[ Back ] [ Bottom ]
92_SB2043
LRB9215888SMpk
1 AN ACT concerning taxation.
2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
4 Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5 Longtime Owner-Occupant Property Tax Exemption Act.
6 Section. 5. Public policy. In recognition of the severe
7 economic circumstances of certain longtime owner-occupants of
8 residences who are faced with rising living costs and
9 constantly increasing tax burdens in areas where real
10 property values have risen markedly, the General Assembly
11 considers it to be a matter of sound public policy to allow
12 counties to adopt special real property tax relief provisions
13 in order to allow longtime owner-occupants of residences to
14 remain in peaceful possession of their homes.
15 Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act, unless the
16 context clearly indicates otherwise:
17 (a) "Longtime owner-occupant" means a person who for at
18 least 25 continuous years has owned and has occupied the same
19 dwelling place as a principal residence and domicile.
20 (b) "Principal residence" means the dwelling place of a
21 person, including the principal house and lot, and such lots
22 as are used in connection with the principal house and lot
23 that contribute to its enjoyment, comfort, and convenience.
24 For purposes of this Act, the term may also include a
25 building with a maximum of one commercial establishment and a
26 maximum of 3 residential units of which one residential unit
27 must be the principal residence of the longtime
28 owner-occupant.
29 Section 15. Exemption authority. The corporate
-2- LRB9215888SMpk
1 authorities of a county may provide, by ordinance or
2 resolution, for special real property tax relief provisions,
3 uniform within the county, granting longtime owner-occupants
4 an exemption in the payment of that portion of an increase of
5 real property taxes that is due to an increase in the
6 assessed value of the property by more than 2% from the most
7 recent prior assessed value of that property. An exemption
8 may be granted until the longtime owner-occupant transfers
9 title to the property.
10 The ordinance or resolution must include a provision
11 requiring that eligibility notification of the special real
12 property tax relief be delivered to the record owner of the
13 property taxed. The eligibility notification shall be mailed
14 to the address of the record owner on file with the county.
15 If the notification is mailed by the county to a mortgagee
16 because it is the only address of the record owner filed with
17 the county, then the mortgagee shall, within 30 days after
18 receipt, forward a copy of the notice to each mortgagor of
19 the property. There is no liability for the failure of the
20 mortgagee to forward the notice to each mortgagor.
21 Section 20. Conditions of deferral or exemption. Any
22 exemption of payment of an increase in real property taxes
23 granted under this Act must be limited to real property that
24 meets both of the following conditions:
25 (1) The property is owned and occupied by a
26 longtime owner-occupant.
27 (2) The property is the principal residence and
28 domicile of the longtime owner-occupant.
29 The corporate authorities of a county, by ordinance or
30 resolution, may impose additional criteria for qualifying for
31 an exemption under this Act including, but not limited to,
32 (i) requiring the owner-occupant to have owned and occupied
33 the same dwelling place as principal residence and domicile
-3- LRB9215888SMpk
1 for a period of more than 25 years, (ii) establishing age
2 criteria for eligibility of an owner-occupant, and (iii)
3 establishing income criteria for eligibility of an
4 owner-occupant.
5 Section 25. Application to prior tax years. The
6 corporate authorities of the county may use any county record
7 or other information that predates the effective date of this
8 Act by up to 5 years for the purpose of determining whether
9 the assessed value of a longtime owner-occupant's principal
10 residence increased from one assessment to the next by more
11 than 2% and grant an exemption for those prior taxable years
12 in accordance with this Act.
[ Top ]