Full Text of HB5438 101st General Assembly
HB5438 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| | 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2019 and 2020 HB5438 Introduced , by Rep. Grant Wehrli - Deanne M. Mazzochi - Amy Grant, Lindsay Parkhurst and Tom Weber SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED: |
| 35 ILCS 200/15-170 | |
35 ILCS 200/15-172 |
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Amends the Property Tax Code. Provides that, for taxable years 2020 and thereafter, the maximum reduction under the senior citizens homestead exemption is $9,000 in all counties (currently, $8,000 in counties with 3,000,000 or more inhabitants and $5,000 in all other counties). Provides that the maximum income limitation for the senior citizens assessment freeze homestead exemption is $75,000 (currently, $65,000). Effective immediately.
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| | FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY | | HOUSING AFFORDABILITY IMPACT NOTE ACT MAY APPLY |
| | A BILL FOR |
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| 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. | 8 | | (a) An annual homestead
exemption limited, except as | 9 | | described here with relation to cooperatives or
life care | 10 | | facilities, to a
maximum reduction set forth below from the | 11 | | property's value, as equalized or
assessed by the Department, | 12 | | is granted for property that is occupied as a
residence by a | 13 | | person 65 years of age or older who is liable for paying real
| 14 | | estate taxes on the property and is an owner of record of the | 15 | | property or has a
legal or equitable interest therein as | 16 | | evidenced by a written instrument,
except for a leasehold | 17 | | interest, other than a leasehold interest of land on
which a | 18 | | single family residence is located, which is occupied as a | 19 | | residence by
a person 65 years or older who has an ownership | 20 | | interest therein, legal,
equitable or as a lessee, and on which | 21 | | he or she is liable for the payment
of property taxes. Before | 22 | | taxable year 2004, the maximum reduction shall be $2,500 in | 23 | | counties with
3,000,000 or more inhabitants and $2,000 in all |
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| 1 | | other counties. For taxable years 2004 through 2005, the | 2 | | maximum reduction shall be $3,000 in all counties. For taxable | 3 | | years 2006 and 2007, the maximum reduction shall be $3,500. For | 4 | | taxable years 2008 through 2011, the maximum reduction is | 5 | | $4,000 in all counties.
For taxable year 2012, the maximum | 6 | | reduction is $5,000 in counties with
3,000,000 or more | 7 | | inhabitants and $4,000 in all other counties. For taxable years | 8 | | 2013 through 2016, the maximum reduction is $5,000 in all | 9 | | counties. For taxable years 2017 through 2019 and thereafter , | 10 | | the maximum reduction is $8,000 in counties with 3,000,000 or | 11 | | more inhabitants and $5,000 in all other counties. For taxable | 12 | | years 2020 and thereafter, the maximum reduction is $9,000 in | 13 | | all counties. | 14 | | (b) For land
improved with an apartment building owned and | 15 | | operated as a cooperative, the maximum reduction from the value | 16 | | of the property, as
equalized
by the Department, shall be | 17 | | multiplied by the number of apartments or units
occupied by a | 18 | | person 65 years of age or older who is liable, by contract with
| 19 | | the owner or owners of record, for paying property taxes on the | 20 | | property and
is an owner of record of a legal or equitable | 21 | | interest in the cooperative
apartment building, other than a | 22 | | leasehold interest. For land improved with
a life care | 23 | | facility, the maximum reduction from the value of the property, | 24 | | as
equalized by the Department, shall be multiplied by the | 25 | | number of apartments or
units occupied by persons 65 years of | 26 | | age or older, irrespective of any legal,
equitable, or |
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| 1 | | leasehold interest in the facility, who are liable, under a
| 2 | | contract with the owner or owners of record of the facility, | 3 | | for paying
property taxes on the property. In a
cooperative or | 4 | | a life care facility where a
homestead exemption has been | 5 | | granted, the cooperative association or the
management firm of | 6 | | the cooperative or facility shall credit the savings
resulting | 7 | | from that exemption only to
the apportioned tax liability of | 8 | | the owner or resident who qualified for
the exemption.
