State of Illinois
90th General Assembly
Legislation

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90_HB0988

      65 ILCS 5/8-11-2          from Ch. 24, par. 8-11-2
          Amends  the  Illinois  Municipal  Code.  Authorizes   the
      corporate  authorities  of  any  municipality  to tax persons
      engaged in the business of (i) transmitting images  by  means
      of  electricity,  radio magnetic waves, or fiber optics, (ii)
      distributing, supplying, furnishing, or selling gas  for  use
      or  consumption  and  not  for  resale,  (iii)  distributing,
      supplying,  furnishing,  or  selling  electricity  for use or
      consumption  and  not  for  resale,  or  (iv)   distributing,
      supplying,   furnishing,   or   selling   water  for  use  or
      consumption and not for resale, in an  amount  based  on  the
      number   of   installations   the   person   has  within  the
      municipality.
                                                     LRB9002507PTcw
                                               LRB9002507PTcw
 1        AN ACT to amend the Illinois Municipal Code  by  changing
 2    Section 8-11-2.
 3        Be  it  enacted  by  the People of the State of Illinois,
 4    represented in the General Assembly:
 5        Section 5.  The Illinois Municipal  Code  is  amended  by
 6    changing Section 8-11-2 as follows:
 7        (65 ILCS 5/8-11-2) (from Ch. 24, par. 8-11-2)
 8        Sec.    8-11-2.  The   corporate   authorities   of   any
 9    municipality may tax any or all of the following  occupations
10    or privileges:
11             1.  Persons  engaged in the business of transmitting
12        messages by means of electricity or radio magnetic waves,
13        or fiber optics, at a rate not to exceed 5% of the  gross
14        receipts   from  that  business  originating  within  the
15        corporate limits of the municipality.
16             2.  Persons engaged in the business of distributing,
17        supplying,  furnishing,  or  selling  gas  for   use   or
18        consumption within the corporate limits of a municipality
19        of  500,000 or fewer population, and not for resale, at a
20        rate not to exceed 5% of the gross receipts therefrom.
21             2a.  Persons   engaged   in    the    business    of
22        distributing,  supplying,  furnishing, or selling gas for
23        use or consumption  within  the  corporate  limits  of  a
24        municipality  of  over  500,000  population,  and not for
25        resale, at a rate not to exceed 8% of the gross  receipts
26        therefrom.  If imposed, this tax shall be paid in monthly
27        payments.
28             3.  Persons engaged in the business of distributing,
29        supplying,  furnishing, or selling electricity for use or
30        consumption  within   the   corporate   limits   of   the
31        municipality, and not for resale, at a rate not to exceed
                            -2-                LRB9002507PTcw
 1        5% of the gross receipts therefrom.
 2             4.  Persons engaged in the business of distributing,
 3        supplying,  furnishing,  or  selling  water  for  use  or
 4        consumption   within   the   corporate   limits   of  the
 5        municipality, and not for resale, at a rate not to exceed
 6        5% of the gross receipts therefrom.
 7             5.  Persons  engaged  in   the   business   of   (i)
 8        transmitting  messages  by  means  of  electricity, radio
 9        magnetic  waves,  or  fiber  optics,  (ii)  distributing,
10        supplying,  furnishing,  or  selling  gas  for   use   or
11        consumption  and  not  for  resale,  (iii)  distributing,
12        supplying,  furnishing, or selling electricity for use or
13        consumption and not for  resale,  or  (iv)  distributing,
14        supplying,  furnishing,  or  selling  water  for  use  or
15        consumption and not for resale, in an amount based on the
16        number   of  installations  the  person  has  within  the
17        municipality.
18        None of the taxes  authorized  by  this  Section  may  be
19    imposed   with  respect  to  any  transaction  in  interstate
20    commerce or otherwise to the extent to which the business may
21    not, under  the  constitution  and  statutes  of  the  United
22    States,  be made the subject of taxation by this State or any
23    political sub-division thereof; nor shall any persons engaged
24    in the business of distributing,  supplying,  furnishing,  or
25    selling  gas,  water,  or  electricity,  or  engaged  in  the
26    business  of  transmitting  messages  be  subject to taxation
27    under the provisions of this Section for  those  transactions
28    that  are  or  may  become  subject  to  taxation  under  the
29    provisions  of  the "Municipal Retailers' Occupation Tax Act"
30    authorized by Section 8-11-1; nor shall any tax authorized by
31    this Section be imposed upon any person engaged in a business
32    unless the tax is imposed in like manner and at the same rate
33    upon all persons engaged in businesses of the same  class  in
34    the  municipality,  whether privately or municipally owned or
                            -3-                LRB9002507PTcw
 1    operated.
