95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2007 and 2008
SB0345


 
Introduced 2/7/2007, by Sen. William E. Peterson
 
SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 		














55 ILCS 5/5-1006.5









    Amends the Counties Code.  In a Section that authorizes a county to impose a sales tax for public safety or transportation purposes, revises the language of the referendum imposing the tax and the additional language that appears below the question.  Allows the county to include a sunset provision for the tax.
















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A BILL FOR









 











SB0345

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1
    AN ACT concerning local government.

 
2
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
 
3
represented in the General Assembly:


 
4
    Section 5. The Counties Code is amended  by changing Section 
5
5-1006.5 as follows:
 



6
    (55 ILCS 5/5-1006.5)


7
    Sec. 5-1006.5. Special County Retailers' Occupation Tax

8
For Public Safety or Transportation.

9
    (a) The county board of any county may impose a
tax upon 
10
all persons engaged in the business of selling tangible 
11
personal
property, other than personal property titled or 
12
registered with an agency of
this State's government, at retail 
13
in the county on the gross receipts from the
sales made in the 
14
course of business to provide revenue to be used exclusively

15
for public safety or transportation purposes in that county, if 
16
a
proposition for the
tax has been submitted to the electors of 
17
that county and
approved by a majority of those voting on the 
18
question.  If imposed, this tax
shall be imposed only in 
19
one-quarter percent increments. By resolution, the
county 
20
board may order the proposition to be submitted at any 
21
election.
If the tax is imposed for
transportation purposes for 
22
expenditures for public highways or as
authorized
under the 
23
Illinois Highway Code, the county board must publish notice
of 
 


 






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the existence of its long-range highway transportation
plan as 
2
required or described in Section 5-301 of the Illinois
Highway 
3
Code and must make the plan publicly available prior to

4
approval of the ordinance or resolution
imposing the tax. If 
5
the tax is imposed for transportation purposes for
expenditures 
6
for passenger rail transportation, the county board must 
7
publish
notice of the existence of its long-range passenger 
8
rail transportation plan
and
must make the plan publicly 
9
available prior to approval of the ordinance or
resolution 
10
imposing the tax. The county clerk shall certify the
question 
11
to the proper election authority, who
shall submit the 
12
proposition at an election in accordance with the general

13
election law.


14
        (1) The proposition for public safety purposes shall be 
15
    in
substantially the following form:
16
        "To pay for public safety purposes, shall (name of 
17
    county) be authorized to impose an increase on its share of 
18
    local sales taxes by (insert rate)?"
19
        As additional information on the ballot below the 
20
    question may appear the following:
21
        "This would mean that a consumer would pay an 
22
    additional (insert amount) in sales tax for every $100 of 
23
    tangible personal property bought at retail."


24
        The county board may also opt to establish a sunset 
25
    provision at which time the additional sales tax would 
26
    cease being collected, if not terminated earlier by a vote 
 


 






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    of the county board.  If the county board votes to include a 
2
    sunset provision, the proposition for public safety 
3
    purposes shall be in substantially the following form:
4
        "To pay for public safety purposes, shall (name of 
5
    county) be authorized to impose an increase on its share of 
6
    local sales taxes by (insert rate) for a period not to 
7
    exceed (insert number of years)?"
8
        As additional information on the ballot below the 
9
    question may appear the following:
10
        "This would mean that a consumer would pay an 
11
    additional (insert amount) in sales tax for every $100 of 
12
    tangible personal property bought at retail. If imposed, 
13
    the additional tax would cease being collected at the end 
14
    of (insert number of years), if not terminated earlier by a 
15
    vote of the county board."


16
        "Shall (name of county) be authorized to impose a

17
    public safety tax at the rate of .... upon all
persons 
18
    engaged in the business
of selling
tangible personal 
19
    property at retail in the county on gross receipts from the

20
    sales made in the course of their business?"


21
        For the purposes of the
paragraph, "public safety 
22
    purposes" means
crime prevention, detention, fire 
23
    fighting, police, medical, ambulance, or
other emergency 
24
    services.


25
        Votes shall be recorded as "Yes" or "No".


26
        (2) The proposition for transportation purposes shall 
 


 






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    be in
substantially
the following form:
2
        "To pay for improvements to roads and other 
3
    transportation purposes, shall (name of county) be 
4
    authorized to impose an increase on its share of local 
5
    sales taxes by (insert rate)?"
6
        As additional information on the ballot below the 
7
    question may appear the following:
8
        "This would mean that a consumer would pay an 
9
    additional (insert amount) in sales tax for every $100 of 
10
    tangible personal property bought at retail."


