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1 | AN ACT regarding disabled persons.
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2 | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, | ||||||
3 | represented in the General Assembly:
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4 | Section 5. The Property Tax Code is amended by changing | ||||||
5 | Section 15-172 as follows:
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6 | (35 ILCS 200/15-172)
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7 | Sec. 15-172. Senior Citizens and Disabled Persons | ||||||
8 | Assessment Freeze Homestead Exemption.
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9 | (a) This Section may be cited as the Senior Citizens and | ||||||
10 | Disabled Persons Assessment
Freeze Homestead Exemption.
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11 | (b) As used in this Section:
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12 | "Applicant" means an individual who has filed an | ||||||
13 | application under this
Section.
| ||||||
14 | "Base amount" means the base year equalized assessed value | ||||||
15 | of the residence
plus the first year's equalized assessed value | ||||||
16 | of any added improvements which
increased the assessed value of | ||||||
17 | the residence after the base year.
| ||||||
18 | "Base year" means the taxable year prior to the taxable | ||||||
19 | year for which the
applicant first qualifies and applies for | ||||||
20 | the exemption provided that in the
prior taxable year the | ||||||
21 | property was improved with a permanent structure that
was | ||||||
22 | occupied as a residence by the applicant who was liable for | ||||||
23 | paying 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 | ||||||
2 | equitable interest in the property as evidenced by a
written | ||||||
3 | instrument or (ii) had a legal or equitable interest as a | ||||||
4 | lessee in the
parcel of property that was single family | ||||||
5 | residence.
If in any subsequent taxable year for which the | ||||||
6 | applicant applies and
qualifies for the exemption the equalized | ||||||
7 | assessed value of the residence is
less than the equalized | ||||||
8 | assessed value in the existing base year
(provided that such | ||||||
9 | equalized assessed value is not
based
on an
assessed value that | ||||||
10 | results from a temporary irregularity in the property that
| ||||||
11 | reduces the
assessed value for one or more taxable years), then | ||||||
12 | that
subsequent taxable year shall become the base year until a | ||||||
13 | new base year is
established under the terms of this paragraph. | ||||||
14 | For taxable year 1999 only, the
Chief County Assessment Officer | ||||||
15 | shall review (i) all taxable years for which
the
applicant | ||||||
16 | applied and qualified for the exemption and (ii) the existing | ||||||
17 | base
year.
The assessment officer shall select as the new base | ||||||
18 | year the year with the
lowest equalized assessed value.
An | ||||||
19 | equalized assessed value that is based on an assessed value | ||||||
20 | that results
from a
temporary irregularity in the property that | ||||||
21 | reduces the assessed value for one
or more
taxable years shall | ||||||
22 | not be considered the lowest equalized assessed value.
The | ||||||
23 | selected year shall be the base year for
taxable year 1999 and | ||||||
24 | thereafter until a new base year is established under the
terms | ||||||
25 | of this paragraph.
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26 | "Chief County Assessment Officer" means the County |
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1 | Assessor or Supervisor of
Assessments of the county in which | ||||||
2 | the property is located.
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3 | "Disabled person" means a person unable to
engage in any | ||||||
4 | substantial gainful activity by reason of a medically
| ||||||
5 | determinable physical
or mental impairment that (i) can be | ||||||
6 | expected to result in death or (ii) has
lasted or can be
| ||||||
7 | expected to last for a continuous period of not less than 12 | ||||||
8 | months. Disabled
persons
applying for the exemption under this | ||||||
9 | Section must submit proof of the
disability in the
manner | ||||||
10 | prescribed by the chief county assessment officer. Proof that | ||||||
11 | an
applicant is
eligible to receive disability benefits under | ||||||
12 | the federal Social Security Act
constitutes
proof of disability | ||||||
13 | for purposes of this Section. Issuance of an Illinois
Disabled | ||||||
14 | Person
Identification Card to the applicant stating that the | ||||||
15 | possessor is under a
Class 2 disability,
as defined in Section | ||||||
16 | 4A of the Illinois Identification Card Act, constitutes
proof | ||||||
17 | that the
person is a disabled person for purposes of this | ||||||
18 | Section. | ||||||
19 | "Equalized assessed value" means the assessed value as | ||||||
20 | equalized by the
Illinois Department of Revenue.
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21 | "Household" means the applicant, the spouse of the | ||||||
22 | applicant, and all persons
using the residence of the applicant | ||||||
23 | as their principal place of residence.
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24 | "Household income" means the combined income of the members | ||||||
25 | of a household
for the calendar year preceding the taxable | ||||||
26 | year.