 2        Any of the taxes enumerated in this  Section  may  be  in
 3    addition  to  the  payment  of money, or value of products or
 4    services furnished to the municipality  by  the  taxpayer  as
 5    compensation  for  the  use  of its streets, alleys, or other
 6    public  places,  or  installation  and  maintenance  therein,
 7    thereon  or  thereunder  of  poles,  wires,  pipes  or  other
 8    equipment used in the operation of the taxpayer's business.
 9        (a)  If  the  corporate  authorities  of  any  home  rule
10    municipality have adopted an ordinance that imposed a tax  on
11    public  utility  customers, between July 1, 1971, and October
12    1, 1981, on the good faith belief that they  were  exercising
13    authority  pursuant  to  Section 6 of Article VII of the 1970
14    Illinois  Constitution,  that   action   of   the   corporate
15    authorities    shall    be    declared   legal   and   valid,
16    notwithstanding a  later  decision  of  a  judicial  tribunal
17    declaring  the  ordinance  invalid.  No municipality shall be
18    required to rebate, refund, or issue credits  for  any  taxes
19    described  in this paragraph, and those taxes shall be deemed
20    to have been levied and  collected  in  accordance  with  the
21    Constitution and laws of this State.
22        (b)  In  any case in which (i) prior to October 19, 1979,
23    the corporate authorities of any municipality have adopted an
24    ordinance imposing a tax authorized by this  Section  (or  by
25    the predecessor provision of the "Revised Cities and Villages
26    Act")  and  have  explicitly or in practice interpreted gross
27    receipts to include either charges added to customers'  bills
28    pursuant  to  the provision of paragraph (a) of Section 36 of
29    the Public Utilities Act or charges added to customers' bills
30    by taxpayers who are not subject to rate  regulation  by  the
31    Illinois  Commerce  Commission  for the purpose of recovering
32    any of the tax liabilities or other amounts specified in such
33    paragraph (a) of Section 36 of that Act, and (ii) on or after
34    October 19, 1979, a judicial  tribunal  has  construed  gross
                            -4-                LRB9002507PTcw
 1    receipts  to  exclude  all  or  part  of  those charges, then
 2    neither those municipality nor any taxpayer who paid the  tax
 3    shall be required to rebate, refund, or issue credits for any
 4    tax  imposed  or  charge collected from customers pursuant to
 5    the municipality's interpretation prior to October 19,  1979.
 6    This  paragraph  reflects a legislative finding that it would
 7    be contrary to the public interest to require a  municipality
 8    or  its  taxpayers to refund taxes or charges attributable to
 9    the municipality's more  inclusive  interpretation  of  gross
10    receipts  prior  to  October 19, 1979, and is not intended to
11    prescribe or limit judicial construction of this Section. The
12    legislative finding set forth in  this  subsection  does  not
13    apply  to  taxes  imposed  after  the  effective date of this
14    amendatory Act of 1995.
15        (c)  (Blank).
16        (d)  For the purpose of  the  taxes  enumerated  in  this
17    Section:
18        "Gross receipts" means the consideration received for the
19    transmission  of  messages,  the  consideration  received for
20    distributing, supplying, furnishing or selling gas for use or
21    consumption  and  not  for  resale,  and  the   consideration
22    received  for  distributing, supplying, furnishing or selling
23    electricity for use or consumption and not  for  resale,  and
24    the   consideration  received  for  distributing,  supplying,
25    furnishing or selling water for use or  consumption  and  not
26    for  resale,  and  for  all  services  rendered in connection
27    therewith valued in  money,  whether  received  in  money  or
28    otherwise,  including  cash, credit, services and property of
29    every  kind  and  material  and  for  all  services  rendered
30    therewith, and shall be determined without any  deduction  on
31    account  of  the  cost of transmitting such messages, without
32    any deduction on account of the cost of the service,  product
33    or  commodity  supplied, the cost of materials used, labor or
34    service  cost,  or  any  other  expenses  whatsoever.  "Gross
                            -5-                LRB9002507PTcw
 1    receipts" shall not include that portion of the consideration
 2    received for distributing, supplying, furnishing, or  selling
 3    gas,  electricity,  or  water  to, or for the transmission of
 4    messages for, business enterprises described in paragraph (e)
 5    of this Section to the extent and during the period in  which
 6    the exemption authorized by paragraph (e) is in effect or for
 7    school  districts  or  units of local government described in
 8    paragraph (f)  during  the  period  in  which  the  exemption
 9    authorized in paragraph  (f) is in effect.