11
        The county board may also opt to establish a sunset 
12
    provision at which time the additional sales tax would 
13
    cease being collected, if not terminated earlier by a vote 
14
    of the county board.  If the county board votes to include a 
15
    sunset provision, the proposition for transportation 
16
    purposes shall be in substantially the following form:
17
        "To pay for road improvements and other transportation 
18
    purposes, shall (name of county) be authorized to impose an 
19
    increase on its share of local sales taxes by (insert rate) 
20
    for a period not to exceed (insert number of years)?"
21
        As additional information on the ballot below the 
22
    question may appear the following:
23
        "This would mean that a consumer would pay an 
24
    additional (insert amount) in sales tax for every $100 of 
25
    tangible personal property bought at retail. If imposed, 
26
    the additional tax would cease being collected at the end 
 


 






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    of (insert number of years), if not terminated earlier by a 
2
    vote of the county board."


3
        "Shall (name of county) be authorized to impose a tax 
4
    at the rate of
(insert rate) upon
all persons engaged in 
5
    the business of selling tangible personal property at

6
    retail in the county on gross receipts from the sales made 
7
    in the course of
their business to be used for 
8
    transportation purposes?


9
        For the purposes of this paragraph, transportation 
10
    purposes means
construction, maintenance, operation, and 
11
    improvement of
public highways, any other purpose for which 
12
    a county may expend funds under
the Illinois Highway Code, 
13
    and passenger rail transportation.


14
        The votes shall be recorded as "Yes" or "No".

15
    If a majority of the electors voting on
the proposition 
16
vote in favor of it, the county may impose the tax.
 A county 
17
may not submit more than one proposition authorized by this 
18
Section
to the electors at any one time.

19
    This additional tax may not be imposed on the sales of food 
20
for human
consumption that is to be consumed off the premises 
21
where it is sold (other
than alcoholic beverages, soft drinks, 
22
and food which has been prepared for
immediate consumption) and 
23
prescription and non-prescription medicines, drugs,
medical 
24
appliances and insulin, urine testing materials, syringes, and 
25
needles
used by diabetics.  The tax imposed by a county under 
26
this Section and
all civil penalties that may be assessed as an 
 


 






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incident of the tax shall be
collected and enforced by the 
2
Illinois Department of Revenue and deposited
into a special 
3
fund created for that purpose.  The certificate
of registration 
4
that is issued by the Department to a retailer under the

5
Retailers' Occupation Tax Act shall permit the retailer to 
6
engage in a business
that is taxable without registering 
7
separately with the Department under an
ordinance or resolution 
8
under this Section.  The Department has full
power to administer 
9
and enforce this Section, to collect all taxes and
penalties 
10
due under this Section, to dispose of taxes and penalties so

11
collected in the manner provided in this Section, and to 
12
determine
all rights to credit memoranda arising on account of 
13
the erroneous payment of
a tax or penalty under this Section.  
14
In the administration of and compliance
with this Section, the 
15
Department and persons who are subject to this Section
shall 
16
(i) have the same rights, remedies, privileges, immunities, 
17
powers, and
duties, (ii) be subject to the same conditions, 
18
restrictions, limitations,
penalties, and definitions of 
19
terms, and (iii) employ the same modes of
procedure as are 
20
prescribed in Sections 1, 1a, 1a-1, 1d, 1e, 1f,
1i, 1j,
1k, 1m, 
21
1n,
2 through 2-70 (in respect to all provisions contained in 
22
those Sections
other than the
State rate of tax), 2a, 2b, 2c, 3 
23
(except provisions
relating to
transaction returns and quarter 
24
monthly payments), 4, 5, 5a, 5b, 5c, 5d, 5e,
5f,
5g, 5h, 5i, 
25
5j, 5k, 5l, 6, 6a, 6b, 6c, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 11a, 12, and 13 of 
26
the
Retailers' Occupation Tax Act and Section 3-7 of the 
 


 






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Uniform Penalty and
Interest Act as if those provisions were 
2
set forth in this Section.

3
    Persons subject to any tax imposed under the authority 
4
granted in this
Section may reimburse themselves for their 
5
sellers' tax liability by
separately stating the tax as an 
6
additional charge, which charge may be stated
in combination, 
7
in a single amount, with State tax which sellers are required

8
to collect under the Use Tax Act, pursuant to such bracketed 
9
schedules as the
Department may prescribe.