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1 | "Income" has the same meaning as provided in Section 3.07 | ||||||
2 | of the Senior
Citizens and Disabled Persons Property Tax Relief | ||||||
3 | and Pharmaceutical Assistance
Act, except that, beginning in | ||||||
4 | assessment year 2001, "income" does not
include veteran's | ||||||
5 | benefits.
| ||||||
6 | "Internal Revenue Code of 1986" means the United States | ||||||
7 | Internal Revenue Code
of 1986 or any successor law or laws | ||||||
8 | relating to federal income taxes in effect
for the year | ||||||
9 | preceding the taxable year.
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10 | "Life care facility that qualifies as a cooperative" means | ||||||
11 | a facility as
defined in Section 2 of the Life Care Facilities | ||||||
12 | Act.
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13 | "Maximum income limitation" means: | ||||||
14 | (1) $35,000 prior
to taxable year 1999; | ||||||
15 | (2) $40,000 in taxable years 1999 through 2003; | ||||||
16 | (3) $45,000 in taxable years 2004 through 2005; | ||||||
17 | (4) $50,000 in taxable years 2006 and 2007; and | ||||||
18 | (5) $55,000 in taxable year 2008 and thereafter.
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19 | "Residence" means the principal dwelling place and | ||||||
20 | appurtenant structures
used for residential purposes in this | ||||||
21 | State occupied on January 1 of the
taxable year by a household | ||||||
22 | and so much of the surrounding land, constituting
the parcel | ||||||
23 | upon which the dwelling place is situated, as is used for
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24 | residential purposes. If the Chief County Assessment Officer | ||||||
25 | has established a
specific legal description for a portion of | ||||||
26 | property constituting the
residence, then that portion of |
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1 | property shall be deemed the residence for the
purposes of this | ||||||
2 | Section.
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3 | "Taxable year" means the calendar year during which ad | ||||||
4 | valorem property taxes
payable in the next succeeding year are | ||||||
5 | levied.
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6 | (c) Beginning in (1) taxable year 1994 for , a senior | ||||||
7 | citizens and (2) taxable year 2011 for disabled persons, an | ||||||
8 | assessment freeze
homestead exemption is granted for real | ||||||
9 | property that is improved with a
permanent structure that is | ||||||
10 | occupied as a residence by an applicant who (i) is
65 years of | ||||||
11 | age or older , or a disabled person, during the taxable year, | ||||||
12 | (ii) has a household income that does not exceed the maximum | ||||||
13 | income limitation, (iii) is liable for paying real property | ||||||
14 | taxes on
the
property, and (iv) is an owner of record of the | ||||||
15 | property or has a legal or
equitable interest in the property | ||||||
16 | as evidenced by a written instrument. This
homestead exemption | ||||||
17 | shall also apply to a leasehold interest in a parcel of
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18 | property improved with a permanent structure that is a single | ||||||
19 | family residence
that is occupied as a residence by a person | ||||||
20 | who (i) is 65 years of age or older , or a disabled person,
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21 | during the taxable year, (ii) has a household income that does | ||||||
22 | not exceed the maximum income limitation,
(iii)
has a legal or | ||||||
23 | equitable ownership interest in the property as lessee, and | ||||||
24 | (iv)
is liable for the payment of real property taxes on that | ||||||
25 | property.
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26 | In counties of 3,000,000 or more inhabitants, the amount of |
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1 | the exemption for all taxable years is the equalized assessed | ||||||
2 | value of the
residence in the taxable year for which | ||||||
3 | application is made minus the base
amount. In all other | ||||||
4 | counties, the amount of the exemption is as follows: (i) | ||||||
5 | through taxable year 2005 and for taxable year 2007 and | ||||||
6 | thereafter, the amount of this exemption shall be the equalized | ||||||
7 | assessed value of the
residence in the taxable year for which | ||||||
8 | application is made minus the base
amount; and (ii) for
taxable | ||||||
9 | year 2006, the amount of the exemption is as follows:
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10 | (1) For an applicant who has a household income of | ||||||
11 | $45,000 or less, the amount of the exemption is the | ||||||
12 | equalized assessed value of the
residence in the taxable | ||||||
13 | year for which application is made minus the base
amount. | ||||||
14 | (2) For an applicant who has a household income | ||||||
15 | exceeding $45,000 but not exceeding $46,250, the amount of | ||||||
16 | the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
| ||||||
17 | residence in the taxable year for which application is made | ||||||
18 | minus the base
amount (ii) multiplied by 0.8. | ||||||
19 | (3) For an applicant who has a household income | ||||||
20 | exceeding $46,250 but not exceeding $47,500, the amount of | ||||||
21 | the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
| ||||||
22 | residence in the taxable year for which application is made | ||||||
23 | minus the base
amount (ii) multiplied by 0.6. | ||||||
24 | (4) For an applicant who has a household income | ||||||
25 | exceeding $47,500 but not exceeding $48,750, the amount of | ||||||
26 | the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
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1 | residence in the taxable year for which application is made | ||||||
2 | minus the base
amount (ii) multiplied by 0.4. | ||||||
3 | (5) For an applicant who has a household income | ||||||
4 | exceeding $48,750 but not exceeding $50,000, the amount of | ||||||
5 | the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
| ||||||
6 | residence in the taxable year for which application is made | ||||||
7 | minus the base
amount (ii) multiplied by 0.2.
