Full Text of SB1365 99th General Assembly
SB1365 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2015 and 2016 SB1365 Introduced 2/18/2015, by Sen. Pat McGuire SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: |
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35 ILCS 200/21-310 |
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35 ILCS 200/21-315 |
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35 ILCS 200/21-330 |
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35 ILCS 200/21-385 |
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Amends the Property Tax Code. In provisions concerning sales in error, provides that the court may declare a sale in error only prior to the application for a tax deed. In cases where a sale in error is ordered because a bankruptcy petition has been filed, provides that those provisions apply only if the petition is active at the time of sale. Provides that, in cases where improvements upon the property sold have been substantially
destroyed or rendered uninhabitable or otherwise unfit for occupancy, the court may order assignment of the certificate of purchase to the delinquent county tax agent instead of declaring a sale in error. Provides that the fee for the issuance of a certificate of purchase shall be up to $100 (currently, $60). Provides that interest
on the refund of the amount paid
for a certificate of purchase shall be the lesser of 1% per month or the percentage increase in the Consumer Price Index (currently, 1% per month).
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| | FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY | | HOUSING AFFORDABILITY IMPACT NOTE ACT MAY APPLY |
| | A BILL FOR |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning revenue.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 5. The Property Tax Code is amended by changing | 5 | | Sections 21-310, 21-315, 21-330, and 21-385 as follows:
| 6 | | (35 ILCS 200/21-310)
| 7 | | Sec. 21-310. Sales in error.
| 8 | | (a) When, upon application of the county collector, the | 9 | | owner of the
certificate of purchase, or a
municipality which | 10 | | owns or has owned the property ordered sold, and prior to the | 11 | | application for a tax deed, it appears to
the satisfaction of | 12 | | the court which ordered the property sold that any of the
| 13 | | following subsections are applicable, the court shall declare | 14 | | the sale to be a
sale in error:
| 15 | | (1) the property was not subject to taxation, or all or | 16 | | any part of the
lien of taxes sold has become null and void | 17 | | pursuant to Section 21-95
or unenforceable pursuant to | 18 | | subsection (c) of Section 18-250 or subsection
(b) of | 19 | | Section 22-40,
| 20 | | (2) the taxes or special assessments had been paid | 21 | | prior to the sale of
the property,
| 22 | | (3) there is a double assessment,
| 23 | | (4) the description is void for uncertainty,
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| 1 | | (5) the assessor, chief county assessment officer, | 2 | | board of review,
board of appeals, or other county official | 3 | | has made an error (other than an
error of judgment as to
| 4 | | the value of any property),
| 5 | | (5.5) the owner of the homestead property had tendered | 6 | | timely and full
payment to the county collector that the | 7 | | owner reasonably believed was due and
owing on the | 8 | | homestead property, and the county collector did not apply | 9 | | the
payment to the homestead property; provided that this | 10 | | provision applies only to
homeowners, not their agents or | 11 | | third-party payors,
| 12 | | (6) prior to the tax sale a voluntary or involuntary | 13 | | petition has been
filed by or against the legal or | 14 | | beneficial owner of the property requesting
relief under | 15 | | the provisions of 11 U.S.C. Chapter 7, 11, 12, or 13 , and | 16 | | that petition is active at the time of sale ,
| 17 | | (7) the property is owned by the United States, the | 18 | | State of Illinois,
a municipality, or a
taxing district, or | 19 | | (8) the owner of the property is a reservist or | 20 | | guardsperson who is granted an extension of his or her due | 21 | | date under Sections 21-15, 21-20, and 21-25 of this Act.
| 22 | | (b) When, upon application of the owner of the certificate | 23 | | of purchase
only, it appears to the satisfaction of the court | 24 | | which ordered the property
sold that any of the following | 25 | | subsections are applicable, the court shall
declare the sale to | 26 | | be a sale in error:
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| 1 | | (1) A voluntary or involuntary petition under the | 2 | | provisions of 11
U.S.C. Chapter 7, 11, 12, or 13 has been | 3 | | filed
subsequent to the tax sale and prior to the issuance | 4 | | of the tax deed , and that petition is active at the time of | 5 | | sale .