Any | 9 | | person who willfully refuses to so credit the savings shall be | 10 | | guilty of a
Class B misdemeanor. Under this Section and | 11 | | Sections 15-175, 15-176, and 15-177, "life care
facility" means | 12 | | a facility, as defined in Section 2 of the Life Care Facilities
| 13 | | Act, with which the applicant for the homestead exemption has a | 14 | | life care
contract as defined in that Act. | 15 | | (c) When a homestead exemption has been granted under this | 16 | | Section and the person
qualifying subsequently becomes a | 17 | | resident of a facility licensed under the Assisted Living and | 18 | | Shared Housing Act, the Nursing Home Care Act, the Specialized | 19 | | Mental Health Rehabilitation Act of 2013, the ID/DD Community | 20 | | Care Act, or the MC/DD Act, the exemption shall continue so | 21 | | long as the residence
continues to be occupied by the | 22 | | qualifying person's spouse if the spouse is 65
years of age or | 23 | | older, or if the residence remains unoccupied but is still
| 24 | | owned by the person qualified for the homestead exemption. | 25 | | (d) A person who will be 65 years of age
during the current | 26 | | assessment year
shall
be eligible to apply for the homestead |
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| 1 | | exemption during that assessment
year.
Application shall be | 2 | | made during the application period in effect for the
county of | 3 | | his residence. | 4 | | (e) Beginning with assessment year 2003, for taxes payable | 5 | | in 2004,
property
that is first occupied as a residence after | 6 | | January 1 of any assessment year by
a person who is eligible | 7 | | for the senior citizens homestead exemption under this
Section | 8 | | must be granted a pro-rata exemption for the assessment year. | 9 | | The
amount of the pro-rata exemption is the exemption
allowed | 10 | | in the county under this Section divided by 365 and multiplied | 11 | | by the
number of days during the assessment year the property | 12 | | is occupied as a
residence by a
person eligible for the | 13 | | exemption under this Section. The chief county
assessment | 14 | | officer must adopt reasonable procedures to establish | 15 | | eligibility
for this pro-rata exemption. | 16 | | (f) The assessor or chief county assessment officer may | 17 | | determine the eligibility
of a life care facility to receive | 18 | | the benefits provided by this Section, by
affidavit, | 19 | | application, visual inspection, questionnaire or other | 20 | | reasonable
methods in order to insure that the tax savings | 21 | | resulting from the exemption
are credited by the management | 22 | | firm to the apportioned tax liability of each
qualifying | 23 | | resident. The assessor may request reasonable proof that the
| 24 | | management firm has so credited the exemption. | 25 | | (g) The chief county assessment officer of each county with | 26 | | less than 3,000,000
inhabitants shall provide to each person |
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| 1 | | allowed a homestead exemption under
this Section a form to | 2 | | designate any other person to receive a
duplicate of any notice | 3 | | of delinquency in the payment of taxes assessed and
levied | 4 | | under this Code on the property of the person receiving the | 5 | | exemption.