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8 | When the applicant is a surviving spouse of an applicant | ||||||
9 | for a prior year for
the same residence for which an exemption | ||||||
10 | under this Section has been granted,
the base year and base | ||||||
11 | amount for that residence are the same as for the
applicant for | ||||||
12 | the prior year.
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13 | Each year at the time the assessment books are certified to | ||||||
14 | the County Clerk,
the Board of Review or Board of Appeals shall | ||||||
15 | give to the County Clerk a list
of the assessed values of | ||||||
16 | improvements on each parcel qualifying for this
exemption that | ||||||
17 | were added after the base year for this parcel and that
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18 | increased the assessed value of the property.
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19 | In the case of land improved with an apartment building | ||||||
20 | owned and operated as
a cooperative or a building that is a | ||||||
21 | life care facility that qualifies as a
cooperative, the maximum | ||||||
22 | reduction from the equalized assessed value of the
property is | ||||||
23 | limited to the sum of the reductions calculated for each unit
| ||||||
24 | occupied as a residence by a person or persons (i) 65 years of | ||||||
25 | age or older, or a disabled person, (ii) with a
household | ||||||
26 | income that does not exceed the maximum income limitation, |
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1 | (iii) who is liable, by contract with the
owner
or owners of | ||||||
2 | record, for paying real property taxes on the property, and | ||||||
3 | (iv) who is
an owner of record of a legal or equitable interest | ||||||
4 | in the cooperative
apartment building, other than a leasehold | ||||||
5 | interest. In the instance of a
cooperative where a homestead | ||||||
6 | exemption has been granted under this Section,
the cooperative | ||||||
7 | association or its management firm shall credit the savings
| ||||||
8 | resulting from that exemption only to the apportioned tax | ||||||
9 | liability of the
owner who qualified for the exemption. Any | ||||||
10 | person who willfully refuses to
credit that savings to an owner | ||||||
11 | who qualifies for the exemption is guilty of a
Class B | ||||||
12 | misdemeanor.
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13 | When a homestead exemption has been granted under this | ||||||
14 | Section and an
applicant then becomes a resident of a facility | ||||||
15 | licensed under the Assisted Living and Shared Housing Act, the | ||||||
16 | Nursing Home
Care Act, or the MR/DD Community Care Act, the | ||||||
17 | exemption shall be granted in subsequent years so long as the
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18 | residence (i) continues to be occupied by the qualified | ||||||
19 | applicant's spouse or
(ii) if remaining unoccupied, is still | ||||||
20 | owned by the qualified applicant for the
homestead exemption.
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21 | Beginning January 1, 1997 , for senior citizens and January | ||||||
22 | 1, 2011, for disabled persons , when an individual dies who | ||||||
23 | would have qualified
for an exemption under this Section, and | ||||||
24 | the surviving spouse does not
independently qualify for this | ||||||
25 | exemption because of age or nondisability , the exemption under
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26 | this Section shall be granted to the surviving spouse for the |
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1 | taxable year
preceding and the taxable
year of the death, | ||||||
2 | provided that, except for age or nondisability , the surviving | ||||||
3 | spouse meets
all
other qualifications for the granting of this | ||||||
4 | exemption for those years.
| ||||||
5 | When married persons maintain separate residences, the | ||||||
6 | exemption provided for
in this Section may be claimed by only | ||||||
7 | one of such persons and for only one
residence.