| 6 | | (2) The improvements upon the property sold have been | 7 | | substantially
destroyed or rendered uninhabitable or | 8 | | otherwise unfit for occupancy subsequent
to the tax sale | 9 | | and prior to the issuance of the tax deed ; however, if the | 10 | | application is made under this paragraph (2), the court may | 11 | | order assignment of the certificate of purchase to the | 12 | | delinquent county tax agent, if requested by the county | 13 | | collector, instead of declaring a sale in error .
| 14 | | (3) There is an interest held by the United States in | 15 | | the property sold
which could not be extinguished by the | 16 | | tax deed.
| 17 | | (4) The real property contains a hazardous
substance, | 18 | | hazardous waste, or underground storage tank that would
| 19 | | require cleanup or other removal under any federal,
State, | 20 | | or local law, ordinance, or regulation, only if the tax | 21 | | purchaser
purchased the property without actual knowledge | 22 | | of the hazardous substance,
hazardous waste, or | 23 | | underground storage tank. This paragraph (4) applies only | 24 | | if the owner of the
certificate of purchase has made | 25 | | application for a sale in error at any time
before the | 26 | | issuance of a tax deed.
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| 1 | | Whenever a court declares a sale in error under this | 2 | | subsection (b), the court shall promptly notify the county | 3 | | collector in writing. | 4 | | (c) When the county collector discovers, prior to the | 5 | | expiration of the period of redemption, that a tax sale
should | 6 | | not have occurred for one or more of the reasons set forth in
| 7 | | subdivision (a)(1), (a)(2), (a)(6), or (a)(7) of this Section, | 8 | | the county
collector shall notify the last known owner of the | 9 | | certificate of purchase by
certified and regular mail, or other | 10 | | means reasonably calculated to provide
actual notice, that the | 11 | | county collector intends to declare an administrative
sale in | 12 | | error and of the reasons therefor, including documentation | 13 | | sufficient
to establish the reason why the sale should not have | 14 | | occurred. The owner of the
certificate of purchase may object | 15 | | in writing within 28 days after the date of
the mailing by the | 16 | | county collector. If an objection is filed, the county
| 17 | | collector shall not administratively declare a sale in error, | 18 | | but may apply to
the circuit court for a sale in error as | 19 | | provided in subsection (a) of this
Section. Thirty days | 20 | | following the receipt of notice by the last known owner of
the | 21 | | certificate of purchase, or within a reasonable time | 22 | | thereafter, the county
collector shall make a written | 23 | | declaration, based upon clear and convincing
evidence, that the | 24 | | taxes were sold in error and shall deliver a copy thereof to
| 25 | | the county clerk within 30 days after the date the declaration | 26 | | is made for
entry in the tax judgment, sale, redemption, and |
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| 1 | | forfeiture record pursuant to
subsection (d) of this Section. | 2 | | The county collector shall promptly notify the
last known owner | 3 | | of the certificate of purchase of the declaration by regular
| 4 | | mail and shall promptly pay the amount of the tax sale, | 5 | | together with interest
and costs as provided in Section 21-315, | 6 | | upon surrender of the original
certificate of purchase.
| 7 | | (d) If a sale is declared to be a sale in error, the county
| 8 | | clerk shall make entry in the tax judgment, sale, redemption | 9 | | and
forfeiture record, that the property was erroneously sold, | 10 | | and the county
collector shall, on demand of the owner of the | 11 | | certificate of purchase, refund
the amount paid, pay any | 12 | | interest and costs as may be ordered under Sections
21-315 | 13 | | through 21-335, and cancel the certificate so far as it relates | 14 | | to the
property. The county collector shall deduct from the | 15 | | accounts of the
appropriate taxing bodies their pro rata | 16 | | amounts paid. Alternatively, for sales in error declared under | 17 | | subsection (b), the county collector may request the circuit | 18 | | court to direct the county clerk to assign the tax certificate | 19 | | to the county delinquent tax agent without charging a fee for | 20 | | the assignment. The owner of the certificate of purchase shall | 21 | | receive all statutory refunds and payments as if a sale in | 22 | | error had occurred. The county collector shall deduct costs and | 23 | | payments in the same manner as if a sale in error had occurred. | 24 | | The county delinquent tax agent may further extend the | 25 | | redemption period by an additional 12 months in order to | 26 | | proceed with filing a petition for tax deed.
