Illinois General Assembly - Full Text of HB1212

LRB104 05008 HLH 15036 b

104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2025 and 2026
HB1212

Introduced 1/9/2025, by Rep. Adam M. Niemerg

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

35 ILCS 5/235 new

Amends the Illinois Income Tax Act. Creates a credit in an amount equal to the eligible expenses incurred for engaging in qualified tourism activities by the taxpayer during the taxable year. Effective immediately.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning revenue.

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

Section 5. The Illinois Income Tax Act is amended by adding Section 235 as follows:

(35 ILCS 5/235 new)

Sec. 235. Illinois tourism tax credit.

(a) For taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2026 and ending before January 1, 2029, each taxpayer is entitled to a credit against the taxes imposed by subsections (a) and (b) of Section 201 of this Act in an amount equal to the eligible expenses incurred for engaging in qualified tourism activities by the taxpayer during the taxable year. In no event may the amount of the credit under this Section exceed $5,000 for any taxpayer in any taxable year.

(b) As used in this Section:

"Eligible expenses" means any expense that is paid or incurred by the taxpayer during any period of qualified travel and that is related to any of the following: (i) food and beverages; (ii) lodging; (iii) transportation; (iv) live entertainment events, such as sporting events; and (v) expenses related to attending a conference or business meeting.

"Qualifying travel" means any travel on or after January 1, 2026 and on or before December 31, 2028 within the State of Illinois to a final destination that is more than 50 miles from the principal residence of the taxpayer, including a destination such as a vacation home.

(c) For purposes of this Section, no credit shall be allowed with respect to any expenses that are related to business expenses for which a deduction is allowed or allowable to a taxpayer under Section 162(a)(2) of the federal Internal Revenue Code.

(d) The Department of Revenue shall adopt any rules necessary to implement and administer the provisions of this Section.

(e) In no event shall a credit under this Section reduce a taxpayer's liability to less than zero. If the amount of credit exceeds the tax liability for the year, the excess may be carried forward and applied to the tax liability for the 5 taxable years following the excess credit year. The tax credit shall be applied to the earliest year for which there is a tax liability. If there are credits for more than one year that are available to offset liability, the earlier credit shall be applied first.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon becoming law.