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8 | For taxable year 1994 only, in counties having less than | ||||||
9 | 3,000,000
inhabitants, to receive the exemption, a person shall | ||||||
10 | submit an application by
February 15, 1995 to the Chief County | ||||||
11 | Assessment Officer
of the county in which the property is | ||||||
12 | located. In counties having 3,000,000
or more inhabitants, for | ||||||
13 | taxable year 1994 and all subsequent taxable years, to
receive | ||||||
14 | the exemption, a person
may submit an application to the Chief | ||||||
15 | County
Assessment Officer of the county in which the property | ||||||
16 | is located during such
period as may be specified by the Chief | ||||||
17 | County Assessment Officer. The Chief
County Assessment Officer | ||||||
18 | in counties of 3,000,000 or more inhabitants shall
annually | ||||||
19 | give notice of the application period by mail or by | ||||||
20 | publication. In
counties having less than 3,000,000 | ||||||
21 | inhabitants, beginning with taxable year
1995 and thereafter, | ||||||
22 | to receive the exemption, a person
shall
submit an
application | ||||||
23 | by July 1 of each taxable year to the Chief County Assessment
| ||||||
24 | Officer of the county in which the property is located. A | ||||||
25 | county may, by
ordinance, establish a date for submission of | ||||||
26 | applications that is
different than
July 1.
The applicant shall |
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1 | submit with the
application an affidavit of the applicant's | ||||||
2 | total household income, age,
marital status (and if married the | ||||||
3 | name and address of the applicant's spouse,
if known), | ||||||
4 | disability (if applying for the exemption as a disabled | ||||||
5 | person), and principal dwelling place of members of the | ||||||
6 | household on January
1 of the taxable year. The Department | ||||||
7 | shall establish, by rule, a method for
verifying the accuracy | ||||||
8 | of affidavits filed by applicants under this Section, and the | ||||||
9 | Chief County Assessment Officer may conduct audits of any | ||||||
10 | taxpayer claiming an exemption under this Section to verify | ||||||
11 | that the taxpayer is eligible to receive the exemption. Each | ||||||
12 | application shall contain or be verified by a written | ||||||
13 | declaration that it is made under the penalties of perjury. A | ||||||
14 | taxpayer's signing a fraudulent application under this Act is | ||||||
15 | perjury, as defined in Section 32-2 of the Criminal Code of | ||||||
16 | 1961.
The applications shall be clearly marked as applications | ||||||
17 | for the Senior
Citizens and Disabled Persons Assessment Freeze | ||||||
18 | Homestead Exemption and must contain a notice that any taxpayer | ||||||
19 | who receives the exemption is subject to an audit by the Chief | ||||||
20 | County Assessment Officer.
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21 | Notwithstanding any other provision to the contrary, in | ||||||
22 | counties having fewer
than 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an | ||||||
23 | applicant fails
to file the application required by this | ||||||
24 | Section in a timely manner and this
failure to file is due to a | ||||||
25 | mental or physical condition sufficiently severe so
as to | ||||||
26 | render the applicant incapable of filing the application in a |
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1 | timely
manner, the Chief County Assessment Officer may extend | ||||||
2 | the filing deadline for
a period of 30 days after the applicant | ||||||
3 | regains the capability to file the
application, but in no case | ||||||
4 | may the filing deadline be extended beyond 3
months of the | ||||||
5 | original filing deadline. In order to receive the extension
| ||||||
6 | provided in this paragraph, the applicant shall provide the | ||||||
7 | Chief County
Assessment Officer with a signed statement from | ||||||
8 | the applicant's physician
stating the nature and extent of the | ||||||
9 | condition, that, in the
physician's opinion, the condition was | ||||||
10 | so severe that it rendered the applicant
incapable of filing | ||||||
11 | the application in a timely manner, and the date on which
the | ||||||
12 | applicant regained the capability to file the application.
| ||||||
13 | Beginning January 1, 1998, notwithstanding any other | ||||||
14 | provision to the
contrary, in counties having fewer than | ||||||
15 | 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an applicant
fails to file the | ||||||
16 | application required by this Section in a timely manner and
| ||||||
17 | this failure to file is due to a mental or physical condition | ||||||
18 | sufficiently
severe so as to render the applicant incapable of | ||||||
19 | filing the application in a
timely manner, the Chief County | ||||||
20 | Assessment Officer may extend the filing
deadline for a period | ||||||
21 | of 3 months. In order to receive the extension provided
in this | ||||||
22 | paragraph, the applicant shall provide the Chief County | ||||||
23 | Assessment
Officer with a signed statement from the applicant's | ||||||
24 | physician stating the
nature and extent of the condition, and | ||||||
25 | that, in the physician's opinion, the
condition was so severe | ||||||
26 | that it rendered the applicant incapable of filing the
|
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| |||||||
1 | application in a timely manner.