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| 1 | | (Source: P.A. 94-312, eff. 7-25-05; 94-662, eff. 1-1-06; | 2 | | 95-331, eff. 8-21-07.)
| 3 | | (35 ILCS 200/21-315)
| 4 | | Sec. 21-315. Refund of costs; interest on refund.
| 5 | | (a) If a sale in
error under Section 21-310, 22-35, or | 6 | | 22-50
is declared, the amount refunded
shall also include all | 7 | | costs paid by the owner of the
certificate of
purchase or his | 8 | | or her assignor which were posted to the tax judgment, sale,
| 9 | | redemption and forfeiture record.
| 10 | | (b) In those cases which arise solely under grounds set | 11 | | forth in Section
21-310, the amount refunded shall also include
| 12 | | interest
on the refund of the amount paid
for the certificate | 13 | | of purchase, except as otherwise provided in this Section.
| 14 | | Interest shall be awarded and paid to the tax purchaser at the | 15 | | rate of the lesser of 1% per
month or the percentage increase | 16 | | in the Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumers during the | 17 | | 12-month calendar year preceding the levy year for which the | 18 | | refund was made, as published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor | 19 | | Statistics, from the date of sale to the date of payment, or in | 20 | | an amount equivalent
to the penalty interest which would be | 21 | | recovered on a redemption at the time of
payment pursuant to | 22 | | the order for sale in error, whichever is less. Interest
shall | 23 | | not be paid when the sale in error is made pursuant to | 24 | | paragraph (2) or
(4) of
subsection (b) of Section 21-310, | 25 | | Section 22-35, Section 22-50, any ground
not enumerated in |
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| 1 | | Section 21-310, or in any other case where the court
determines | 2 | | that the
tax purchaser had actual knowledge prior to the sale | 3 | | of the grounds on which
the sale is declared to be erroneous.
| 4 | | (c) When the county collector files a petition for sale in | 5 | | error under
Section 21-310 and mails a notice thereof by
| 6 | | certified or registered mail to the
last known owner of the | 7 | | certificate of purchase, any interest otherwise
payable under | 8 | | this Section shall cease to accrue as of the date the
petition | 9 | | is filed, unless the tax purchaser agrees to an order for sale | 10 | | in
error upon the presentation of the petition to the court. | 11 | | Notices under
this subsection may be mailed to the last known | 12 | | owner of the
certificate of
purchase. When the
owner of the | 13 | | certificate of purchase contests the collector's petition
| 14 | | solely to determine whether the grounds for sale in error are | 15 | | such as to
support a claim for interest, the court may direct | 16 | | that the principal
amount of the refund be paid to the owner of | 17 | | the certificate of purchase
forthwith. If the court thereafter | 18 | | determines that a claim for interest
lies under this Section, | 19 | | it shall award such interest from the date of sale
to the date | 20 | | the principal amount was paid. If the owner of the certificate | 21 | | of purchase files an objection to the county collector's | 22 | | intention to declare an administrative sale in error, as | 23 | | provided under subsection (c) of Section 21-310, and, | 24 | | thereafter, the county collector elects to apply to the circuit | 25 | | court for a sale in error under subsection (a) of Section | 26 | | 21-310, then, if the circuit court grants the county |
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| 1 | | collector's application for a sale in error, the court may not | 2 | | award interest to the owner of the certificate of purchase for | 3 | | the period after the mailing date of the county collector's | 4 | | notice of intention to declare an administrative sale in error.
| 5 | | (Source: P.A. 94-662, eff. 1-1-06.)
| 6 | | (35 ILCS 200/21-330)
| 7 | | Sec. 21-330. Fund for payment of interest. In counties of | 8 | | under 3,000,000
inhabitants, the county board may impose a fee | 9 | | of up to $100 $60 , which shall be
paid
to the county collector, | 10 | | upon each person purchasing any property at a sale
held under | 11 | | this Code, prior to the issuance of any certificate of | 12 | | purchase.