10
    Whenever the Department determines that a refund should be 
11
made under this
Section to a claimant instead of issuing a 
12
credit memorandum, the Department
shall notify the State 
13
Comptroller, who shall cause the order to be drawn for
the 
14
amount specified and to the person named in the notification 
15
from the
Department.  The refund shall be paid by the State 
16
Treasurer out of the County
Public Safety or Transportation 
17
Retailers' Occupation Tax Fund.

18
    (b) If a tax has been imposed under subsection (a), a

19
service occupation tax shall
also be imposed at the same rate 
20
upon all persons engaged, in the county, in
the business
of 
21
making sales of service, who, as an incident to making those 
22
sales of
service, transfer tangible personal property within 
23
the county
as an
incident to a sale of service.
This tax may 
24
not be imposed on sales of food for human consumption that is 
25
to
be consumed off the premises where it is sold (other than 
26
alcoholic beverages,
soft drinks, and food prepared for 
 


 






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immediate consumption) and prescription and
non-prescription 
2
medicines, drugs, medical appliances and insulin, urine

3
testing materials, syringes, and needles used by diabetics.
The 
4
tax imposed under this subsection and all civil penalties that 
5
may be
assessed as an incident thereof shall be collected and 
6
enforced by the
Department of Revenue. The Department has
full 
7
power to
administer and enforce this subsection; to collect all 
8
taxes and penalties
due hereunder; to dispose of taxes and 
9
penalties so collected in the manner
hereinafter provided; and 
10
to determine all rights to credit memoranda
arising on account 
11
of the erroneous payment of tax or penalty hereunder.
In the 
12
administration of, and compliance with this subsection, the

13
Department and persons who are subject to this paragraph shall 
14
(i) have the
same rights, remedies, privileges, immunities, 
15
powers, and duties, (ii) be
subject to the same conditions, 
16
restrictions, limitations, penalties,
exclusions, exemptions, 
17
and definitions of terms, and (iii) employ the same
modes
of 
18
procedure as are prescribed in Sections 2 (except that the

19
reference to State in the definition of supplier maintaining a 
20
place of
business in this State shall mean the county), 2a, 2b, 
21
2c, 3 through
3-50 (in respect to all provisions therein other 
22
than the State rate of
tax), 4 (except that the reference to 
23
the State shall be to the county),
5, 7, 8 (except that the 
24
jurisdiction to which the tax shall be a debt to
the extent 
25
indicated in that Section 8 shall be the county), 9 (except as

26
to the disposition of taxes and penalties collected), 10, 11, 
 


 






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12 (except the reference therein to Section 2b of the

2
Retailers' Occupation Tax Act), 13 (except that any reference 
3
to the State
shall mean the county), Section 15, 16,
17, 18, 19 
4
and 20 of the Service Occupation Tax Act and Section 3-7 of
the 
5
Uniform Penalty and Interest Act, as fully as if those 
6
provisions were
set forth herein.

7
    Persons subject to any tax imposed under the authority 
8
granted in
this subsection may reimburse themselves for their 
9
serviceman's tax liability
by separately stating the tax as an 
10
additional charge, which
charge may be stated in combination, 
11
in a single amount, with State tax
that servicemen are 
12
authorized to collect under the Service Use Tax Act, in

13
accordance with such bracket schedules as the Department may 
14
prescribe.

15
    Whenever the Department determines that a refund should be 
16
made under this
subsection to a claimant instead of issuing a 
17
credit memorandum, the Department
shall notify the State 
18
Comptroller, who shall cause the warrant to be drawn
for the 
19
amount specified, and to the person named, in the notification

20
from the Department.  The refund shall be paid by the State 
21
Treasurer out
of the County Public Safety or Transportation 
22
Retailers' Occupation Fund.

23
    Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to authorize 
24
the county
to impose a tax upon the privilege of engaging in 
25
any business which under
the Constitution of the United States 
26
may not be made the subject of taxation
by the State.

