103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2023 and 2024
SB2027

 

Introduced 2/9/2023, by Sen. Laura M. Murphy

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
New Act

    Creates the Vacancy Fraud Act. Provides that the board of review in a county with 3,000,000 or more inhabitants has the power to review complaints of vacancy fraud related to property in that county. Provides that a property owner, or the agent of a property owner, commits vacancy fraud when he or she knowingly makes one or more false statements or representations to a chief county assessment officer, the board of review, or any other trier of fact, for the purpose of obtaining an enhanced vacancy reduction. Provides that an enhanced vacancy reduction means an enhanced abatement of taxes or a reduction in property taxes by a chief county assessment officer, the board of review, or a taxing district, based on full or partial vacancy of the property, under an ordinance of the county or taxing district, a resolution of the county or taxing district, or a policy of the county or taxing district. Effective immediately.


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A BILL FOR

 

SB2027LRB103 29543 HLH 55938 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 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5Vacancy Fraud Act.
 
6    Section 5. Public policy. There is a practice in Cook
7County that allows commercial properties to receive an
8enhanced reduction in their property taxes based on full or
9partial vacancy. The abuse of this practice can have a
10devastating impact on neighborhood business districts and
11local communities. In recognition of the crucial need to
12reduce commercial vacancies in local communities and the
13economic circumstances of taxpayers and taxing districts, the
14General Assembly finds that property owners that make false
15statements to procure or attempt to procure enhanced
16reductions in property taxes, on a specific property, should
17be precluded from seeking future reductions for that property
18and should be required to pay the civil penalties set forth in
19this Act. Adopting this policy, which will discourage property
20owners from making false statements to obtain enhanced
21reductions in their property taxes based on vacancy, will
22foster economic development in disadvantaged communities,
23reduce blight, and support commercial corridors.
 

 

 

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1    Section 10. Applicability. This Act applies to property
2located in a county with 3,000,000 or more inhabitants.
 
3    Section 15. Definitions. As used in this Act:
4    "Board of review" means the board of review of the county
5in which the property is located.
6    "Enhanced vacancy reduction" means an enhanced abatement
7of taxes or a reduction in property taxes by a chief county
8assessment officer, the board of review, or a taxing district,
9based on full or partial vacancy of the property, under an
10ordinance of the county or taxing district, a resolution of
11the county or taxing district, or a policy of the county or
12taxing district.
13    "Taxing district" means any unit of local government that
14has the power to levy property taxes, any school district, or
15any community college district.
16    "Unit of local government has the meaning given to that
17term in Section 1 of Article VII of the Constitution of the
18State of Illinois.
19    "Vacancy fraud" means any instance of an action that
20constitutes vacancy fraud under Section 25.
21    "Vacant property" means property that is receiving an
22enhanced vacancy reduction.
 
23    Section 20. Vacancy fraud complaints.

 

 

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1    (a) The board of review has the power to review complaints
2of vacancy fraud if the vacancy fraud is alleged to have
3occurred within 5 years before the filing of the complaint.
4    (b) Any taxing district in which the vacant property is
5located, or any representative of that taxing district, any
6chief county assessment officer, or the owner of any property
7that is located in the same taxing district as the vacant
8property may file a complaint alleging that the owner of the
9vacant property, or an agent of the owner, engaged in vacancy
10fraud or attempted to engage in vacancy fraud. The complaint
11shall be in writing and shall comply with the rules adopted by
12the board of review for the purpose of submitting vacancy
13fraud complaints.
14    (c) Prior to filing a vacancy fraud complaint, the party
15alleging vacancy fraud shall serve on the titleholder of
16record a notice of intent to file a vacancy fraud complaint on
17a form prescribed by rule of the board of review. The notice
18shall disclose the common name and address of the property and
19shall provide a short statement of the nature of the evidence
20that will be submitted in support of the allegation of vacancy
21fraud. This notice shall be served by first class mail,
22postage prepaid.
23    (d) A vacancy fraud complaint must include a certificate
24of service of the notice of intent to file a vacancy fraud
25complaint required under this Section. The certificate of
26service shall be made on a form prescribed by rule of the board