Each person purchasing
any
property at a sale held | 13 | | under this Code in a county with 3,000,000 or more
inhabitants | 14 | | shall pay to the county collector,
prior to the issuance of any | 15 | | certificate of purchase, a fee of $100 for each
item purchased. | 16 | | That amount shall be included in the
price paid for the | 17 | | certificate of purchase and the amount required to redeem
under | 18 | | Section 21-355.
| 19 | | All sums of money received under this Section shall be paid | 20 | | by the
collector to the county treasurer of the county in which | 21 | | the property is
situated for deposit into a special fund. It
| 22 | | shall be the duty of the county treasurer, as trustee of the | 23 | | fund, to
invest the principal and income of the fund from time | 24 | | to time, if not
immediately required for payments under this | 25 | | Section, in investments as are
authorized by Sections 3-10009 |
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| 1 | | and 3-11002 of the Counties Code. The fund
shall be held to pay | 2 | | interest and costs
by the county treasurer as trustee of the | 3 | | fund. No payment shall be made
from the fund except by order of | 4 | | the court declaring a sale in error under
Section 21-310, | 5 | | 22-35, or 22-50
or by declaration of the county collector under | 6 | | subsection (c) of Section
21-310.
Any moneys accumulated in the | 7 | | fund by the county treasurer in excess of (i) $100,000 in | 8 | | counties with 250,000 or less inhabitants or (ii) $500,000 in | 9 | | counties with more than 250,000 inhabitants shall be paid each | 10 | | year prior to the commencement of the
annual tax sale, first to | 11 | | satisfy
any existing unpaid judgments entered pursuant to | 12 | | Section 21-295, and any funds
remaining thereafter shall be | 13 | | paid to the general fund of the county.
| 14 | | (Source: P.A. 94-362, eff. 7-29-05.)
| 15 | | (35 ILCS 200/21-385)
| 16 | | Sec. 21-385. Extension of period of redemption. The
| 17 | | purchaser or his or her assignee of property
sold for | 18 | | nonpayment of general taxes or special assessments may extend
| 19 | | the period of redemption at any time before the expiration of | 20 | | the
original period of redemption, or thereafter prior to the | 21 | | expiration of any
extended period of redemption, for a period | 22 | | which will expire not later than 3
years from the date of sale, | 23 | | by filing with the county clerk of
the county in which the | 24 | | property is located a written notice to that
effect describing | 25 | | the property, stating the date of the sale and
specifying the |
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| 1 | | extended period of redemption. If prior to the
expiration of | 2 | | the period of redemption or extended period of redemption
a | 3 | | petition for tax deed has been filed under Section
22-30, upon | 4 | | application of the petitioner, the court shall allow the
| 5 | | purchaser or his or her assignee to extend the period of | 6 | | redemption after
expiration of the original period or any | 7 | | extended period of redemption,
provided that any extension | 8 | | allowed will expire not later than 3 years from the
date of | 9 | | sale , unless the certificate has been assigned to a county | 10 | | delinquent tax agent by the court which ordered the property | 11 | | sold, in which case the period of redemption may be extended up | 12 | | to an additional 12 months but no later than 4 years from the | 13 | | date of sale . If the period of redemption is extended, the | 14 | | purchaser or his or
her assignee must give the notices provided | 15 | | for in Section 22-10 at the
specified times prior to the | 16 | | expiration of the extended period of redemption by
causing a | 17 | | sheriff (or if he or she is disqualified, a coroner) of the | 18 | | county in
which the property, or any part thereof, is located | 19 | | to serve the notices as
provided in Sections 22-15 and 22-20.
| 20 | | The notices may also be served as provided in Sections 22-15 | 21 | | and 22-20 by a
special process server appointed by the court | 22 | | under Section 22-15.
| 23 | | (Source: P.A. 91-209, eff. 1-1-00; 91-554, eff. 8-14-99.)
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