The duplicate notice shall be in addition to the | 6 | | notice required to be
provided to the person receiving the | 7 | | exemption, and shall be given in the
manner required by this | 8 | | Code. The person filing the request for the duplicate
notice | 9 | | shall pay a fee of $5 to cover administrative costs to the | 10 | | supervisor of
assessments, who shall then file the executed | 11 | | designation with the county
collector. Notwithstanding any | 12 | | other provision of this Code to the contrary,
the filing of | 13 | | such an executed designation requires the county collector to
| 14 | | provide duplicate notices as indicated by the designation. A | 15 | | designation may
be rescinded by the person who executed such | 16 | | designation at any time, in the
manner and form required by the | 17 | | chief county assessment officer. | 18 | | (h) The assessor or chief county assessment officer may | 19 | | determine the
eligibility of residential property to receive | 20 | | the homestead exemption provided
by this Section by | 21 | | application, visual inspection, questionnaire or other
| 22 | | reasonable methods. The determination shall be made in | 23 | | accordance with
guidelines established by the Department. | 24 | | (i) In counties with 3,000,000 or more inhabitants, for | 25 | | taxable years 2010 through 2018, and beginning again in taxable | 26 | | year 2024, each taxpayer who has been granted an exemption |
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| 1 | | under this Section must reapply on an annual basis. | 2 | | If a reapplication is required, then the chief county | 3 | | assessment officer shall mail the application to the taxpayer | 4 | | at least 60 days prior to the last day of the application | 5 | | period for the county. | 6 | | For taxable years 2019 through 2023, in counties with | 7 | | 3,000,000 or more inhabitants, a taxpayer who has been granted | 8 | | an exemption under this Section need not reapply. However, if | 9 | | the property ceases to be qualified for the exemption under | 10 | | this Section in any year for which a reapplication is not | 11 | | required under this Section, then the owner of record of the | 12 | | property shall notify the chief county assessment officer that | 13 | | the property is no longer qualified. In addition, for taxable | 14 | | years 2019 through 2023, the chief county assessment officer of | 15 | | a county with 3,000,000 or more inhabitants shall enter into an | 16 | | intergovernmental agreement with the county clerk of that | 17 | | county and the Department of Public Health, as well as any | 18 | | other appropriate governmental agency, to obtain information | 19 | | that documents the death of a taxpayer who has been granted an | 20 | | exemption under this Section. Notwithstanding any other | 21 | | provision of law, the county clerk and the Department of Public | 22 | | Health shall provide that information to the chief county | 23 | | assessment officer. The Department of Public Health shall | 24 | | supply this information no less frequently than every calendar | 25 | | quarter. Information concerning the death of a taxpayer may be | 26 | | shared with the county treasurer. The chief county assessment |
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| 1 | | officer shall also enter into a data exchange agreement with | 2 | | the Social Security Administration or its agent to obtain | 3 | | access to the information regarding deaths in possession of the | 4 | | Social Security Administration. The chief county assessment | 5 | | officer shall, subject to the notice requirements under | 6 | | subsection (m) of Section 9-275, terminate the exemption under | 7 | | this Section if the information obtained indicates that the | 8 | | property is no longer qualified for the exemption. In counties | 9 | | with 3,000,000 or more inhabitants, the assessor and the county | 10 | | recorder of deeds shall establish policies and practices for | 11 | | the regular exchange of information for the purpose of alerting | 12 | | the assessor whenever the transfer of ownership of any property | 13 | | receiving an exemption under this Section has occurred. When | 14 | | such a transfer occurs, the assessor shall mail a notice to the | 15 | | new owner of the property (i) informing the new owner that the | 16 | | exemption will remain in place through the year of the | 17 | | transfer, after which it will be canceled, and (ii) providing | 18 | | information pertaining to the rules for reapplying for the | 19 | | exemption if the owner qualifies. In counties with 3,000,000 or | 20 | | more inhabitants, the chief county assessment official shall | 21 | | conduct audits of all exemptions granted under this Section no | 22 | | later than December 31, 2022 and no later than December 31, | 23 | | 2024. The audit shall be designed to ascertain whether any | 24 | | senior homestead exemptions have been granted erroneously. If | 25 | | it is determined that a senior homestead exemption has been | 26 | | erroneously applied to a property, the chief county assessment |
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| 1 | | officer shall make use of the appropriate provisions of Section | 2 | | 9-275 in relation to the property that received the erroneous | 3 | | homestead exemption. | 4 | | (j) In counties with less than 3,000,000 inhabitants, the | 5 | | county board may by
resolution provide that if a person has | 6 | | been granted a homestead exemption
under this Section, the | 7 | | person qualifying need not reapply for the exemption. | 8 | | In counties with less than 3,000,000 inhabitants, if the | 9 | | assessor or chief
county assessment officer requires annual | 10 | | application for verification of
eligibility for an exemption | 11 | | once granted under this Section, the application
shall be | 12 | | mailed to the taxpayer. | 13 | | (l) The assessor or chief county assessment officer shall | 14 | | notify each person
who qualifies for an exemption under this | 15 | | Section that the person may also
qualify for deferral of real | 16 | | estate taxes under the Senior Citizens Real Estate
Tax Deferral | 17 | | Act. The notice shall set forth the qualifications needed for
| 18 | | deferral of real estate taxes, the address and telephone number | 19 | | of
county collector, and a
statement that applications for | 20 | | deferral of real estate taxes may be obtained
from the county | 21 | | collector. | 22 | | (m) Notwithstanding Sections 6 and 8 of the State Mandates | 23 | | Act, no
reimbursement by the State is required for the | 24 | | implementation of any mandate
created by this Section. | 25 | | (Source: P.A. 100-401, eff. 8-25-17; 101-453, eff. 8-23-19; | 26 | | 101-622, eff. 1-14-20.)