 

 

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1of review.
2    (e) If a complaint is filed by an attorney on behalf of a
3taxpayer, all notices and correspondence from the board shall
4be directed to the attorney. The board may require proof of the
5attorney's authority to represent the taxpayer. If the
6attorney fails to provide proof of authority within the
7compliance period granted by the board, the board of review
8may dismiss the complaint. The board of review shall send,
9electronically or by mail, notice of the dismissal to the
10attorney and taxpayer.
11    (f) Upon receipt of a written complaint that is timely
12filed, the board of review shall docket the complaint. If the
13complaint does not comply with the board of review rules
14entitling the complainant to a hearing, the board or review
15shall send, electronically or by mail, notification
16acknowledging receipt of the complaint. The notification must
17identify which rules have not been complied with and provide
18the complainant with not less than 10 business days to bring
19the complaint into compliance with those rules. If the
20complainant complies with the board of review rules either
21upon the initial filing of a complaint or within the time as
22extended by the board of review for compliance, then the board
23of review shall send, electronically or by mail, a notice of
24hearing and the board of review shall hear the complaint and
25shall issue and send, electronically or by mail, a decision.
26Except as otherwise provided, if the complainant has not

 

 

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1complied with the rules within the time as extended by the
2board of review, the board or review shall dismiss the
3complaint without prejudice. The board of review may adopt
4rules allowing any party to attend and participate in a
5hearing virtually, by phone or electronically. The party
6alleging vacancy fraud shall cause duplicate notice of the
7hearing date to be provided to the titleholder of record.
8    (g) The board of review may consolidate validly docketed
9complaints related to the same property for the same time
10period, provided that each complainant shall have an
11opportunity to separately address the board of review in the
12course of resolving the complaint. No complainant in a
13consolidated complaint shall have their complaint dismissed on
14the basis of actions taken or statements made by another
15complainant.
 
16    Section 25. Actions constituting vacancy fraud. Statements
17or representations that are knowingly made by an owner, or an
18agent of an owner, to a chief county assessment officer, board
19of review, or other trier of fact during the process of
20requesting an enhanced vacancy reduction that are (i)
21demonstrably false or (ii) contradict statements or
22representations made by or on behalf of the same owner or agent
23of an owner, to an actual or prospective lender to, investor
24in, or insurer of the property about the value or condition of
25the same property constitute vacancy fraud.
 

 

 

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1    Section 30. Adjudication of vacancy fraud complaints.
2    (a) No board of review shall make a declaration or issue a
3decision about vacancy fraud until the owner and the chief
4county assessment officer have been notified of the complaint
5and have been given an opportunity to address the board of
6review in response to the complaint.
7    (b) If the majority of the members of the board of review
8agree that a specific statement, representation, or act by an
9owner of a property or an owner's agent constitutes vacancy
10fraud, then those members of the board or review shall declare
11which specific statement, statements, representations,
12representations, act, or acts in the complaint constitute
13vacancy fraud. If the property owner obtained an enhanced
14reduction of their property tax bill as a result of such
15vacancy fraud, or attempted to obtain an enhanced reduction of
16their property tax bill as a result of said vacancy fraud, then
17the board of review shall declare that the owner has committed
18vacancy fraud.
19    (c) A decision by the board of review that an owner
20committed vacancy fraud may be appealed to the circuit court
21of the county in which the board of review has jurisdiction in
22the same manner as other determinations by the board of
23review.
 
24    Section 35. Penalties.

 

 

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1    (a) A person who is found by the board of review to have
2committed vacancy fraud is subject to the following penalties:
3        (1) a civil penalty equaling 2 times the total amount
4    of a reduction in property taxes received because of the
5    vacancy fraud; and
6        (2) a 3-year prohibition on the property owner
7    receiving an enhanced vacancy reduction for the subject
8    property.
9    (b) These penalties shall first be paid to the appropriate
10taxing districts. The remaining funds shall be split equally
11between the board of review and the chief county assessment
12officer's office to pay for the costs of administering claims
13of vacancy fraud.
 
14    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
15becoming law.