|
| | 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2011 and 2012 HB3907 Introduced 12/11/2011, by Rep. Dwight Kay SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: |
| 35 ILCS 200/15-170 | | 35 ILCS 200/15-172 | |
| Amends the Property Tax Code. Provides that, if a person turns 70 years of age or older during the taxable year and he or she qualified for a Senior Citizens Assessment Freeze Homestead Exemption or a Senior Citizens Homestead Exemption in the previous taxable year, then the person qualifying need not reapply for the exemption. Effective immediately.
|
| |
| | FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY | | HOUSING AFFORDABILITY IMPACT NOTE ACT MAY APPLY |
| | A BILL FOR |
|
|
| | HB3907 | | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
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 15-170 and 15-172 as follows:
|
6 | | (35 ILCS 200/15-170) |
7 | | Sec. 15-170. Senior Citizens Homestead Exemption. An |
8 | | annual homestead
exemption limited, except as described here |
9 | | with relation to cooperatives or
life care facilities, to a
|
10 | | maximum reduction set forth below from the property's value, as |
11 | | equalized or
assessed by the Department, is granted for |
12 | | property that is occupied as a
residence by a person 65 years |
13 | | of age or older who is liable for paying real
estate taxes on |
14 | | the property and is an owner of record of the property or has a
|
15 | | legal or equitable interest therein as evidenced by a written |
16 | | instrument,
except for a leasehold interest, other than a |
17 | | leasehold interest of land on
which a single family residence |
18 | | is located, which is occupied as a residence by
a person 65 |
19 | | years or older who has an ownership interest therein, legal,
|
20 | | equitable or as a lessee, and on which he or she is liable for |
21 | | the payment
of property taxes. Before taxable year 2004, the |
22 | | maximum reduction shall be $2,500 in counties with
3,000,000 or |
23 | | more inhabitants and $2,000 in all other counties. For taxable |
|
| | HB3907 | - 2 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | years 2004 through 2005, the maximum reduction shall be $3,000 |
2 | | in all counties. For taxable years 2006 and 2007, the maximum |
3 | | reduction shall be $3,500 and, for taxable years 2008 and |
4 | | thereafter, the maximum reduction is $4,000 in all counties.
|
5 | | For land
improved with an apartment building owned and |
6 | | operated as a cooperative, the maximum reduction from the value |
7 | | of the property, as
equalized
by the Department, shall be |
8 | | multiplied by the number of apartments or units
occupied by a |
9 | | person 65 years of age or older who is liable, by contract with
|
10 | | the owner or owners of record, for paying property taxes on the |
11 | | property and
is an owner of record of a legal or equitable |
12 | | interest in the cooperative
apartment building, other than a |
13 | | leasehold interest. For land improved with
a life care |
14 | | facility, the maximum reduction from the value of the property, |
15 | | as
equalized by the Department, shall be multiplied by the |
16 | | number of apartments or
units occupied by persons 65 years of |
17 | | age or older, irrespective of any legal,
equitable, or |
18 | | leasehold interest in the facility, who are liable, under a
|
19 | | contract with the owner or owners of record of the facility, |
20 | | for paying
property taxes on the property. In a
cooperative or |
21 | | a life care facility where a
homestead exemption has been |
22 | | granted, the cooperative association or the
management firm of |
23 | | the cooperative or facility shall credit the savings
resulting |
24 | | from that exemption only to
the apportioned tax liability of |
25 | | the owner or resident who qualified for
the exemption.
Any |
26 | | person who willfully refuses to so credit the savings shall be |
|
| | HB3907 | - 3 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | guilty of a
Class B misdemeanor. Under this Section and |
2 | | Sections 15-175, 15-176, and 15-177, "life care
facility" means |
3 | | a facility, as defined in Section 2 of the Life Care Facilities
|
4 | | Act, with which the applicant for the homestead exemption has a |
5 | | life care
contract as defined in that Act. |
6 | | When a homestead exemption has been granted under this |
7 | | Section and the person
qualifying subsequently becomes a |
8 | | resident of a facility licensed under the Assisted Living and |
9 | | Shared Housing Act, the Nursing Home Care Act, the Specialized |
10 | | Mental Health Rehabilitation Act, or the ID/DD Community Care |
11 | | Act, the exemption shall continue so long as the residence
|
12 | | continues to be occupied by the qualifying person's spouse if |
13 | | the spouse is 65
years of age or older, or if the residence |
14 | | remains unoccupied but is still
owned by the person qualified |
15 | | for the homestead exemption. |
16 | | A person who will be 65 years of age
during the current |
17 | | assessment year
shall
be eligible to apply for the homestead |
18 | | exemption during that assessment
year.
