Public Act 102-0379
 
SB2278 EnrolledLRB102 16606 HLH 22004 b

    AN ACT concerning local government.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 5. The Counties Code is amended by changing
Section 5-1006.5 as follows:
 
    (55 ILCS 5/5-1006.5)
    Sec. 5-1006.5. Special County Retailers' Occupation Tax
For Public Safety, Public Facilities, Mental Health, Substance
Abuse, or Transportation.
    (a) The county board of any county may impose a tax upon
all persons engaged in the business of selling tangible
personal property, other than personal property titled or
registered with an agency of this State's government, at
retail in the county on the gross receipts from the sales made
in the course of business to provide revenue to be used
exclusively for public safety, public facility, mental health,
substance abuse, or transportation purposes in that county
(except as otherwise provided in this Section), if a
proposition for the tax has been submitted to the electors of
that county and approved by a majority of those voting on the
question. If imposed, this tax shall be imposed only in
one-quarter percent increments. By resolution, the county
board may order the proposition to be submitted at any
election. If the tax is imposed for transportation purposes
for expenditures for public highways or as authorized under
the Illinois Highway Code, the county board must publish
notice of the existence of its long-range highway
transportation plan as required or described in Section 5-301
of the Illinois Highway Code and must make the plan publicly
available prior to approval of the ordinance or resolution
imposing the tax. If the tax is imposed for transportation
purposes for expenditures for passenger rail transportation,
the county board must publish notice of the existence of its
long-range passenger rail transportation plan and must make
the plan publicly available prior to approval of the ordinance
or resolution imposing the tax.
    If a tax is imposed for public facilities purposes, then
the name of the project may be included in the proposition at
the discretion of the county board as determined in the
enabling resolution. For example, the "XXX Nursing Home" or
the "YYY Museum".
    The county clerk shall certify the question to the proper
election authority, who shall submit the proposition at an
election in accordance with the general election law.
        (1) The proposition for public safety purposes shall
    be in substantially the following form:
        "To pay for public safety purposes, shall (name of
    county) be authorized to impose an increase on its share
    of local sales taxes by (insert rate)?"
        As additional information on the ballot below the
    question shall appear the following:
        "This would mean that a consumer would pay an
    additional (insert amount) in sales tax for every $100 of
    tangible personal property bought at retail."
        The county board may also opt to establish a sunset
    provision at which time the additional sales tax would
    cease being collected, if not terminated earlier by a vote
    of the county board. If the county board votes to include a
    sunset provision, the proposition for public safety
    purposes shall be in substantially the following form:
        "To pay for public safety purposes, shall (name of
    county) be authorized to impose an increase on its share
    of local sales taxes by (insert rate) for a period not to
    exceed (insert number of years)?"
        As additional information on the ballot below the
    question shall appear the following:
        "This would mean that a consumer would pay an
    additional (insert amount) in sales tax for every $100 of
    tangible personal property bought at retail. If imposed,
    the additional tax would cease being collected at the end
    of (insert number of years), if not terminated earlier by
    a vote of the county board."
        For the purposes of the paragraph, "public safety
    purposes" means crime prevention, detention, fire
    fighting, police, medical, ambulance, or other emergency
    services.
        Votes shall be recorded as "Yes" or "No".
        Beginning on the January 1 or July 1, whichever is
    first, that occurs not less than 30 days after May 31, 2015
    (the effective date of Public Act 99-4), Adams County may
    impose a public safety retailers' occupation tax and
    service occupation tax at the rate of 0.25%, as provided
    in the referendum approved by the voters on April 7, 2015,
    notwithstanding the omission of the additional information
    that is otherwise required to be printed on the ballot
    below the question pursuant to this item (1).
        (2) The proposition for transportation purposes shall
    be in substantially the following form:
        "To pay for improvements to roads and other
    transportation purposes, shall (name of county) be
    authorized to impose an increase on its share of local
    sales taxes by (insert rate)?"
        As additional information on the ballot below the
    question shall appear the following:
        "This would mean that a consumer would pay an
    additional (insert amount) in sales tax for every $100 of
    tangible personal property bought at retail."
