Bill Text: IL SB3743 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Downstate Forest Preserve District Act. Allows the board of a forest preserve district to establish a special forest preserve district retailers' occupation tax and service occupation tax after referendum of the voters. Allows the tax to used exclusively for general purposes, including education, outdoor recreation, maintenance, operations, public safety at the forest preserves, trails, acquiring and restoring land, and any other lawful purposes or programs determined by the board of that district. Includes referendum language and additional ballot informational language. Incorporates provisions from the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act to implement the tax. Amends the State Finance Act to create the Special Forest Preserve Retailers' and Service Occupation Tax Fund. Effective immediately.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-02-09 - Referred to Assignments [SB3743 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-SB3743-Introduced.html

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103RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2023 and 2024 SB3743 Introduced 2/9/2024, by Sen. Linda Holmes SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
70 ILCS 805/13.9 new
30 ILCS 105/5.1015 new
Amends the Downstate Forest Preserve District Act. Allows the board of a forest preserve district to establish a special forest preserve district retailers' occupation tax and service occupation tax after referendum of the voters. Allows the tax to used exclusively for general purposes, including education, outdoor recreation, maintenance, operations, public safety at the forest preserves, trails, acquiring and restoring land, and any other lawful purposes or programs determined by the board of that district. Includes referendum language and additional ballot informational language. Incorporates provisions from the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act to implement the tax. Amends the State Finance Act to create the Special Forest Preserve Retailers' and Service Occupation Tax Fund. Effective immediately.
LRB103 38521 AWJ 68657 b
A BILL FOR
SB3743 LRB103 38521 AWJ 68657 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 Downstate Forest Preserve District Act is
amended by adding Section 13.9 as follows:
(70 ILCS 805/13.9 new)
Sec. 13.9. Special forest preserve districts retailers'
and service occupation tax.
(a) The board of any district 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
district on the gross receipts from the sales made in the
course of business to provide revenue to be used for general
forest district purposes, including education, outdoor
recreation, maintenance, operations, public safety at the
forest preserves, trails, acquiring and restoring land, and
any other lawful purposes or programs determined by the board
of that district, except as otherwise provided in this
Section, if a proposition for the tax has been submitted to the
electors of that district and approved by a majority of those
voting on the question. If imposed, this tax shall be imposed
only in 0.25% increments. By resolution, the board may order

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the proposition to be submitted at any election.
For a tax imposed for forest preserve purposes for
expenditures authorized under this Act, the board must publish
notice of the operational, capital, or master plan of the
district, and must make the plan publicly available prior to
approval of the ordinance or resolution imposing the tax.
If a tax is imposed for specific operational needs,
capital projects, or public facilities, then the name of the
project may be included in the proposition at the discretion
of the board as determined in the enabling resolution. For
example, the "XXX Regional Trail," the "YYY Forest Preserve or
Multi-Use Facility," or the "ZZZ Natural Area Acquisition or
Restoration Project".
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.
The proposition for forest preserve purposes shall be in
substantially the following form:
"To pay for (forest preserve purposes), shall (name of
district) be authorized to impose an increase on its share
of local sales taxes by (insert rate)?"
The following additional information shall appear on the
ballot below the question:
"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."

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The board may also vote 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 board. If
the board votes to include a sunset provision, the proposition
for forest preserve purposes shall be in substantially the
following form:
"To pay for (forest preserve purposes), shall (name of
district) 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)?"
The following additional information shall appear on the
ballot below the question:
"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 (name of district) board."
Votes shall be recorded as "Yes" or "No".
If a majority of the electors voting on the proposition
vote in favor of it, the district may impose the tax.
A district may not submit more than one proposition
authorized by this Section to the electors at any one time.
The board shall impose the 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

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State's government, at retail in the district on the gross
receipts from the sales made in the course of business.
(b) The tax imposed by the board under this Section and all
civil penalties that may be assessed as an incident of the tax
shall be collected and enforced by the Department of Revenue.
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, 2-5, 2-5.5, 2-10 (in respect to all provisions
contained in those Sections other than the State rate of tax),
2-12, 2-15 through 2-70, 2a, 2b, 2c, 3 (except provisions

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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 subject to the revenue use
requirements of 49 U.S.C. 47107(b) and 49 U.S.C. 47133) and
Sections 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 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. The 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.
If the Department determines that a refund should be made
under this Section to a claimant instead of issuing a credit
memorandum, then 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 Special Forest Preserve Retailers' and
Service Occupation Tax Fund.
(c) If a tax has been imposed under subsection (a), then a
service occupation tax shall also be imposed at the same rate

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upon all persons in the district engaged in the business of
making sales of service, who, as an incident to making those
sales of service, transfer tangible personal property within
the district as an incident to a sale of service. The tax
imposed under this Section 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 Section; 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 Section, 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 district), 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 district), 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 district), 9 (except

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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 subject to the revenue use
requirements of 49 U.S.C. 47107(b) and 49 U.S.C. 47133), 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 district), Sections 15, 16, 17, 18,
19 and 20 of the Service Occupation Tax Act and 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 Section 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.
If the Department determines that a refund should be made
under this subsection to a claimant instead of issuing a
credit memorandum, then 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 Special Forest Preserve Retailers' and
Service Occupation Tax Fund.

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Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to authorize
the board 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 the State.
(d) 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 Special Forest
Preserve Retailers' and Service Occupation Tax Fund, a special
fund that is created in the State treasury that and the moneys
in the fund shall be disbursed as provided in this Section.
As soon as possible after the first day of each month and
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. The Department shall make this certification only if
the district imposes a tax on real property as provided in the
definition of "local sales taxes" under the Innovation
Development and Economy Act.
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 the stated sums of money to the district from

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which retailers have paid taxes or penalties to the Department
during the second preceding calendar month. The amount to be
paid to the district shall be the amount 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 district;
(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 District; (iii) any
amounts that are transferred to the STAR Bonds Revenue Fund,
and (iv) 1.5% of the remainder, which the Department shall
transfer into the Tax Compliance and Administration Fund. The
Department, at the time of each monthly disbursement to the
district, 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 District 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.
(e) For the purpose of determining whether a tax

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authorized under this Section 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.
(f) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to
authorize the board 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.
(g) An ordinance imposing a tax under this Section shall
be certified by the board and filed with the Department of
Revenue either (i) after the first day of October but 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) after the first day
of April but 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.
(h) When certifying the amount of a monthly disbursement
to the district under this Section, the Department shall
increase or decrease the amounts by an amount necessary to
offset any misallocation of previous disbursements. The offset

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amount shall be the amount erroneously disbursed within the
previous 6 months from the time a misallocation is discovered.
Section 10. The State Finance Act is amended by adding
Section 5.1015 as follows:
(30 ILCS 105/5.1015 new)
Sec. 5.1015. The Special Forest Preserve Retailers' and
Service Occupation Tax Fund.