Application shall be |
19 | | made during the application period in effect for the
county of |
20 | | his residence. |
21 | | If a person turns 70 years of age or older during the |
22 | | taxable year, and he or she qualified for an exemption under |
23 | | this Section in the previous taxable year, then the person |
24 | | qualifying need not reapply for the exemption. |
25 | | Beginning with assessment year 2003, for taxes payable in |
26 | | 2004,
property
that is first occupied as a residence after |
|
| | HB3907 | - 4 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | January 1 of any assessment year by
a person who is eligible |
2 | | for the senior citizens homestead exemption under this
Section |
3 | | must be granted a pro-rata exemption for the assessment year. |
4 | | The
amount of the pro-rata exemption is the exemption
allowed |
5 | | in the county under this Section divided by 365 and multiplied |
6 | | by the
number of days during the assessment year the property |
7 | | is occupied as a
residence by a
person eligible for the |
8 | | exemption under this Section. The chief county
assessment |
9 | | officer must adopt reasonable procedures to establish |
10 | | eligibility
for this pro-rata exemption. |
11 | | The assessor or chief county assessment officer may |
12 | | determine the eligibility
of a life care facility to receive |
13 | | the benefits provided by this Section, by
affidavit, |
14 | | application, visual inspection, questionnaire or other |
15 | | reasonable
methods in order to insure that the tax savings |
16 | | resulting from the exemption
are credited by the management |
17 | | firm to the apportioned tax liability of each
qualifying |
18 | | resident. The assessor may request reasonable proof that the
|
19 | | management firm has so credited the exemption. |
20 | | The chief county assessment officer of each county with |
21 | | less than 3,000,000
inhabitants shall provide to each person |
22 | | allowed a homestead exemption under
this Section a form to |
23 | | designate any other person to receive a
duplicate of any notice |
24 | | of delinquency in the payment of taxes assessed and
levied |
25 | | under this Code on the property of the person receiving the |
26 | | exemption.
The duplicate notice shall be in addition to the |
|
| | HB3907 | - 5 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | notice required to be
provided to the person receiving the |
2 | | exemption, and shall be given in the
manner required by this |
3 | | Code. The person filing the request for the duplicate
notice |
4 | | shall pay a fee of $5 to cover administrative costs to the |
5 | | supervisor of
assessments, who shall then file the executed |
6 | | designation with the county
collector. Notwithstanding any |
7 | | other provision of this Code to the contrary,
the filing of |
8 | | such an executed designation requires the county collector to
|
9 | | provide duplicate notices as indicated by the designation. A |
10 | | designation may
be rescinded by the person who executed such |
11 | | designation at any time, in the
manner and form required by the |
12 | | chief county assessment officer. |
13 | | The assessor or chief county assessment officer may |
14 | | determine the
eligibility of residential property to receive |
15 | | the homestead exemption provided
by this Section by |
16 | | application, visual inspection, questionnaire or other
|
17 | | reasonable methods. The determination shall be made in |
18 | | accordance with
guidelines established by the Department. |
19 | | In counties with 3,000,000 or more inhabitants, beginning |
20 | | in taxable year 2010, each taxpayer who has been granted an |
21 | | exemption under this Section must reapply on an annual basis. |
22 | | The chief county assessment officer shall mail the application |
23 | | to the taxpayer. In counties with less than 3,000,000 |
24 | | inhabitants, the county board may by
resolution provide that if |
25 | | a person has been granted a homestead exemption
under this |