        The county board may also opt to establish a sunset
    provision at which time the additional sales tax would
    cease being collected, if not terminated earlier by a vote
    of the county board. If the county board votes to include a
    sunset provision, the proposition for transportation
    purposes shall be in substantially the following form:
        "To pay for road improvements and other transportation
    purposes, shall (name of county) be authorized to impose
    an increase on its share of local sales taxes by (insert
    rate) for a period not to exceed (insert number of
    years)?"
        As additional information on the ballot below the
    question shall appear the following:
        "This would mean that a consumer would pay an
    additional (insert amount) in sales tax for every $100 of
    tangible personal property bought at retail. If imposed,
    the additional tax would cease being collected at the end
    of (insert number of years), if not terminated earlier by
    a vote of the county board."
        For the purposes of this paragraph, transportation
    purposes means construction, maintenance, operation, and
    improvement of public highways, any other purpose for
    which a county may expend funds under the Illinois Highway
    Code, and passenger rail transportation.
        The votes shall be recorded as "Yes" or "No".
        (3) The proposition for public facilities purposes
    shall be in substantially the following form:
        "To pay for public facilities purposes, shall (name of
    county) be authorized to impose an increase on its share
    of local sales taxes by (insert rate)?"
        As additional information on the ballot below the
    question shall appear the following:
        "This would mean that a consumer would pay an
    additional (insert amount) in sales tax for every $100 of
    tangible personal property bought at retail."
        The county board may also opt to establish a sunset
    provision at which time the additional sales tax would
    cease being collected, if not terminated earlier by a vote
    of the county board. If the county board votes to include a
    sunset provision, the proposition for public facilities
    purposes shall be in substantially the following form:
        "To pay for public facilities purposes, shall (name of
    county) be authorized to impose an increase on its share
    of local sales taxes by (insert rate) for a period not to
    exceed (insert number of years)?"
        As additional information on the ballot below the
    question shall appear the following:
        "This would mean that a consumer would pay an
    additional (insert amount) in sales tax for every $100 of
    tangible personal property bought at retail. If imposed,
    the additional tax would cease being collected at the end
    of (insert number of years), if not terminated earlier by
    a vote of the county board."
        For purposes of this Section, "public facilities
    purposes" means the acquisition, development,
    construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation,
    improvement, financing, architectural planning, and
    installation of capital facilities consisting of
    buildings, structures, and durable equipment and for the
    acquisition and improvement of real property and interest
    in real property required, or expected to be required, in
    connection with the public facilities, for use by the
    county for the furnishing of governmental services to its
    citizens, including, but not limited to, museums and
    nursing homes.
        The votes shall be recorded as "Yes" or "No".
        (4) The proposition for mental health purposes shall
    be in substantially the following form:
        "To pay for mental health purposes, shall (name of
    county) be authorized to impose an increase on its share
    of local sales taxes by (insert rate)?"
        As additional information on the ballot below the
    question shall appear the following:
        "This would mean that a consumer would pay an
    additional (insert amount) in sales tax for every $100 of
    tangible personal property bought at retail."
        The county board may also opt to establish a sunset
    provision at which time the additional sales tax would
    cease being collected, if not terminated earlier by a vote
    of the county board. If the county board votes to include a
    sunset provision, the proposition for public facilities
    purposes shall be in substantially the following form:
        "To pay for mental health purposes, shall (name of
    county) be authorized to impose an increase on its share
    of local sales taxes by (insert rate) for a period not to
    exceed (insert number of years)?"
        As additional information on the ballot below the
    question shall appear the following:
        "This would mean that a consumer would pay an
    additional (insert amount) in sales tax for every $100 of
    tangible personal property bought at retail. If imposed,
    the additional tax would cease being collected at the end
    of (insert number of years), if not terminated earlier by
    a vote of the county board."
        The votes shall be recorded as "Yes" or "No".
        (5) The proposition for substance abuse purposes shall
    be in substantially the following form:
        "To pay for substance abuse purposes, shall (name of
    county) be authorized to impose an increase on its share
    of local sales taxes by (insert rate)?"