10        For  utility  bills  issued  on or after May 1, 1996, but
11    before May 1, 1997,  and  for  receipts  from  those  utility
12    bills,  "gross  receipts"  does  not include one-third of (i)
13    amounts added to customers' bills under Section 9-222 of  the
14    Public  Utilities  Act,  or  (ii) amounts added to customers'
15    bills by taxpayers who are not subject to rate regulation  by
16    the   Illinois   Commerce   Commission  for  the  purpose  of
17    recovering any of the tax liabilities  described  in  Section
18    9-222  of  the Public Utilities Act. For utility bills issued
19    on or after May 1, 1997, but before  May  1,  1998,  and  for
20    receipts  from those utility bills, "gross receipts" does not
21    include two-thirds of (i) amounts added to  customers'  bills
22    under  Section  9-222  of  the  Public Utilities Act, or (ii)
23    amount added to customers' bills by  taxpayers  who  are  not
24    subject   to   rate   regulation  by  the  Illinois  Commerce
25    Commission for the purpose  of  recovering  any  of  the  tax
26    liabilities   described   in  Section  9-222  of  the  Public
27    Utilities Act. For utility bills issued on or  after  May  1,
28    1998,  and  for  receipts  from  those  utility bills, "gross
29    receipts" does not include (i) amounts  added  to  customers'
30    bills  under  Section  9-222  of the Public Utilities Act, or
31    (ii) amounts added to customers' bills by taxpayers  who  are
32    not  subject  to  rate  regulation  by  the Illinois Commerce
33    Commission for the purpose  of  recovering  any  of  the  tax
34    liabilities   described   in  Section  9-222  of  the  Public
                            -6-                LRB9002507PTcw
 1    Utilities Act.
 2        For purposes of this Section "gross receipts"  shall  not
 3    include  (i)  amounts added to customers' bills under Section
 4    9-221 of the Public Utilities Act, or (ii) charges  added  to
 5    customers'  bills  to recover the surcharge imposed under the
 6    Emergency  Telephone  System  Act.  This  paragraph  is   not
 7    intended  to  nor  does  it make any change in the meaning of
 8    "gross receipts" for the purposes of  this  Section,  but  is
 9    intended  to  remove possible ambiguities, thereby confirming
10    the  existing  meaning  of  "gross  receipts"  prior  to  the
11    effective date of this amendatory Act of 1995.
12        The words "transmitting messages",  in  addition  to  the
13    usual  and popular meaning of person to person communication,
14    shall  include  the  furnishing,  for  a  consideration,   of
15    services or facilities (whether owned or leased), or both, to
16    persons in connection with the transmission of messages where
17    those  persons  do not, in turn, receive any consideration in
18    connection therewith, but shall not include  such  furnishing
19    of  services or facilities to persons for the transmission of
20    messages to the extent that any such services  or  facilities
21    for   the  transmission  of  messages  are  furnished  for  a
22    consideration, by those persons to  other  persons,  for  the
23    transmission of messages.
24        "Person"  as  used  in  this  Section  means  any natural
25    individual, firm, trust,  estate,  partnership,  association,
26    joint  stock company, joint adventure, corporation, municipal
27    corporation or political subdivision  of  this  State,  or  a
28    receiver, trustee, guardian or other representative appointed
29    by order of any court.
30        "Public utility" shall have the meaning ascribed to it in
31    Section  3-105  of the Public Utilities Act and shall include
32    telecommunications carriers as defined in Section  13-202  of
33    that Act.