26 | | Section, the person qualifying need not reapply for the |
|
| | HB3907 | - 6 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | exemption. |
2 | | In counties with less than 3,000,000 inhabitants, if the |
3 | | assessor or chief
county assessment officer requires annual |
4 | | application for verification of
eligibility for an exemption |
5 | | once granted under this Section, the application
shall be |
6 | | mailed to the taxpayer. |
7 | | The assessor or chief county assessment officer shall |
8 | | notify each person
who qualifies for an exemption under this |
9 | | Section that the person may also
qualify for deferral of real |
10 | | estate taxes under the Senior Citizens Real Estate
Tax Deferral |
11 | | Act. The notice shall set forth the qualifications needed for
|
12 | | deferral of real estate taxes, the address and telephone number |
13 | | of
county collector, and a
statement that applications for |
14 | | deferral of real estate taxes may be obtained
from the county |
15 | | collector. |
16 | | Notwithstanding Sections 6 and 8 of the State Mandates Act, |
17 | | no
reimbursement by the State is required for the |
18 | | implementation of any mandate
created by this Section. |
19 | | (Source: P.A. 96-339, eff. 7-1-10; 96-355, eff. 1-1-10; |
20 | | 96-1000, eff. 7-2-10; 96-1418, eff. 8-2-10; 97-38, eff. |
21 | | 6-28-11; 97-227, eff. 1-1-12; revised 9-12-11.)
|
22 | | (35 ILCS 200/15-172)
|
23 | | Sec. 15-172. Senior Citizens Assessment Freeze Homestead |
24 | | Exemption.
|
25 | | (a) This Section may be cited as the Senior Citizens |
|
| | HB3907 | - 7 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | Assessment
Freeze Homestead Exemption.
|
2 | | (b) As used in this Section:
|
3 | | "Applicant" means an individual who has filed an |
4 | | application under this
Section.
|
5 | | "Base amount" means the base year equalized assessed value |
6 | | of the residence
plus the first year's equalized assessed value |
7 | | of any added improvements which
increased the assessed value of |
8 | | the residence after the base year.
|
9 | | "Base year" means the taxable year prior to the taxable |
10 | | year for which the
applicant first qualifies and applies for |
11 | | the exemption provided that in the
prior taxable year the |
12 | | property was improved with a permanent structure that
was |
13 | | occupied as a residence by the applicant who was liable for |
14 | | paying real
property taxes on the property and who was either |
15 | | (i) an owner of record of the
property or had legal or |
16 | | equitable interest in the property as evidenced by a
written |
17 | | instrument or (ii) had a legal or equitable interest as a |
18 | | lessee in the
parcel of property that was single family |
19 | | residence.
If in any subsequent taxable year for which the |
20 | | applicant applies and
qualifies for the exemption the equalized |
21 | | assessed value of the residence is
less than the equalized |
22 | | assessed value in the existing base year
(provided that such |
23 | | equalized assessed value is not
based
on an
assessed value that |
24 | | results from a temporary irregularity in the property that
|
25 | | reduces the
assessed value for one or more taxable years), then |
26 | | that
subsequent taxable year shall become the base year until a |
|
| | HB3907 | - 8 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | new base year is
established under the terms of this paragraph. |
2 | | For taxable year 1999 only, the
Chief County Assessment Officer |
3 | | shall review (i) all taxable years for which
the
applicant |
4 | | applied and qualified for the exemption and (ii) the existing |
5 | | base
year.
The assessment officer shall select as the new base |
6 | | year the year with the
lowest equalized assessed value.
An |
7 | | equalized assessed value that is based on an assessed value |
8 | | that results
from a
temporary irregularity in the property that |
9 | | reduces the assessed value for one
or more
taxable years shall |
10 | | not be considered the lowest equalized assessed value.