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| 1 | | (35 ILCS 200/15-172)
| 2 | | Sec. 15-172. Senior Citizens Assessment Freeze Homestead | 3 | | Exemption.
| 4 | | (a) This Section may be cited as the Senior Citizens | 5 | | Assessment
Freeze Homestead Exemption.
| 6 | | (b) As used in this Section:
| 7 | | "Applicant" means an individual who has filed an | 8 | | application under this
Section.
| 9 | | "Base amount" means the base year equalized assessed value | 10 | | of the residence
plus the first year's equalized assessed value | 11 | | of any added improvements which
increased the assessed value of | 12 | | the residence after the base year.
| 13 | | "Base year" means the taxable year prior to the taxable | 14 | | year for which the
applicant first qualifies and applies for | 15 | | the exemption provided that in the
prior taxable year the | 16 | | property was improved with a permanent structure that
was | 17 | | occupied as a residence by the applicant who was liable for | 18 | | paying real
property taxes on the property and who was either | 19 | | (i) an owner of record of the
property or had legal or | 20 | | equitable interest in the property as evidenced by a
written | 21 | | instrument or (ii) had a legal or equitable interest as a | 22 | | lessee in the
parcel of property that was single family | 23 | | residence.
If in any subsequent taxable year for which the | 24 | | applicant applies and
qualifies for the exemption the equalized | 25 | | assessed value of the residence is
less than the equalized |
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| 1 | | assessed value in the existing base year
(provided that such | 2 | | equalized assessed value is not
based
on an
assessed value that | 3 | | results from a temporary irregularity in the property that
| 4 | | reduces the
assessed value for one or more taxable years), then | 5 | | that
subsequent taxable year shall become the base year until a | 6 | | new base year is
established under the terms of this paragraph. | 7 | | For taxable year 1999 only, the
Chief County Assessment Officer | 8 | | shall review (i) all taxable years for which
the
applicant | 9 | | applied and qualified for the exemption and (ii) the existing | 10 | | base
year.
The assessment officer shall select as the new base | 11 | | year the year with the
lowest equalized assessed value.
An | 12 | | equalized assessed value that is based on an assessed value | 13 | | that results
from a
temporary irregularity in the property that | 14 | | reduces the assessed value for one
or more
taxable years shall | 15 | | not be considered the lowest equalized assessed value.
The | 16 | | selected year shall be the base year for
taxable year 1999 and | 17 | | thereafter until a new base year is established under the
terms | 18 | | of this paragraph.
| 19 | | "Chief County Assessment Officer" means the County | 20 | | Assessor or Supervisor of
Assessments of the county in which | 21 | | the property is located.
| 22 | | "Equalized assessed value" means the assessed value as | 23 | | equalized by the
Illinois Department of Revenue.
| 24 | | "Household" means the applicant, the spouse of the | 25 | | applicant, and all persons
using the residence of the applicant | 26 | | as their principal place of residence.
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| 1 | | "Household income" means the combined income of the members | 2 | | of a household
for the calendar year preceding the taxable | 3 | | year.
| 4 | | "Income" has the same meaning as provided in Section 3.07 | 5 | | of the Senior
Citizens and Persons with Disabilities Property | 6 | | Tax Relief
Act, except that, beginning in assessment year 2001, | 7 | | "income" does not
include veteran's benefits.
| 8 | | "Internal Revenue Code of 1986" means the United States | 9 | | Internal Revenue Code
of 1986 or any successor law or laws | 10 | | relating to federal income taxes in effect
for the year | 11 | | preceding the taxable year.