34        In  the  case  of  persons  engaged  in  the  business of
                            -7-                LRB9002507PTcw
 1    transmitting messages through the use  of  mobile  equipment,
 2    such   as  cellular  phones  and  paging  systems,  the gross
 3    receipts from the  business  shall  be  deemed  to  originate
 4    within  the  corporate  limits  of a municipality only if the
 5    address to which the bills for the service are sent is within
 6    those corporate limits. If,  however,  that  address  is  not
 7    located  within  a municipality that imposes a tax under this
 8    Section, then (i) if the party responsible for  the  bill  is
 9    not an individual, the gross receipts from the business shall
10    be  deemed  to  originate  within the corporate limits of the
11    municipality where that party's principal place  of  business
12    in Illinois is located, and (ii) if the party responsible for
13    the  bill  is  an  individual,  the  gross  receipts from the
14    business shall be deemed to originate  within  the  corporate
15    limits  of  the  municipality  where  that  party's principal
16    residence in Illinois is located.
17        (e)  Any municipality  that  imposes  taxes  upon  public
18    utilities  pursuant  to this Section whose territory includes
19    any part  of  an  enterprise  zone  or  federally  designated
20    Foreign Trade Zone or Sub-Zone may, by a majority vote of its
21    corporate  authorities,  exempt from those taxes for a period
22    not exceeding 20 years  any  specified  percentage  of  gross
23    receipts   of   public   utilities   received  from  business
24    enterprises that:
25             (1)  either (i)  make  investments  that  cause  the
26        creation of a minimum of 200 full-time equivalent jobs in
27        Illinois   or   (ii)  make  investments  that  cause  the
28        retention  of  a  minimum  of  1,000  full-time  jobs  in
29        Illinois; and
30             (2)  are either (i) located in  an  Enterprise  Zone
31        established  pursuant to the Illinois Enterprise Zone Act
32        or (ii) Department  of  Commerce  and  Community  Affairs
33        designated  High Impact Businesses located in a federally
34        designated Foreign Trade Zone or Sub-Zone; and
                            -8-                LRB9002507PTcw
 1             (3)  are certified by the Department of Commerce and
 2        Community Affairs  as  complying  with  the  requirements
 3        specified in clauses (1) and (2) of this paragraph (e).
 4        Upon adoption of the ordinance authorizing the exemption,
 5    the  municipal  clerk shall transmit a copy of that ordinance
 6    to the Department of Commerce  and  Community  Affairs.   The
 7    Department  of Commerce and Community Affairs shall determine
 8    whether the business enterprises located in the  municipality
 9    meet  the  criteria  prescribed  in  this  paragraph.  If the
10    Department of Commerce and Community Affairs determines  that
11    the  business  enterprises  meet the criteria, it shall grant
12    certification.  The  Department  of  Commerce  and  Community
13    Affairs  shall act upon certification requests within 30 days
14    after receipt of the ordinance.
15        Upon certification of  the  business  enterprise  by  the
16    Department  of Commerce and Community Affairs, the Department
17    of Commerce and Community Affairs shall notify the Department
18    of Revenue of the certification.  The Department  of  Revenue
19    shall  notify the public utilities of the exemption status of
20    the gross  receipts  received  from  the  certified  business
21    enterprises.  Such exemption status shall be effective within
22    3 months after certification.
23        (f)  A   municipality  that  imposes  taxes  upon  public
24    utilities under this Section  and  whose  territory  includes
25    part of another unit of local government or a school district
26    may by ordinance exempt the other unit of local government or
27    school district from those taxes.
28        (g)  The  amendment  of this Section by Public Act 84-127
29    shall take  precedence  over  any  other  amendment  of  this
30    Section  by  any  other  amendatory  Act  passed  by the 84th
31    General Assembly before the  effective  date  of  Public  Act
32    84-127.
33        (h)  In  any case in which, before July 1, 1992, a person
34    engaged in the business of transmitting messages through  the
                            -9-                LRB9002507PTcw
 1    use  of  mobile equipment, such as cellular phones and paging
 2    systems, has determined the  municipality  within  which  the
 3    gross  receipts  from the business originated by reference to
 4    the location of its transmitting or switching equipment, then
 5    (i) neither the municipality to which tax was  paid  on  that
 6    basis  nor  the taxpayer that paid tax on that basis shall be
 7    required to rebate, refund, or issue credits for any such tax
 8    or charge collected from customers to reimburse the  taxpayer
 9    for  the tax and (ii) no municipality to which tax would have
10    been paid  with  respect  to  those  gross  receipts  if  the
11    provisions  of this amendatory Act of 1991 had been in effect
12    before July  1,  1992,  shall  have  any  claim  against  the
13    taxpayer for any amount of the tax.
14    (Source: P.A. 88-132; 89-325, eff. 1-1-96.)

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