[ Search ] [ Legislation ]
[ Home ] [ Back ] [ Bottom ]
| [ Introduced ] |
91_SB0284eng SB284 Engrossed LRB9105520PTpk 1 AN ACT to amend the Illinois Municipal Code by changing 2 Section 8-11-2. 3 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 4 represented in the General Assembly: 5 Section 5. The Illinois Municipal Code is amended by 6 changing Section 8-11-2 as follows: 7 (65 ILCS 5/8-11-2) (from Ch. 24, par. 8-11-2) 8 Sec. 8-11-2. Municipal utilities tax. The corporate 9 authorities of any municipality may tax any or all of the 10 following occupations or privileges: 11 1. Persons engaged in the business of transmitting 12 messages by means of electricity or radio magnetic waves, 13 or fiber optics, at a rate not to exceed 5% of the gross 14 receipts from that business originating within the 15 corporate limits of the municipality. 16 2. Persons engaged in the business of distributing, 17 supplying, furnishing, or selling gas for use or 18 consumption within the corporate limits of a municipality 19 of 500,000 or fewer population, and not for resale, at a 20 rate not to exceed 5% of the gross receipts therefrom. 21 2a. Persons engaged in the business of 22 distributing, supplying, furnishing, or selling gas for 23 use or consumption within the corporate limits of a 24 municipality of over 500,000 population, and not for 25 resale, at a rate not to exceed 8% of the gross receipts 26 therefrom. If imposed, this tax shall be paid in monthly 27 payments. 28 3. The privilege of using or consuming electricity 29 acquired in a purchase at retail and used or consumed 30 within the corporate limits of the municipality at rates 31 not to exceed the following maximum rates, calculated on SB284 Engrossed -2- LRB9105520PTpk 1 a monthly basis for each purchaser: 2 (i) for the first 2,000 kilowatt-hours used or 3 consumed in a month; 0.61 cents per kilowatt-hour; 4 (ii) for the next 48,000 kilowatt-hours used 5 or consumed in a month; 0.40 cents per 6 kilowatt-hour; 7 (iii) for the next 50,000 kilowatt-hours used 8 or consumed in a month; 0.36 cents per 9 kilowatt-hour; 10 (iv) for the next 400,000 kilowatt-hours used 11 or consumed in a month; 0.35 cents per 12 kilowatt-hour; 13 (v) for the next 500,000 kilowatt-hours used 14 or consumed in a month; 0.34 cents per 15 kilowatt-hour; 16 (vi) for the next 2,000,000 kilowatt-hours 17 used or consumed in a month; 0.32 cents per 18 kilowatt-hour; 19 (vii) for the next 2,000,000 kilowatt-hours 20 used or consumed in a month; 0.315 cents per 21 kilowatt-hour; 22 (viii) for the next 5,000,000 kilowatt-hours 23 used or consumed in a month; 0.31 cents per 24 kilowatt-hour; 25 (ix) for the next 10,000,000 kilowatt-hours 26 used or consumed in a month; 0.305 cents per 27 kilowatt-hour; and 28 (x) for all electricity used or consumed in 29 excess of 20,000,000 kilowatt-hours in a month, 0.30 30 cents per kilowatt-hour. 31 If a municipality imposes a tax at rates lower than 32 either the maximum rates specified in this Section or the 33 alternative maximum rates promulgated by the Illinois 34 Commerce Commission, as provided below, the tax rates SB284 Engrossed -3- LRB9105520PTpk 1 shall be imposed upon the kilowatt hour categories set 2 forth above with the same proportional relationship as 3 that which exists among such maximum rates. 4 Notwithstanding the foregoing, until December 31, 2008, 5 no municipality shall establish rates that are in excess 6 of rates reasonably calculated to produce revenues that 7 equal the maximum total revenues such municipality could 8 have received under the tax authorized by this 9 subparagraph in the last full calendar year prior to the 10 effective date of Section 65 of Public Act 90-561 (August 11 1, 1998), except that a municipality served by an 12 Illinois electric utility serving more than 12,500 13 customers in Illinois for which a decrease in base rates 14 has been or is placed into effect between October 1, 1996 15 and the dates specified in subsection (b) of Section 16 16-111 of the Public Utilities Act, other than pursuant 17 to the requirements of subsection (b) of Section 16-111 18 of that Act, may establish rates reasonably calculated to 19 produce revenues that equal the maximum total revenues 20 the municipality could have received under the tax 21 authorized by this subparagraph in either of the last 2 22 full calendar years prior to effective date of Section 65 23 of Public Act 90-561 (August 1, 1998)this amendatory Act24of 1997; provided that this shall not be a limitation on 25 the amount of tax revenues actually collected by such 26 municipality. 27 Upon the request of the corporate authorities of a 28 municipality, the Illinois Commerce Commission shall, 29 within 90 days after receipt of such request, promulgate 30 alternative rates for each of these kilowatt-hour 31 categories that will reflect, as closely as reasonably 32 practical for that municipality, the distribution of the 33 tax among classes of purchasers as if the tax were based 34 on a uniform percentage of the purchase price of SB284 Engrossed -4- LRB9105520PTpk 1 electricity. A municipality that has adopted an 2 ordinance imposing a tax pursuant to subparagraph 3 as it 3 existed prior to the effective date of Section 65 of 4 Public Act 90-561 (August 1, 1998)this amendatory Act of51997may, rather than imposing the tax permitted by 6 Public Act 90-561this amendatory Act of 1997, continue 7 to impose the tax pursuant to that ordinance with respect 8 to gross receipts received from residential customers 9 through July 31, 1999, and with respect to gross receipts 10 from any non-residential customer until the first bill 11 issued to such customer for delivery services in 12 accordance with Section 16-104 of the Public Utilities 13 Act but in no case later than the last bill issued to 14 such customer before December 31, 2000. No ordinance 15 imposing the tax permitted by Public Act 90-561this16amendatory Act of 1997shall be applicable to any 17 non-residential customer until the first bill issued to 18 such customer for delivery services in accordance with 19 Section 16-104 of the Public Utilities Act but in no case 20 later than the last bill issued to such non-residential 21 customer before December 31, 2000. 