| 12 | | "Life care facility that qualifies as a cooperative" means | 13 | | a facility as
defined in Section 2 of the Life Care Facilities | 14 | | Act.
| 15 | | "Maximum income limitation" means: | 16 | | (1) $35,000 prior
to taxable year 1999; | 17 | | (2) $40,000 in taxable years 1999 through 2003; | 18 | | (3) $45,000 in taxable years 2004 through 2005; | 19 | | (4) $50,000 in taxable years 2006 and 2007; | 20 | | (5) $55,000 in taxable years 2008 through 2016;
| 21 | | (6) for taxable year 2017, (i) $65,000 for qualified | 22 | | property located in a county with 3,000,000 or more | 23 | | inhabitants and (ii) $55,000 for qualified property | 24 | | located in a county with fewer than 3,000,000 inhabitants; | 25 | | and | 26 | | (7) for taxable years 2018 and 2019 thereafter , $65,000 |
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| 1 | | for all qualified property ; and . | 2 | | (8) for taxable years 2020 and thereafter, $75,000 for | 3 | | all qualified property. | 4 | | "Residence" means the principal dwelling place and | 5 | | appurtenant structures
used for residential purposes in this | 6 | | State occupied on January 1 of the
taxable year by a household | 7 | | and so much of the surrounding land, constituting
the parcel | 8 | | upon which the dwelling place is situated, as is used for
| 9 | | residential purposes. If the Chief County Assessment Officer | 10 | | has established a
specific legal description for a portion of | 11 | | property constituting the
residence, then that portion of | 12 | | property shall be deemed the residence for the
purposes of this | 13 | | Section.
| 14 | | "Taxable year" means the calendar year during which ad | 15 | | valorem property taxes
payable in the next succeeding year are | 16 | | levied.
| 17 | | (c) Beginning in taxable year 1994, a senior citizens | 18 | | assessment freeze
homestead exemption is granted for real | 19 | | property that is improved with a
permanent structure that is | 20 | | occupied as a residence by an applicant who (i) is
65 years of | 21 | | age or older during the taxable year, (ii) has a household | 22 | | income that does not exceed the maximum income limitation, | 23 | | (iii) is liable for paying real property taxes on
the
property, | 24 | | and (iv) is an owner of record of the property or has a legal or
| 25 | | equitable interest in the property as evidenced by a written | 26 | | instrument. This
homestead exemption shall also apply to a |
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| 1 | | leasehold interest in a parcel of
property improved with a | 2 | | permanent structure that is a single family residence
that is | 3 | | occupied as a residence by a person who (i) is 65 years of age | 4 | | or older
during the taxable year, (ii) has a household income | 5 | | that does not exceed the maximum income limitation,
(iii)
has a | 6 | | legal or equitable ownership interest in the property as | 7 | | lessee, and (iv)
is liable for the payment of real property | 8 | | taxes on that property.
| 9 | | In counties of 3,000,000 or more inhabitants, the amount of | 10 | | the exemption for all taxable years is the equalized assessed | 11 | | value of the
residence in the taxable year for which | 12 | | application is made minus the base
amount. In all other | 13 | | counties, the amount of the exemption is as follows: (i) | 14 | | through taxable year 2005 and for taxable year 2007 and | 15 | | thereafter, the amount of this exemption shall be the equalized | 16 | | assessed value of the
residence in the taxable year for which | 17 | | application is made minus the base
amount; and (ii) for
taxable | 18 | | year 2006, the amount of the exemption is as follows:
| 19 | | (1) For an applicant who has a household income of | 20 | | $45,000 or less, the amount of the exemption is the | 21 | | equalized assessed value of the
residence in the taxable | 22 | | year for which application is made minus the base
amount. | 23 | | (2) For an applicant who has a household income | 24 | | exceeding $45,000 but not exceeding $46,250, the amount of | 25 | | the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
| 26 | | residence in the taxable year for which application is made |
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| 1 | | minus the base
amount (ii) multiplied by 0.8. | 2 | | (3) For an applicant who has a household income | 3 | | exceeding $46,250 but not exceeding $47,500, the amount of | 4 | | the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
| 5 | | residence in the taxable year for which application is made | 6 | | minus the base
amount (ii) multiplied by 0.6. | 7 | | (4) For an applicant who has a household income | 8 | | exceeding $47,500 but not exceeding $48,750, the amount of | 9 | | the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
| 10 | | residence in the taxable year for which application is made | 11 | | minus the base
amount (ii) multiplied by 0.4. | 12 | | (5) For an applicant who has a household income | 13 | | exceeding $48,750 but not exceeding $50,000, the amount of | 14 | | the exemption is (i) the equalized assessed value of the
| 15 | | residence in the taxable year for which application is made | 16 | | minus the base
amount (ii) multiplied by 0.2.