 


 






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    (c) The Department shall immediately pay over to the State 
2
Treasurer, ex
officio,
as trustee, all taxes and penalties 
3
collected under this Section to be
deposited into the County 
4
Public Safety or Transportation Retailers'
Occupation Tax 
5
Fund, which
shall be an unappropriated trust fund held outside 
6
of the State treasury.  On
or before the 25th
day of each 
7
calendar month, the Department shall prepare and certify to the

8
Comptroller the disbursement of stated sums of money
to the 
9
counties from which retailers have paid
taxes or penalties to 
10
the Department during the second preceding
calendar month.  The 
11
amount to be paid to each county, and deposited by the
county 
12
into its special fund created for the purposes of this Section, 
13
shall
be the amount (not
including credit memoranda) collected 
14
under this Section during the second
preceding
calendar month 
15
by the Department plus an amount the Department determines is

16
necessary to offset any amounts that were erroneously paid to a 
17
different
taxing body, and not including (i) an amount equal to 
18
the amount of refunds
made
during the second preceding calendar 
19
month by the Department on behalf of
the county and (ii) any 
20
amount that the Department determines is
necessary to offset 
21
any amounts that were payable to a different taxing body
but 
22
were erroneously paid to the county.  Within 10 days after 
23
receipt by the
Comptroller of the disbursement certification to 
24
the counties provided for in
this Section to be given to the 
25
Comptroller by the Department, the Comptroller
shall cause the 
26
orders to be drawn for the respective amounts in accordance

 


 






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with directions contained in the certification.

2
    In addition to the disbursement required by the preceding 
3
paragraph, an
allocation shall be made in March of each year to 
4
each county that received
more than $500,000 in disbursements 
5
under the preceding paragraph in the
preceding calendar year.  
6
The allocation shall be in an amount equal to the
average 
7
monthly distribution made to each such county under the 
8
preceding
paragraph during the preceding calendar year 
9
(excluding the 2 months of
highest receipts).  The distribution 
10
made in March of each year subsequent to
the year in which an 
11
allocation was made pursuant to this paragraph and the

12
preceding paragraph shall be reduced by the amount allocated 
13
and disbursed
under this paragraph in the preceding calendar 
14
year.  The Department shall
prepare and certify to the 
15
Comptroller for disbursement the allocations made in

16
accordance with this paragraph.

17
    (d) For the purpose of determining the local governmental 
18
unit whose tax is
applicable, a retail sale by a producer of 
19
coal or another mineral mined in
Illinois is a sale at retail 
20
at the place where the coal or other mineral mined
in Illinois 
21
is extracted from the earth.  This paragraph does not apply to 
22
coal
or another mineral when it is delivered or shipped by the 
23
seller to the
purchaser
at a point outside Illinois so that the 
24
sale is exempt under the United States
Constitution as a sale 
25
in interstate or foreign commerce.

26
    (e) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to authorize 
 


 






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a county to
impose a
tax upon the privilege of engaging in any 
2
business that under the Constitution
of the United States may 
3
not be made the subject of taxation by this State.

4
    (e-5) If a county imposes a tax under this Section, the 
5
county board may,
by ordinance, discontinue or lower the rate 
6
of the tax.  If the county board
lowers the tax rate or 
7
discontinues the tax, a referendum must be
held in accordance 
8
with subsection (a) of this Section in order to increase the

9
rate of the tax or to reimpose the discontinued tax.

10
    (f) Beginning April 1, 1998, the results of any election 
11
authorizing a
proposition to impose a tax
under this Section or 
12
effecting a change in the rate of tax, or any ordinance

13
lowering the rate or discontinuing the tax,
shall be certified

14
by the
county clerk and filed with the Illinois Department of 
15
Revenue
either (i) on or
before the first day of April, 
16
whereupon the Department shall proceed to
administer and 
17
enforce the tax as of the first day of July next following
the 
18
filing; or (ii)
on or before the first day of October, 
19
whereupon the
Department shall proceed to administer and 
20
enforce the tax as of the first
day of January next following 
21
the filing.

22
    (g) When certifying the amount of a monthly disbursement to 
23
a county under
this
Section, the Department shall increase or 
24
decrease the amounts by an amount
necessary to offset any 
25
miscalculation of previous disbursements.  The offset
amount 
26
shall be the amount erroneously disbursed within the previous 6 
 


 






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months
from the time a miscalculation is discovered.

2
    (h) This Section may be cited as the "Special County 
3
Occupation Tax
For Public Safety or Transportation Law".

4
    (i) For purposes of this Section, "public safety" includes, 
5
but is not
limited to, crime prevention, detention, fire 
6
fighting, police, medical,
ambulance, or other emergency

7
services.  For the purposes of this Section, "transportation" 
8
includes, but
is not limited to, the construction,
maintenance, 
9
operation, and improvement of public highways, any other

10
purpose for which a county may expend funds under the Illinois 
11
Highway Code,
and passenger rail transportation.

12
(Source: P.A. 93-556, eff. 8-20-03; 94-781, eff. 5-19-06.)