        As additional information on the ballot below the
    question shall appear the following:
        "This would mean that a consumer would pay an
    additional (insert amount) in sales tax for every $100 of
    tangible personal property bought at retail."
        The county board may also opt to establish a sunset
    provision at which time the additional sales tax would
    cease being collected, if not terminated earlier by a vote
    of the county board. If the county board votes to include a
    sunset provision, the proposition for public facilities
    purposes shall be in substantially the following form:
        "To pay for substance abuse purposes, shall (name of
    county) be authorized to impose an increase on its share
    of local sales taxes by (insert rate) for a period not to
    exceed (insert number of years)?"
        As additional information on the ballot below the
    question shall appear the following:
        "This would mean that a consumer would pay an
    additional (insert amount) in sales tax for every $100 of
    tangible personal property bought at retail. If imposed,
    the additional tax would cease being collected at the end
    of (insert number of years), if not terminated earlier by
    a vote of the county board."
        The votes shall be recorded as "Yes" or "No".
    If a majority of the electors voting on the proposition
vote in favor of it, the county may impose the tax. A county
may not submit more than one proposition authorized by this
Section to the electors at any one time.
    This additional tax may not be imposed on tangible
personal property taxed at the 1% rate under the Retailers'
Occupation Tax Act. Beginning December 1, 2019 and through
December 31, 2020, this tax is not imposed on sales of aviation
fuel unless the tax revenue is expended for airport-related
purposes. If the county does not have an airport-related
purpose to which it dedicates aviation fuel tax revenue, then
aviation fuel is excluded from the tax. The county must comply
with the certification requirements for airport-related
purposes under Section 2-22 of the Retailers' Occupation Tax
Act. For purposes of this Section, "airport-related purposes"
has the meaning ascribed in Section 6z-20.2 of the State
Finance Act. Beginning January 1, 2021, this tax is not
imposed on sales of aviation fuel for so long as the revenue
use requirements of 49 U.S.C. 47107(b) and 49 U.S.C. 47133 are
binding on the county. The tax imposed by a county under this
Section and all civil penalties that may be assessed as an
incident of the tax shall be collected and enforced by the
Illinois Department of Revenue and deposited into a special
fund created for that purpose. The certificate of registration
that is issued by the Department to a retailer under the
Retailers' Occupation Tax Act shall permit the retailer to
engage in a business that is taxable without registering
separately with the Department under an ordinance or
resolution under this Section. The Department has full power
to administer and enforce this Section, to collect all taxes
and penalties due under this Section, to dispose of taxes and
penalties so collected in the manner provided in this Section,
and to determine all rights to credit memoranda arising on
account of the erroneous payment of a tax or penalty under this
Section. In the administration of and compliance with this
Section, the Department and persons who are subject to this
Section shall (i) have the same rights, remedies, privileges,
immunities, powers, and duties, (ii) be subject to the same
conditions, restrictions, limitations, penalties, and
definitions of terms, and (iii) employ the same modes of
procedure as are prescribed in Sections 1, 1a, 1a-1, 1d, 1e,
1f, 1i, 1j, 1k, 1m, 1n, 2 through 2-70 (in respect to all
provisions contained in those Sections other than the State
rate of tax), 2a, 2b, 2c, 3 (except provisions relating to
transaction returns and quarter monthly payments, and except
that the retailer's discount is not allowed for taxes paid on
aviation fuel that are deposited into the Local Government
Aviation Trust Fund), 4, 5, 5a, 5b, 5c, 5d, 5e, 5f, 5g, 5h, 5i,
5j, 5k, 5l, 6, 6a, 6b, 6c, 6d, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 11a, 12, and 13
of the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act and Section 3-7 of the
Uniform Penalty and Interest Act as if those provisions were
set forth in this Section.
    Persons subject to any tax imposed under the authority
granted in this Section may reimburse themselves for their
sellers' tax liability by separately stating the tax as an
additional charge, which charge may be stated in combination,
in a single amount, with State tax which sellers are required
to collect under the Use Tax Act, pursuant to such bracketed
schedules as the Department may prescribe.