The |
11 | | selected year shall be the base year for
taxable year 1999 and |
12 | | thereafter until a new base year is established under the
terms |
13 | | of this paragraph.
|
14 | | "Chief County Assessment Officer" means the County |
15 | | Assessor or Supervisor of
Assessments of the county in which |
16 | | the property is located.
|
17 | | "Equalized assessed value" means the assessed value as |
18 | | equalized by the
Illinois Department of Revenue.
|
19 | | "Household" means the applicant, the spouse of the |
20 | | applicant, and all persons
using the residence of the applicant |
21 | | as their principal place of residence.
|
22 | | "Household income" means the combined income of the members |
23 | | of a household
for the calendar year preceding the taxable |
24 | | year.
|
25 | | "Income" has the same meaning as provided in Section 3.07 |
26 | | of the Senior
Citizens and Disabled Persons Property Tax Relief |
|
| | HB3907 | - 9 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | and Pharmaceutical Assistance
Act, except that, beginning in |
2 | | assessment year 2001, "income" does not
include veteran's |
3 | | benefits.
|
4 | | "Internal Revenue Code of 1986" means the United States |
5 | | Internal Revenue Code
of 1986 or any successor law or laws |
6 | | relating to federal income taxes in effect
for the year |
7 | | preceding the taxable year.
|
8 | | "Life care facility that qualifies as a cooperative" means |
9 | | a facility as
defined in Section 2 of the Life Care Facilities |
10 | | Act.
|
11 | | "Maximum income limitation" means: |
12 | | (1) $35,000 prior
to taxable year 1999; |
13 | | (2) $40,000 in taxable years 1999 through 2003; |
14 | | (3) $45,000 in taxable years 2004 through 2005; |
15 | | (4) $50,000 in taxable years 2006 and 2007; and |
16 | | (5) $55,000 in taxable year 2008 and thereafter.
|
17 | | "Residence" means the principal dwelling place and |
18 | | appurtenant structures
used for residential purposes in this |
19 | | State occupied on January 1 of the
taxable year by a household |
20 | | and so much of the surrounding land, constituting
the parcel |
21 | | upon which the dwelling place is situated, as is used for
|
22 | | residential purposes. If the Chief County Assessment Officer |
23 | | has established a
specific legal description for a portion of |
24 | | property constituting the
residence, then that portion of |
25 | | property shall be deemed the residence for the
purposes of this |
26 | | Section.
|
|
| | HB3907 | - 10 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | "Taxable year" means the calendar year during which ad |
2 | | valorem property taxes
payable in the next succeeding year are |
3 | | levied.
|
4 | | (c) Beginning in taxable year 1994, a senior citizens |
5 | | assessment freeze
homestead exemption is granted for real |
6 | | property that is improved with a
permanent structure that is |
7 | | occupied as a residence by an applicant who (i) is
65 years of |
8 | | age or older during the taxable year, (ii) has a household |
9 | | income that does not exceed the maximum income limitation, |
10 | | (iii) is liable for paying real property taxes on
the
property, |
11 | | and (iv) is an owner of record of the property or has a legal or
|
12 | | equitable interest in the property as evidenced by a written |
13 | | instrument. This
homestead exemption shall also apply to a |
14 | | leasehold interest in a parcel of
property improved with a |
15 | | permanent structure that is a single family residence
that is |
16 | | occupied as a residence by a person who (i) is 65 years of age |
17 | | or older
during the taxable year, (ii) has a household income |
18 | | that does not exceed the maximum income limitation,
(iii)
has a |
19 | | legal or equitable ownership interest in the property as |
20 | | lessee, and (iv)
is liable for the payment of real property |
21 | | taxes on that property.
|
22 | | In counties of 3,000,000 or more inhabitants, the amount of |
23 | | the exemption for all taxable years is the equalized assessed |
24 | | value of the
residence in the taxable year for which |
25 | | application is made minus the base
amount. In all other |
26 | | counties, the amount of the exemption is as follows: (i) |
|
| | HB3907 | - 11 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | through taxable year 2005 and for taxable year 2007 and |
2 | | thereafter, the amount of this exemption shall be the equalized |
3 | | assessed value of the
residence in the taxable year for which |
4 | | application is made minus the base
amount; and (ii) for
taxable |
5 | | year 2006, the amount of the exemption is as follows:
|
6 | | (1) For an applicant who has a household income of |
7 | | $45,000 or less, the amount of the exemption is the |
8 | | equalized assessed value of the
residence in the taxable |
9 | | year for which application is made minus the base
amount. |
10 | | (2) For an applicant who has a household income |
11 | | exceeding $45,000 but not exceeding $46,250, the amount of |
12 | | the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
|
13 | | residence in the taxable year for which application is made |
14 | | minus the base
amount (ii) multiplied by 0.8. |
15 | | (3) For an applicant who has a household income |
16 | | exceeding $46,250 but not exceeding $47,500, the amount of |
17 | | the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
|
18 | | residence in the taxable year for which application is made |
19 | | minus the base
amount (ii) multiplied by 0.6. |
20 | | (4) For an applicant who has a household income |
21 | | exceeding $47,500 but not exceeding $48,750, the amount of |
22 | | the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
|
23 | | residence in the taxable year for which application is made |
24 | | minus the base
amount (ii) multiplied by 0.4. |
25 | | (5) For an applicant who has a household income |
26 | | exceeding $48,750 but not exceeding $50,000, the amount of |
|
| | HB3907 | - 12 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
|
2 | | residence in the taxable year for which application is made |
3 | | minus the base
amount (ii) multiplied by 0.2.