| ||||||
2 | In counties having less than 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an | ||||||
3 | applicant was
denied an exemption in taxable year 1994 and the | ||||||
4 | denial occurred due to an
error on the part of an assessment
| ||||||
5 | official, or his or her agent or employee, then beginning in | ||||||
6 | taxable year 1997
the
applicant's base year, for purposes of | ||||||
7 | determining the amount of the exemption,
shall be 1993 rather | ||||||
8 | than 1994. In addition, in taxable year 1997, the
applicant's | ||||||
9 | exemption shall also include an amount equal to (i) the amount | ||||||
10 | of
any exemption denied to the applicant in taxable year 1995 | ||||||
11 | as a result of using
1994, rather than 1993, as the base year, | ||||||
12 | (ii) the amount of any exemption
denied to the applicant in | ||||||
13 | taxable year 1996 as a result of using 1994, rather
than 1993, | ||||||
14 | as the base year, and (iii) the amount of the exemption | ||||||
15 | erroneously
denied for taxable year 1994.
| ||||||
16 | For purposes of this Section, a person who will be 65 years | ||||||
17 | of age or is a disabled person during the
current taxable year | ||||||
18 | shall be eligible to apply for the homestead exemption
during | ||||||
19 | that taxable year. Application shall be made during the | ||||||
20 | application
period in effect for the county of his or her | ||||||
21 | residence.
| ||||||
22 | The Chief County Assessment Officer may determine the | ||||||
23 | eligibility of a life
care facility that qualifies as a | ||||||
24 | cooperative to receive the benefits
provided by this Section by | ||||||
25 | use of an affidavit, application, visual
inspection, | ||||||
26 | questionnaire, or other reasonable method in order to insure |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | that
the tax savings resulting from the exemption are credited | ||||||
2 | by the management
firm to the apportioned tax liability of each | ||||||
3 | qualifying resident. The Chief
County Assessment Officer may | ||||||
4 | request reasonable proof that the management firm
has so | ||||||
5 | credited that exemption.
| ||||||
6 | Except as provided in this Section, all information | ||||||
7 | received by the chief
county assessment officer or the | ||||||
8 | Department from applications filed under this
Section, or from | ||||||
9 | any investigation conducted under the provisions of this
| ||||||
10 | Section, shall be confidential, except for official purposes or
| ||||||
11 | pursuant to official procedures for collection of any State or | ||||||
12 | local tax or
enforcement of any civil or criminal penalty or | ||||||
13 | sanction imposed by this Act or
by any statute or ordinance | ||||||
14 | imposing a State or local tax. Any person who
divulges any such | ||||||
15 | information in any manner, except in accordance with a proper
| ||||||
16 | judicial order, is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
| ||||||
17 | Nothing contained in this Section shall prevent the | ||||||
18 | Director or chief county
assessment officer from publishing or | ||||||
19 | making available reasonable statistics
concerning the | ||||||
20 | operation of the exemption contained in this Section in which
| ||||||
21 | the contents of claims are grouped into aggregates in such a | ||||||
22 | way that
information contained in any individual claim shall | ||||||
23 | not be disclosed.
| ||||||
24 | (d) Each Chief County Assessment Officer shall annually | ||||||
25 | publish a notice
of availability of the exemption provided | ||||||
26 | under this Section. The notice
shall be published at least 60 |
| |||||||
| |||||||
1 | days but no more than 75 days prior to the date
on which the | ||||||
2 | application must be submitted to the Chief County Assessment
| ||||||
3 | Officer of the county in which the property is located. The | ||||||
4 | notice shall
appear in a newspaper of general circulation in | ||||||
5 | the county.
| ||||||
6 | Notwithstanding Sections 6 and 8 of the State Mandates Act, | ||||||
7 | no reimbursement by the State is required for the | ||||||
8 | implementation of any mandate created by this Section.
| ||||||
9 | (Source: P.A. 95-644, eff. 10-12-07; 96-339, eff. 7-1-10; | ||||||
10 | 96-355, eff. 1-1-10; 96-1000, eff. 7-2-10.)
| ||||||
11 | Section 90. The State Mandates Act is amended by adding | ||||||
12 | Section 8.35 as follows: | ||||||
13 | (30 ILCS 805/8.35 new) | ||||||
14 | Sec. 8.35. Exempt mandate. Notwithstanding Sections 6 and 8 | ||||||
15 | of this Act, no reimbursement by the State is required for the | ||||||
16 | implementation of any mandate created by this amendatory Act of | ||||||
17 | the 97th General Assembly.
| ||||||
18 | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | ||||||
19 | becoming law. |