| 17 | | When the applicant is a surviving spouse of an applicant | 18 | | for a prior year for
the same residence for which an exemption | 19 | | under this Section has been granted,
the base year and base | 20 | | amount for that residence are the same as for the
applicant for | 21 | | the prior year.
| 22 | | Each year at the time the assessment books are certified to | 23 | | the County Clerk,
the Board of Review or Board of Appeals shall | 24 | | give to the County Clerk a list
of the assessed values of | 25 | | improvements on each parcel qualifying for this
exemption that | 26 | | were added after the base year for this parcel and that
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| 1 | | increased the assessed value of the property.
| 2 | | In the case of land improved with an apartment building | 3 | | owned and operated as
a cooperative or a building that is a | 4 | | life care facility that qualifies as a
cooperative, the maximum | 5 | | reduction from the equalized assessed value of the
property is | 6 | | limited to the sum of the reductions calculated for each unit
| 7 | | occupied as a residence by a person or persons (i) 65 years of | 8 | | age or older, (ii) with a
household income that does not exceed | 9 | | the maximum income limitation, (iii) who is liable, by contract | 10 | | with the
owner
or owners of record, for paying real property | 11 | | taxes on the property, and (iv) who is
an owner of record of a | 12 | | legal or equitable interest in the cooperative
apartment | 13 | | building, other than a leasehold interest. In the instance of a
| 14 | | cooperative where a homestead exemption has been granted under | 15 | | this Section,
the cooperative association or its management | 16 | | firm shall credit the savings
resulting from that exemption | 17 | | only to the apportioned tax liability of the
owner who | 18 | | qualified for the exemption. Any person who willfully refuses | 19 | | to
credit that savings to an owner who qualifies for the | 20 | | exemption is guilty of a
Class B misdemeanor.
| 21 | | When a homestead exemption has been granted under this | 22 | | Section and an
applicant then becomes a resident of a facility | 23 | | licensed under the Assisted Living and Shared Housing Act, the | 24 | | Nursing Home
Care Act, the Specialized Mental Health | 25 | | Rehabilitation Act of 2013, the ID/DD Community Care Act, or | 26 | | the MC/DD Act, the exemption shall be granted in subsequent |
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| 1 | | years so long as the
residence (i) continues to be occupied by | 2 | | the qualified applicant's spouse or
(ii) if remaining | 3 | | unoccupied, is still owned by the qualified applicant for the
| 4 | | homestead exemption.
| 5 | | Beginning January 1, 1997, when an individual dies who | 6 | | would have qualified
for an exemption under this Section, and | 7 | | the surviving spouse does not
independently qualify for this | 8 | | exemption because of age, the exemption under
this Section | 9 | | shall be granted to the surviving spouse for the taxable year
| 10 | | preceding and the taxable
year of the death, provided that, | 11 | | except for age, the surviving spouse meets
all
other | 12 | | qualifications for the granting of this exemption for those | 13 | | years.
| 14 | | When married persons maintain separate residences, the | 15 | | exemption provided for
in this Section may be claimed by only | 16 | | one of such persons and for only one
residence.