|
4 | | When the applicant is a surviving spouse of an applicant |
5 | | for a prior year for
the same residence for which an exemption |
6 | | under this Section has been granted,
the base year and base |
7 | | amount for that residence are the same as for the
applicant for |
8 | | the prior year.
|
9 | | Each year at the time the assessment books are certified to |
10 | | the County Clerk,
the Board of Review or Board of Appeals shall |
11 | | give to the County Clerk a list
of the assessed values of |
12 | | improvements on each parcel qualifying for this
exemption that |
13 | | were added after the base year for this parcel and that
|
14 | | increased the assessed value of the property.
|
15 | | In the case of land improved with an apartment building |
16 | | owned and operated as
a cooperative or a building that is a |
17 | | life care facility that qualifies as a
cooperative, the maximum |
18 | | reduction from the equalized assessed value of the
property is |
19 | | limited to the sum of the reductions calculated for each unit
|
20 | | occupied as a residence by a person or persons (i) 65 years of |
21 | | age or older, (ii) with a
household income that does not exceed |
22 | | the maximum income limitation, (iii) who is liable, by contract |
23 | | with the
owner
or owners of record, for paying real property |
24 | | taxes on the property, and (iv) who is
an owner of record of a |
25 | | legal or equitable interest in the cooperative
apartment |
26 | | building, other than a leasehold interest. In the instance of a
|
|
| | HB3907 | - 13 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | cooperative where a homestead exemption has been granted under |
2 | | this Section,
the cooperative association or its management |
3 | | firm shall credit the savings
resulting from that exemption |
4 | | only to the apportioned tax liability of the
owner who |
5 | | qualified for the exemption. Any person who willfully refuses |
6 | | to
credit that savings to an owner who qualifies for the |
7 | | exemption is guilty of a
Class B misdemeanor.
|
8 | | When a homestead exemption has been granted under this |
9 | | Section and an
applicant then becomes a resident of a facility |
10 | | licensed under the Assisted Living and Shared Housing Act, the |
11 | | Nursing Home
Care Act, the Specialized Mental Health |
12 | | Rehabilitation Act, or the ID/DD Community Care Act, the |
13 | | exemption shall be granted in subsequent years so long as the
|
14 | | residence (i) continues to be occupied by the qualified |
15 | | applicant's spouse or
(ii) if remaining unoccupied, is still |
16 | | owned by the qualified applicant for the
homestead exemption.
|
17 | | Beginning January 1, 1997, when an individual dies who |
18 | | would have qualified
for an exemption under this Section, and |
19 | | the surviving spouse does not
independently qualify for this |
20 | | exemption because of age, the exemption under
this Section |
21 | | shall be granted to the surviving spouse for the taxable year
|
22 | | preceding and the taxable
year of the death, provided that, |
23 | | except for age, the surviving spouse meets
all
other |
24 | | qualifications for the granting of this exemption for those |
25 | | years.
|
26 | | When married persons maintain separate residences, the |
|
| | HB3907 | - 14 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | exemption provided for
in this Section may be claimed by only |
2 | | one of such persons and for only one
residence.
