount of tax credits claimed under this
25Section and the total number of taxpayers who received the
26credit for the preceding fiscal year.

 

 

HB3544- 7 -LRB103 29743 HLH 56149 b

1    (f) This Section is exempt from the provisions of Section
2250.
 
3    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
4becoming law.