    Whenever the Department determines that a refund should be
made under this Section to a claimant instead of issuing a
credit memorandum, the Department shall notify the State
Comptroller, who shall cause the order to be drawn for the
amount specified and to the person named in the notification
from the Department. The refund shall be paid by the State
Treasurer out of the County Public Safety, Public Facilities,
Mental Health, Substance Abuse, or Transportation Retailers'
Occupation Tax Fund or the Local Government Aviation Trust
Fund, as appropriate.
    (b) If a tax has been imposed under subsection (a), a
service occupation tax shall also be imposed at the same rate
upon all persons engaged, in the county, in the business of
making sales of service, who, as an incident to making those
sales of service, transfer tangible personal property within
the county as an incident to a sale of service. This tax may
not be imposed on tangible personal property taxed at the 1%
rate under the Service Occupation Tax Act. Beginning December
1, 2019 and through December 31, 2020, this tax is not imposed
on sales of aviation fuel unless the tax revenue is expended
for airport-related purposes. If the county does not have an
airport-related purpose to which it dedicates aviation fuel
tax revenue, then aviation fuel is excluded from the tax. The
county must comply with the certification requirements for
airport-related purposes under Section 2-22 of the Retailers'
Occupation Tax Act. For purposes of this Section,
"airport-related purposes" has the meaning ascribed in Section
6z-20.2 of the State Finance Act. Beginning January 1, 2021,
this tax is not imposed on sales of aviation fuel for so long
as the revenue use requirements of 49 U.S.C. 47107(b) and 49
U.S.C. 47133 are binding on the county. The tax imposed under
this subsection and all civil penalties that may be assessed
as an incident thereof shall be collected and enforced by the
Department of Revenue. The Department has full power to
administer and enforce this subsection; to collect all taxes
and penalties due hereunder; to dispose of taxes and penalties
so collected in the manner hereinafter provided; and to
determine all rights to credit memoranda arising on account of
the erroneous payment of tax or penalty hereunder. In the
administration of and compliance with this subsection, the
Department and persons who are subject to this paragraph shall
(i) have the same rights, remedies, privileges, immunities,
powers, and duties, (ii) be subject to the same conditions,
restrictions, limitations, penalties, exclusions, exemptions,
and definitions of terms, and (iii) employ the same modes of
procedure as are prescribed in Sections 2 (except that the
reference to State in the definition of supplier maintaining a
place of business in this State shall mean the county), 2a, 2b,
2c, 3 through 3-50 (in respect to all provisions therein other
than the State rate of tax), 4 (except that the reference to
the State shall be to the county), 5, 7, 8 (except that the
jurisdiction to which the tax shall be a debt to the extent
indicated in that Section 8 shall be the county), 9 (except as
to the disposition of taxes and penalties collected, and
except that the retailer's discount is not allowed for taxes
paid on aviation fuel that are deposited into the Local
Government Aviation Trust Fund), 10, 11, 12 (except the
reference therein to Section 2b of the Retailers' Occupation
Tax Act), 13 (except that any reference to the State shall mean
the county), Section 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, and 20 of the Service
Occupation Tax Act, and Section 3-7 of the Uniform Penalty and
Interest Act, as fully as if those provisions were set forth
herein.
    Persons subject to any tax imposed under the authority
granted in this subsection may reimburse themselves for their
serviceman's tax liability by separately stating the tax as an
additional charge, which charge may be stated in combination,
in a single amount, with State tax that servicemen are
authorized to collect under the Service Use Tax Act, in
accordance with such bracket schedules as the Department may
prescribe.
    Whenever the Department determines that a refund should be
made under this subsection to a claimant instead of issuing a
credit memorandum, the Department shall notify the State
Comptroller, who shall cause the warrant to be drawn for the
amount specified, and to the person named, in the notification
from the Department. The refund shall be paid by the State
Treasurer out of the County Public Safety, Public Facilities,
Mental Health, Substance Abuse, or Transportation Retailers'
Occupation Fund or the Local Government Aviation Trust Fund,
as appropriate.
    Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to authorize
the county to impose a tax upon the privilege of engaging in
any business which under the Constitution of the United States
may not be made the subject of taxation by the State.
    (c) Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph, the
Department shall immediately pay over to the State Treasurer,
ex officio, as trustee, all taxes and penalties collected
under this Section to be deposited into the County Public
Safety, Public Facilities, Mental Health, Substance Abuse, or
Transportation Retailers' Occupation Tax Fund, which shall be
an unappropriated trust fund held outside of the State
treasury. Taxes and penalties collected on aviation fuel sold
on or after December 1, 2019 and through December 31, 2020,
shall be immediately paid over by the Department to the State
Treasurer, ex officio, as trustee, for deposit into the Local
Government Aviation Trust Fund. The Department shall only pay
moneys into the Local Government Aviation Trust Fund under
this Act for so long as the revenue use requirements of 49
U.S.C. 47107(b) and 49 U.S.C. 47133 are binding on the county.
    As soon as possible after the first day of each month,
beginning January 1, 2011, upon certification of the
Department of Revenue, the Comptroller shall order
transferred, and the Treasurer shall transfer, to the STAR
Bonds Revenue Fund the local sales tax increment, as defined
in the Innovation Development and Economy Act, collected under
this Section during the second preceding calendar month for
sales within a STAR bond district.
    After the monthly transfer to the STAR Bonds Revenue Fund,
on or before the 25th day of each calendar month, the
Department shall prepare and certify to the Comptroller the
disbursement of stated sums of money to the counties from
which retailers have paid taxes or penalties to the Department
during the second preceding calendar month. The amount to be
paid to each county, and deposited by the county into its
special fund created for the purposes of this Section, shall
be the amount (not including credit memoranda and not
including taxes and penalties collected on aviation fuel sold
on or after December 1, 2019 and through December 31, 2020)
collected under this Section during the second preceding
calendar month by the Department plus an amount the Department
determines is necessary to offset any amounts that were
erroneously paid to a different taxing body, and not including
(i) an amount equal to the amount of refunds made during the
second preceding calendar month by the Department on behalf of
the county, (ii) any amount that the Department determines is
necessary to offset any amounts that were payable to a
different taxing body but were erroneously paid to the county,
(iii) any amounts that are transferred to the STAR Bonds
Revenue Fund, and (iv) 1.5% of the remainder, which shall be
transferred into the Tax Compliance and Administration Fund.
The Department, at the time of each monthly disbursement to
the counties, shall prepare and certify to the State
Comptroller the amount to be transferred into the Tax
Compliance and Administration Fund under this subsection.
Within 10 days after receipt by the Comptroller of the
disbursement certification to the counties and the Tax
Compliance and Administration Fund provided for in this
Section to be given to the Comptroller by the Department, the
Comptroller shall cause the orders to be drawn for the
respective amounts in accordance with directions contained in
the certification.
    In addition to the disbursement required by the preceding
paragraph, an allocation shall be made in March of each year to
each county that received more than $500,000 in disbursements
under the preceding paragraph in the preceding calendar year.
The allocation shall be in an amount equal to the average
monthly distribution made to each such county under the
preceding paragraph during the preceding calendar year
(excluding the 2 months of highest receipts). The distribution
made in March of each year subsequent to the year in which an
allocation was made pursuant to this paragraph and the
preceding paragraph shall be reduced by the amount allocated
and disbursed under this paragraph in the preceding calendar
year. The Department shall prepare and certify to the
Comptroller for disbursement the allocations made in
accordance with this paragraph.
    (d) For the purpose of determining the local governmental
unit whose tax is applicable, a retail sale by a producer of
coal or another mineral mined in Illinois is a sale at retail
at the place where the coal or other mineral mined in Illinois
is extracted from the earth. This paragraph does not apply to
coal or another mineral when it is delivered or shipped by the
seller to the purchaser at a point outside Illinois so that the
sale is exempt under the United States Constitution as a sale
in interstate or foreign commerce.
    (e) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to
authorize a county to impose a tax upon the privilege of
engaging in any business that under the Constitution of the
United States may not be made the subject of taxation by this
State.