|
3 | | For taxable year 1994 only, in counties having less than |
4 | | 3,000,000
inhabitants, to receive the exemption, a person shall |
5 | | submit an application by
February 15, 1995 to the Chief County |
6 | | Assessment Officer
of the county in which the property is |
7 | | located. In counties having 3,000,000
or more inhabitants, for |
8 | | taxable year 1994 and all subsequent taxable years, to
receive |
9 | | the exemption, a person
may submit an application to the Chief |
10 | | County
Assessment Officer of the county in which the property |
11 | | is located during such
period as may be specified by the Chief |
12 | | County Assessment Officer. The Chief
County Assessment Officer |
13 | | in counties of 3,000,000 or more inhabitants shall
annually |
14 | | give notice of the application period by mail or by |
15 | | publication. In
counties having less than 3,000,000 |
16 | | inhabitants, beginning with taxable year
1995 and thereafter, |
17 | | to receive the exemption, a person
shall
submit an
application |
18 | | by July 1 of each taxable year to the Chief County Assessment
|
19 | | Officer of the county in which the property is located. A |
20 | | county may, by
ordinance, establish a date for submission of |
21 | | applications that is
different than
July 1.
The applicant shall |
22 | | submit with the
application an affidavit of the applicant's |
23 | | total household income, age,
marital status (and if married the |
24 | | name and address of the applicant's spouse,
if known), and |
25 | | principal dwelling place of members of the household on January
|
26 | | 1 of the taxable year. The Department shall establish, by rule, |
|
| | HB3907 | - 15 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | a method for
verifying the accuracy of affidavits filed by |
2 | | applicants under this Section, and the Chief County Assessment |
3 | | Officer may conduct audits of any taxpayer claiming an |
4 | | exemption under this Section to verify that the taxpayer is |
5 | | eligible to receive the exemption. Each application shall |
6 | | contain or be verified by a written declaration that it is made |
7 | | under the penalties of perjury. A taxpayer's signing a |
8 | | fraudulent application under this Act is perjury, as defined in |
9 | | Section 32-2 of the Criminal Code of 1961.
The applications |
10 | | shall be clearly marked as applications for the Senior
Citizens |
11 | | Assessment Freeze Homestead Exemption and must contain a notice |
12 | | that any taxpayer who receives the exemption is subject to an |
13 | | audit by the Chief County Assessment Officer.
|
14 | | Notwithstanding any other provision to the contrary, in |
15 | | counties having fewer
than 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an |
16 | | applicant fails
to file the application required by this |
17 | | Section in a timely manner and this
failure to file is due to a |
18 | | mental or physical condition sufficiently severe so
as to |
19 | | render the applicant incapable of filing the application in a |
20 | | timely
manner, the Chief County Assessment Officer may extend |
21 | | the filing deadline for
a period of 30 days after the applicant |
22 | | regains the capability to file the
application, but in no case |
23 | | may the filing deadline be extended beyond 3
months of the |
24 | | original filing deadline. In order to receive the extension
|
25 | | provided in this paragraph, the applicant shall provide the |
26 | | Chief County
Assessment Officer with a signed statement from |
|
| | HB3907 | - 16 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | the applicant's physician
stating the nature and extent of the |
2 | | condition, that, in the
physician's opinion, the condition was |
3 | | so severe that it rendered the applicant
incapable of filing |
4 | | the application in a timely manner, and the date on which
the |
5 | | applicant regained the capability to file the application.
|
6 | | Beginning January 1, 1998, notwithstanding any other |
7 | | provision to the
contrary, in counties having fewer than |
8 | | 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an applicant
fails to file the |
9 | | application required by this Section in a timely manner and
|
10 | | this failure to file is due to a mental or physical condition |
11 | | sufficiently
severe so as to render the applicant incapable of |
12 | | filing the application in a
timely manner, the Chief County |
13 | | Assessment Officer may extend the filing
deadline for a period |
14 | | of 3 months. In order to receive the extension provided
in this |
15 | | paragraph, the applicant shall provide the Chief County |
16 | | Assessment
Officer with a signed statement from the applicant's |
17 | | physician stating the
nature and extent of the condition, and |
18 | | that, in the physician's opinion, the
condition was so severe |
19 | | that it rendered the applicant incapable of filing the
|
20 | | application in a timely manner.
