102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2021 and 2022
HB0864

 

Introduced 2/10/2021, by Rep. Joyce Mason

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
35 ILCS 200/15-168.1 new

    Amends the Property Tax Code. Creates an assessment freeze homestead exemption for persons with a disability. Sets forth the amount of the exemption. Provides that applicants must reapply on an annual basis. Effective immediately.


LRB102 14815 HLH 20168 b

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

HB0864LRB102 14815 HLH 20168 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 5. The Property Tax Code is amended by adding
5Section 15-168.1 as follows:
 
6    (35 ILCS 200/15-168.1 new)
7    Sec. 15-168.1. Assessment Freeze Homestead Exemption for
8Persons with Disabilities.
9    (a) This Section may be cited as the Assessment Freeze
10Homestead Exemption for Persons with Disabilities.
11    (b) As used in this Section:
12    "Applicant" means an individual who has filed an
13application under this Section.
14    "Base amount" means the base year equalized assessed value
15of the residence plus the first year's equalized assessed
16value of any added improvements which increased the assessed
17value of the residence after the base year.
18    "Base year" means the taxable year prior to the taxable
19year for which the applicant first qualifies and applies for
20the exemption, provided that, in the prior taxable year, the
21property was improved with a permanent structure that was
22occupied as a residence by the applicant who was liable for
23paying real property taxes on the property and who was either

 

 

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1(i) an owner of record of the property or had legal or
2equitable interest in the property as evidenced by a written
3instrument or (ii) had a legal or equitable interest as a
4lessee in the parcel of property that was single family
5residence. If in any subsequent taxable year for which the
6applicant applies and qualifies for the exemption the
7equalized assessed value of the residence is less than the
8equalized assessed value in the existing base year (provided
9that such equalized assessed value is not based on an assessed
10value that results from a temporary irregularity in the
11property that reduces the assessed value for one or more
12taxable years), then that subsequent taxable year shall become
13the base year until a new base year is established under the
14terms of this paragraph. An equalized assessed value that is
15based on an assessed value that results from a temporary
16irregularity in the property that reduces the assessed value
17for one or more taxable years shall not be considered the
18lowest equalized assessed value.
19    "Chief County Assessment Officer" means the County
20Assessor or Supervisor of Assessments of the county in which
21the property is located.
22    "Equalized assessed value" means the assessed value as
23equalized by the Illinois Department of Revenue.
24    "Household" means the applicant, the spouse of the
25applicant, and all persons using the residence of the
26applicant as their principal place of residence.

 

 

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1    "Household income" means the combined income of the
2members of a household for the calendar year preceding the
3taxable year.
4    "Income" has the same meaning as provided in Section 3.07
5of the Senior Citizens and Persons with Disabilities Property
6Tax Relief Act, except that "income" does not include
7veteran's benefits.
8    "Life care facility that qualifies as a cooperative" means
9a facility as defined in Section 2 of the Life Care Facilities
10Act.
11    "Maximum income limitation" means $55,000.
12    "Person with a disability" has the meaning ascribed to
13that term in Section 15-168 of this Act.
14    "Residence" means the principal dwelling place and
15appurtenant structures used for residential purposes in this
16State occupied on January 1 of the taxable year by a household
17and so much of the surrounding land, constituting the parcel
18upon which the dwelling place is situated, as is used for
19residential purposes. If the Chief County Assessment Officer
20has established a specific legal description for a portion of
21property constituting the residence, then that portion of
22property shall be deemed the residence for the purposes of
23this Section.
24    "Taxable year" means the calendar year during which ad
25valorem property taxes payable in the next succeeding year are
26levied.