    (e-5) If a county imposes a tax under this Section, the
county board may, by ordinance, discontinue or lower the rate
of the tax. If the county board lowers the tax rate or
discontinues the tax, a referendum must be held in accordance
with subsection (a) of this Section in order to increase the
rate of the tax or to reimpose the discontinued tax.
    (f) Beginning April 1, 1998 and through December 31, 2013,
the results of any election authorizing a proposition to
impose a tax under this Section or effecting a change in the
rate of tax, or any ordinance lowering the rate or
discontinuing the tax, shall be certified by the county clerk
and filed with the Illinois Department of Revenue either (i)
on or before the first day of April, whereupon the Department
shall proceed to administer and enforce the tax as of the first
day of July next following the filing; or (ii) on or before the
first day of October, whereupon the Department shall proceed
to administer and enforce the tax as of the first day of
January next following the filing.
    Beginning January 1, 2014, the results of any election
authorizing a proposition to impose a tax under this Section
or effecting an increase in the rate of tax, along with the
ordinance adopted to impose the tax or increase the rate of the
tax, or any ordinance adopted to lower the rate or discontinue
the tax, shall be certified by the county clerk and filed with
the Illinois Department of Revenue either (i) on or before the
first day of May, whereupon the Department shall proceed to
administer and enforce the tax as of the first day of July next
following the adoption and filing; or (ii) on or before the
first day of October, whereupon the Department shall proceed
to administer and enforce the tax as of the first day of
January next following the adoption and filing.
    (g) When certifying the amount of a monthly disbursement
to a county under this Section, the Department shall increase
or decrease the amounts by an amount necessary to offset any
miscalculation of previous disbursements. The offset amount
shall be the amount erroneously disbursed within the previous
6 months from the time a miscalculation is discovered.
    (g-5) Every county authorized to levy a tax under this
Section shall, before it levies such tax, establish a 7-member
mental health board, which shall have the same powers and
duties and be constituted in the same manner as a community
mental health board established under the Community Mental
Health Act. Proceeds of the tax under this Section that are
earmarked for mental health or substance abuse purposes shall
be deposited into a special county occupation tax fund for
mental health and substance abuse. The 7-member mental health
board established under this subsection shall administer the
special county occupation tax fund for mental health and
substance abuse in the same manner as the community mental
health board administers the community mental health fund
under the Community Mental Health Act.
    (h) This Section may be cited as the "Special County
Occupation Tax For Public Safety, Public Facilities, Mental
Health, Substance Abuse, or Transportation Law".
    (i) For purposes of this Section, "public safety"
includes, but is not limited to, crime prevention, detention,
fire fighting, police, medical, ambulance, or other emergency
services. The county may share tax proceeds received under
this Section for public safety purposes, including proceeds
received before August 4, 2009 (the effective date of Public
Act 96-124), with any fire protection district located in the
county. For the purposes of this Section, "transportation"
includes, but is not limited to, the construction,
maintenance, operation, and improvement of public highways,
any other purpose for which a county may expend funds under the
Illinois Highway Code, and passenger rail transportation. For
the purposes of this Section, "public facilities purposes"
includes, but is not limited to, the acquisition, development,
construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, improvement,
financing, architectural planning, and installation of capital
facilities consisting of buildings, structures, and durable
equipment and for the acquisition and improvement of real
property and interest in real property required, or expected
to be required, in connection with the public facilities, for
use by the county for the furnishing of governmental services
to its citizens, including, but not limited to, museums and
nursing homes.
    (j) The Department may promulgate rules to implement
Public Act 95-1002 only to the extent necessary to apply the
existing rules for the Special County Retailers' Occupation
Tax for Public Safety to this new purpose for public
facilities.
(Source: P.A. 100-23, eff. 7-6-17; 100-587, eff. 6-4-18;
100-1167, eff. 1-4-19; 100-1171, eff. 1-4-19; 101-10, eff.
6-5-19; 101-81, eff. 7-12-19; 101-275, eff. 8-9-19; 101-604,
eff. 12-13-19.)