|
21 | | In counties having less than 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an |
22 | | applicant was
denied an exemption in taxable year 1994 and the |
23 | | denial occurred due to an
error on the part of an assessment
|
24 | | official, or his or her agent or employee, then beginning in |
25 | | taxable year 1997
the
applicant's base year, for purposes of |
26 | | determining the amount of the exemption,
shall be 1993 rather |
|
| | HB3907 | - 17 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | than 1994. In addition, in taxable year 1997, the
applicant's |
2 | | exemption shall also include an amount equal to (i) the amount |
3 | | of
any exemption denied to the applicant in taxable year 1995 |
4 | | as a result of using
1994, rather than 1993, as the base year, |
5 | | (ii) the amount of any exemption
denied to the applicant in |
6 | | taxable year 1996 as a result of using 1994, rather
than 1993, |
7 | | as the base year, and (iii) the amount of the exemption |
8 | | erroneously
denied for taxable year 1994.
|
9 | | For purposes of this Section, a person who will be 65 years |
10 | | of age during the
current taxable year shall be eligible to |
11 | | apply for the homestead exemption
during that taxable year. |
12 | | Application shall be made during the application
period in |
13 | | effect for the county of his or her residence.
|
14 | | If a person turns 70 years of age or older during the |
15 | | taxable year, and he or she qualified for an exemption under |
16 | | this Section in the previous taxable year, then the person |
17 | | qualifying need not reapply for the exemption. |
18 | | The Chief County Assessment Officer may determine the |
19 | | eligibility of a life
care facility that qualifies as a |
20 | | cooperative to receive the benefits
provided by this Section by |
21 | | use of an affidavit, application, visual
inspection, |
22 | | questionnaire, or other reasonable method in order to insure |
23 | | that
the tax savings resulting from the exemption are credited |
24 | | by the management
firm to the apportioned tax liability of each |
25 | | qualifying resident. The Chief
County Assessment Officer may |
26 | | request reasonable proof that the management firm
has so |
|
| | HB3907 | - 18 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | credited that exemption.
|
2 | | Except as provided in this Section, all information |
3 | | received by the chief
county assessment officer or the |
4 | | Department from applications filed under this
Section, or from |
5 | | any investigation conducted under the provisions of this
|
6 | | Section, shall be confidential, except for official purposes or
|
7 | | pursuant to official procedures for collection of any State or |
8 | | local tax or
enforcement of any civil or criminal penalty or |
9 | | sanction imposed by this Act or
by any statute or ordinance |
10 | | imposing a State or local tax. Any person who
divulges any such |
11 | | information in any manner, except in accordance with a proper
|
12 | | judicial order, is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
|
13 | | Nothing contained in this Section shall prevent the |
14 | | Director or chief county
assessment officer from publishing or |
15 | | making available reasonable statistics
concerning the |
16 | | operation of the exemption contained in this Section in which
|
17 | | the contents of claims are grouped into aggregates in such a |
18 | | way that
information contained in any individual claim shall |
19 | | not be disclosed.
|
20 | | (d) Each Chief County Assessment Officer shall annually |
21 | | publish a notice
of availability of the exemption provided |
22 | | under this Section. The notice
shall be published at least 60 |
23 | | days but no more than 75 days prior to the date
on which the |
24 | | application must be submitted to the Chief County Assessment
|
25 | | Officer of the county in which the property is located. The |
26 | | notice shall
appear in a newspaper of general circulation in |
|
| | HB3907 | - 19 - | LRB097 14203 HLH 58910 b |
|
|
1 | | the county.
|
2 | | Notwithstanding Sections 6 and 8 of the State Mandates Act, |
3 | | no reimbursement by the State is required for the |
4 | | implementation of any mandate created by this Section.
|
5 | | (Source: P.A. 96-339, eff. 7-1-10; 96-355, eff. 1-1-10; |
6 | | 96-1000, eff. 7-2-10; 97-38, eff. 6-28-11; 97-227, eff. 1-1-12; |
7 | | revised 9-12-11.)
|
8 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon |
9 | | becoming law.
|