| 17 | | For taxable year 1994 only, in counties having less than | 18 | | 3,000,000
inhabitants, to receive the exemption, a person shall | 19 | | submit an application by
February 15, 1995 to the Chief County | 20 | | Assessment Officer
of the county in which the property is | 21 | | located. In counties having 3,000,000
or more inhabitants, for | 22 | | taxable year 1994 and all subsequent taxable years, to
receive | 23 | | the exemption, a person
may submit an application to the Chief | 24 | | County
Assessment Officer of the county in which the property | 25 | | is located during such
period as may be specified by the Chief | 26 | | County Assessment Officer. The Chief
County Assessment Officer |
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| 1 | | in counties of 3,000,000 or more inhabitants shall
annually | 2 | | give notice of the application period by mail or by | 3 | | publication. In
counties having less than 3,000,000 | 4 | | inhabitants, beginning with taxable year
1995 and thereafter, | 5 | | to receive the exemption, a person
shall
submit an
application | 6 | | by July 1 of each taxable year to the Chief County Assessment
| 7 | | Officer of the county in which the property is located. A | 8 | | county may, by
ordinance, establish a date for submission of | 9 | | applications that is
different than
July 1.
The applicant shall | 10 | | submit with the
application an affidavit of the applicant's | 11 | | total household income, age,
marital status (and if married the | 12 | | name and address of the applicant's spouse,
if known), and | 13 | | principal dwelling place of members of the household on January
| 14 | | 1 of the taxable year. The Department shall establish, by rule, | 15 | | a method for
verifying the accuracy of affidavits filed by | 16 | | applicants under this Section, and the Chief County Assessment | 17 | | Officer may conduct audits of any taxpayer claiming an | 18 | | exemption under this Section to verify that the taxpayer is | 19 | | eligible to receive the exemption. Each application shall | 20 | | contain or be verified by a written declaration that it is made | 21 | | under the penalties of perjury. A taxpayer's signing a | 22 | | fraudulent application under this Act is perjury, as defined in | 23 | | Section 32-2 of the Criminal Code of 2012.
The applications | 24 | | shall be clearly marked as applications for the Senior
Citizens | 25 | | Assessment Freeze Homestead Exemption and must contain a notice | 26 | | that any taxpayer who receives the exemption is subject to an |
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| 1 | | audit by the Chief County Assessment Officer.
| 2 | | Notwithstanding any other provision to the contrary, in | 3 | | counties having fewer
than 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an | 4 | | applicant fails
to file the application required by this | 5 | | Section in a timely manner and this
failure to file is due to a | 6 | | mental or physical condition sufficiently severe so
as to | 7 | | render the applicant incapable of filing the application in a | 8 | | timely
manner, the Chief County Assessment Officer may extend | 9 | | the filing deadline for
a period of 30 days after the applicant | 10 | | regains the capability to file the
application, but in no case | 11 | | may the filing deadline be extended beyond 3
months of the | 12 | | original filing deadline. In order to receive the extension
| 13 | | provided in this paragraph, the applicant shall provide the | 14 | | Chief County
Assessment Officer with a signed statement from | 15 | | the applicant's physician, advanced practice registered nurse, | 16 | | or physician assistant
stating the nature and extent of the | 17 | | condition, that, in the
physician's, advanced practice | 18 | | registered nurse's, or physician assistant's opinion, the | 19 | | condition was so severe that it rendered the applicant
| 20 | | incapable of filing the application in a timely manner, and the | 21 | | date on which
the applicant regained the capability to file the | 22 | | application.
| 23 | | Beginning January 1, 1998, notwithstanding any other | 24 | | provision to the
contrary, in counties having fewer than | 25 | | 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an applicant
fails to file the | 26 | | application required by this Section in a timely manner and
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| 1 | | this failure to file is due to a mental or physical condition | 2 | | sufficiently
severe so as to render the applicant incapable of | 3 | | filing the application in a
timely manner, the Chief County | 4 | | Assessment Officer may extend the filing
deadline for a period | 5 | | of 3 months. In order to receive the extension provided
in this | 6 | | paragraph, the applicant shall provide the Chief County | 7 | | Assessment
Officer with a signed statement from the applicant's | 8 | | physician, advanced practice registered nurse, or physician | 9 | | assistant stating the
nature and extent of the condition, and | 10 | | that, in the physician's, advanced practice registered | 11 | | nurse's, or physician assistant's opinion, the
condition was so | 12 | | severe that it rendered the applicant incapable of filing the
| 13 | | application in a timely manner.