 

 

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1    (c) Beginning in taxable year 2021, an assessment freeze
2homestead exemption is granted for real property that is
3improved with a permanent structure that is occupied as a
4residence by an applicant who (i) is a person with a disability
5at any point during the taxable year, (ii) has a household
6income that does not exceed the maximum income limitation,
7(iii) is liable for paying real property taxes on the
8property, and (iv) is an owner of record of the property or has
9a legal or equitable interest in the property as evidenced by a
10written instrument. This homestead exemption shall also apply
11to a leasehold interest in a parcel of property improved with a
12permanent structure that is a single family residence that is
13occupied as a residence by a person who (i) is a person with a
14disability during the taxable year, (ii) has a household
15income that does not exceed the maximum income limitation,
16(iii) has a legal or equitable ownership interest in the
17property as lessee, and (iv) is liable for the payment of real
18property taxes on that property.
19    In counties of 3,000,000 or more inhabitants, the amount
20of the exemption for all taxable years is the equalized
21assessed value of the residence in the taxable year for which
22application is made minus the base amount. In all other
23counties, the amount of the exemption is as follows:
24        (1) For an applicant who has a household income of
25    $45,000 or less, the amount of the exemption is the
26    equalized assessed value of the residence in the taxable

 

 

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1    year for which application is made minus the base amount.
2        (2) For an applicant who has a household income
3    exceeding $45,000 but not exceeding $46,250, the amount of
4    the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
5    residence in the taxable year for which application is
6    made minus the base amount (ii) multiplied by 0.8.
7        (3) For an applicant who has a household income
8    exceeding $46,250 but not exceeding $47,500, the amount of
9    the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
10    residence in the taxable year for which application is
11    made minus the base amount (ii) multiplied by 0.6.
12        (4) For an applicant who has a household income
13    exceeding $47,500 but not exceeding $48,750, the amount of
14    the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
15    residence in the taxable year for which application is
16    made minus the base amount (ii) multiplied by 0.4.
17        (5) For an applicant who has a household income
18    exceeding $48,750 but not exceeding $55,000, the amount of
19    the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
20    residence in the taxable year for which application is
21    made minus the base amount (ii) multiplied by 0.2.
22    When the applicant is a surviving spouse of an applicant
23for a prior year for the same residence for which an exemption
24under this Section has been granted, the base year and base
25amount for that residence are the same as for the applicant for
26the prior year.

 

 

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1    Each year at the time the assessment books are certified
2to the County Clerk, the Board of Review or Board of Appeals
3shall give to the County Clerk a list of the assessed values of
4improvements on each parcel qualifying for this exemption that
5were added after the base year for this parcel and increased
6the assessed value of the property.
7    In the case of land improved with an apartment building
8owned and operated as a cooperative or a building that is a
9life care facility that qualifies as a cooperative, the
10maximum reduction from the equalized assessed value of the
11property is limited to the sum of the reductions calculated
12for each unit occupied as a residence by a person or persons
13(i) with a disability, (ii) with a household income that does
14not exceed the maximum income limitation, (iii) who is liable,
15by contract with the owner or owners of record, for paying real
16property taxes on the property, and (iv) who is an owner of
17record of a legal or equitable interest in the cooperative
18apartment building, other than a leasehold interest. In the
19instance of a cooperative where a homestead exemption has been
20granted under this Section, the cooperative association or its
21management firm shall credit the savings resulting from that
22exemption only to the apportioned tax liability of the owner
23who qualified for the exemption. Any person who willfully
24refuses to credit that savings to an owner who qualifies for
25the exemption is guilty of a Class B misdemeanor.
26    When a homestead exemption has been granted under this

 

 

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1Section and an applicant then becomes a resident of a facility
2licensed under the Assisted Living and Shared Housing Act, the
3Nursing Home Care Act, the Specialized Mental Health
4Rehabilitation Act of 2013, the ID/DD Community Care Act, or
5the MC/DD Act, the exemption shall be granted in subsequent
6years so long as the residence (i) continues to be occupied by
7the qualified applicant's spouse or (ii) if remaining
8unoccupied, is still owned by the qualified applicant for the
9homestead exemption.
10    When an individual dies who would have qualified for an
11exemption under this Section, and the surviving spouse does
12not independently qualify for this exemption because of he or
13she is not a person with a disability, the exemption under this
14Section shall be granted to the surviving spouse for the
15taxable year preceding and the taxable year of the death,
16provided that the surviving spouse meets all other
17qualifications for the granting of this exemption for those
18years.
19    When married persons maintain separate residences, the
20exemption provided for in this Section may be claimed by only
21one of such persons and for only one residence.
22    To receive the exemption, a person shall submit an
23application by July 1 of each taxable year to the Chief County
24Assessment Officer of the county in which the property is
25located. A county may, by ordinance, establish a date for
26submission of applications that is different than July 1. The