| 14 | | In counties having less than 3,000,000 inhabitants, if an | 15 | | applicant was
denied an exemption in taxable year 1994 and the | 16 | | denial occurred due to an
error on the part of an assessment
| 17 | | official, or his or her agent or employee, then beginning in | 18 | | taxable year 1997
the
applicant's base year, for purposes of | 19 | | determining the amount of the exemption,
shall be 1993 rather | 20 | | than 1994. In addition, in taxable year 1997, the
applicant's | 21 | | exemption shall also include an amount equal to (i) the amount | 22 | | of
any exemption denied to the applicant in taxable year 1995 | 23 | | as a result of using
1994, rather than 1993, as the base year, | 24 | | (ii) the amount of any exemption
denied to the applicant in | 25 | | taxable year 1996 as a result of using 1994, rather
than 1993, | 26 | | as the base year, and (iii) the amount of the exemption |
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| 1 | | erroneously
denied for taxable year 1994.
| 2 | | For purposes of this Section, a person who will be 65 years | 3 | | of age during the
current taxable year shall be eligible to | 4 | | apply for the homestead exemption
during that taxable year. | 5 | | Application shall be made during the application
period in | 6 | | effect for the county of his or her residence.
| 7 | | The Chief County Assessment Officer may determine the | 8 | | eligibility of a life
care facility that qualifies as a | 9 | | cooperative to receive the benefits
provided by this Section by | 10 | | use of an affidavit, application, visual
inspection, | 11 | | questionnaire, or other reasonable method in order to insure | 12 | | that
the tax savings resulting from the exemption are credited | 13 | | by the management
firm to the apportioned tax liability of each | 14 | | qualifying resident. The Chief
County Assessment Officer may | 15 | | request reasonable proof that the management firm
has so | 16 | | credited that exemption.
| 17 | | Except as provided in this Section, all information | 18 | | received by the chief
county assessment officer or the | 19 | | Department from applications filed under this
Section, or from | 20 | | any investigation conducted under the provisions of this
| 21 | | Section, shall be confidential, except for official purposes or
| 22 | | pursuant to official procedures for collection of any State or | 23 | | local tax or
enforcement of any civil or criminal penalty or | 24 | | sanction imposed by this Act or
by any statute or ordinance | 25 | | imposing a State or local tax. Any person who
divulges any such | 26 | | information in any manner, except in accordance with a proper
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| 1 | | judicial order, is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
| 2 | | Nothing contained in this Section shall prevent the | 3 | | Director or chief county
assessment officer from publishing or | 4 | | making available reasonable statistics
concerning the | 5 | | operation of the exemption contained in this Section in which
| 6 | | the contents of claims are grouped into aggregates in such a | 7 | | way that
information contained in any individual claim shall | 8 | | not be disclosed. | 9 | | Notwithstanding any other provision of law, for taxable | 10 | | year 2017 and thereafter, in counties of 3,000,000 or more | 11 | | inhabitants, the amount of the exemption shall be the greater | 12 | | of (i) the amount of the exemption otherwise calculated under | 13 | | this Section or (ii) $2,000.
| 14 | | (d) Each Chief County Assessment Officer shall annually | 15 | | publish a notice
of availability of the exemption provided | 16 | | under this Section. The notice
shall be published at least 60 | 17 | | days but no more than 75 days prior to the date
on which the | 18 | | application must be submitted to the Chief County Assessment
| 19 | | Officer of the county in which the property is located. The | 20 | | notice shall
appear in a newspaper of general circulation in | 21 | | the county.
| 22 | | Notwithstanding Sections 6 and 8 of the State Mandates Act, | 23 | | no reimbursement by the State is required for the | 24 | | implementation of any mandate created by this Section.
| 25 | | (Source: P.A. 99-143, eff. 7-27-15; 99-180, eff. 7-29-15; | 26 | | 99-581, eff. 1-1-17; 99-642, eff. 7-28-16; 100-401, eff. |
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| 1 | | 8-25-17; 100-513, eff. 1-1-18; 100-863, eff. 8-14-18.)
| 2 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 3 | | becoming law.
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