 

 

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1applicant shall submit with the application an affidavit of
2the applicant's total household income, marital status (and if
3married the name and address of the applicant's spouse, if
4known), disability, and principal dwelling place of members of
5the household on January 1 of the taxable year. The Department
6shall establish, by rule, a method for verifying the accuracy
7of affidavits filed by applicants under this Section, and the
8Chief County Assessment Officer may conduct audits of any
9taxpayer claiming an exemption under this Section to verify
10that the taxpayer is eligible to receive the exemption. Each
11application shall contain or be verified by a written
12declaration that it is made under the penalties of perjury. A
13taxpayer's signing a fraudulent application under this Act is
14perjury, as defined in Section 32-2 of the Criminal Code of
152012. The applications shall be clearly marked as applications
16for the Assessment Freeze Homestead Exemption for Persons with
17a Disability and must contain a notice that any taxpayer who
18receives the exemption is subject to an audit by the Chief
19County Assessment Officer.
20    Notwithstanding any other provision to the contrary, if an
21applicant fails to file the application required by this
22Section in a timely manner and this failure to file is due to a
23mental or physical condition sufficiently severe so as to
24render the applicant incapable of filing the application in a
25timely manner, the Chief County Assessment Officer may extend
26the filing deadline for a period of 30 days after the applicant

 

 

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1regains the capability to file the application, but in no case
2may the filing deadline be extended beyond 3 months of the
3original filing deadline. In order to receive the extension
4provided in this paragraph, the applicant shall provide the
5Chief County Assessment Officer with a signed statement from
6the applicant's physician, advanced practice nurse, or
7physician assistant stating the nature and extent of the
8condition, that, in the physician's, advanced practice
9nurse's, or physician assistant's opinion, the condition was
10so severe that it rendered the applicant incapable of filing
11the application in a timely manner, and the date on which the
12applicant regained the capability to file the application.
13    Application shall be made during the application period in
14effect for the county of his or her residence.
15    The Chief County Assessment Officer may determine the
16eligibility of a life care facility that qualifies as a
17cooperative to receive the benefits provided by this Section
18by use of an affidavit, application, visual inspection,
19questionnaire, or other reasonable method in order to insure
20that the tax savings resulting from the exemption are credited
21by the management firm to the apportioned tax liability of
22each qualifying resident. The Chief County Assessment Officer
23may request reasonable proof that the management firm has so
24credited that exemption.
25    Except as provided in this Section, all information
26received by the chief county assessment officer or the

 

 

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1Department from applications filed under this Section, or from
2any investigation conducted under the provisions of this
3Section, shall be confidential, except for official purposes
4or pursuant to official procedures for collection of any State
5or local tax or enforcement of any civil or criminal penalty or
6sanction imposed by this Act or by any statute or ordinance
7imposing a State or local tax. Any person who divulges any such
8information in any manner, except in accordance with a proper
9judicial order, is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
10    Nothing contained in this Section shall prevent the
11Director or chief county assessment officer from publishing or
12making available reasonable statistics concerning the
13operation of the exemption contained in this Section in which
14the contents of claims are grouped into aggregates in such a
15way that information contained in any individual claim shall
16not be disclosed.
17    (d) Each Chief County Assessment Officer shall annually
18publish a notice of availability of the exemption provided
19under this Section. The notice shall be published at least 60
20days but no more than 75 days prior to the date on which the
21application must be submitted to the Chief County Assessment
22Officer of the county in which the property is located. The
23notice shall appear in a newspaper of general circulation in
24the county.
25    Notwithstanding Sections 6 and 8 of the State Mandates
26Act, no reimbursement by the State is required for the

 

 

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1implementation of any mandate created by this Section.
 
2    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
3becoming law.