22 4. Persons engaged in the business of distributing, 23 supplying, furnishing, or selling water for use or 24 consumption within the corporate limits of the 25 municipality, and not for resale, at a rate not to exceed 26 5% of the gross receipts therefrom. 27 None of the taxes authorized by this Section may be 28 imposed with respect to any transaction in interstate 29 commerce or otherwise to the extent to which the business or 30 privilege may not, under the constitution and statutes of the 31 United States, be made the subject of taxation by this State 32 or any political sub-division thereof; nor shall any persons 33 engaged in the business of distributing, supplying, 34 furnishing, selling or transmitting gas, water, or SB284 Engrossed -5- LRB9105520PTpk 1 electricity, or engaged in the business of transmitting 2 messages, or using or consuming electricity acquired in a 3 purchase at retail, be subject to taxation under the 4 provisions of this Section for those transactions that are or 5 may become subject to taxation under the provisions of the 6"Home Rule Municipal Retailers' Occupation Tax Act"7 authorized by Section 8-11-1; nor shall any tax authorized by 8 this Section be imposed upon any person engaged in a business 9 or on any privilege unless the tax is imposed in like manner 10 and at the same rate upon all persons engaged in businesses 11 of the same class in the municipality, whether privately or 12 municipally owned or operated, or exercising the same 13 privilege within the municipality. 14 Any of the taxes enumerated in this Section may be in 15 addition to the payment of money, or value of products or 16 services furnished to the municipality by the taxpayer as 17 compensation for the use of its streets, alleys, or other 18 public places, or installation and maintenance therein, 19 thereon or thereunder of poles, wires, pipes or other 20 equipment used in the operation of the taxpayer's business. 21 (a) If the corporate authorities of any home rule 22 municipality have adopted an ordinance that imposed a tax on 23 public utility customers, between July 1, 1971, and October 24 1, 1981, on the good faith belief that they were exercising 25 authority pursuant to Section 6 of Article VII of the 1970 26 Illinois Constitution, that action of the corporate 27 authorities shall be declared legal and valid, 28 notwithstanding a later decision of a judicial tribunal 29 declaring the ordinance invalid. No municipality shall be 30 required to rebate, refund, or issue credits for any taxes 31 described in this paragraph, and those taxes shall be deemed 32 to have been levied and collected in accordance with the 33 Constitution and laws of this State. 34 (b) In any case in which (i) prior to October 19, 1979, SB284 Engrossed -6- LRB9105520PTpk 1 the corporate authorities of any municipality have adopted an 2 ordinance imposing a tax authorized by this Section (or by 3 the predecessor provision of the "Revised Cities and Villages 4 Act") and have explicitly or in practice interpreted gross 5 receipts to include either charges added to customers' bills 6 pursuant to the provision of paragraph (a) of Section 36 of 7 the Public Utilities Act or charges added to customers' bills 8 by taxpayers who are not subject to rate regulation by the 9 Illinois Commerce Commission for the purpose of recovering 10 any of the tax liabilities or other amounts specified in such 11 paragraph (a) of Section 36 of that Act, and (ii) on or after 12 October 19, 1979, a judicial tribunal has construed gross 13 receipts to exclude all or part of those charges, then 14 neither those municipality nor any taxpayer who paid the tax 15 shall be required to rebate, refund, or issue credits for any 16 tax imposed or charge collected from customers pursuant to 17 the municipality's interpretation prior to October 19, 1979. 18 This paragraph reflects a legislative finding that it would 19 be contrary to the public interest to require a municipality 20 or its taxpayers to refund taxes or charges attributable to 21 the municipality's more inclusive interpretation of gross 22 receipts prior to October 19, 1979, and is not intended to 23 prescribe or limit judicial construction of this Section. The 24 legislative finding set forth in this subsection does not 25 apply to taxes imposed after the effective date of Public Act 26 89-325 (January 1, 1996)this amendatory Act of 1995. 27 (c) The tax authorized by subparagraph 3 shall be 28 collected from the purchaser by the person maintaining a 29 place of business in this State who delivers the electricity 30 to the purchaser. This tax shall constitute a debt of the 31 purchaser to the person who delivers the electricity to the 32 purchaser and if unpaid, is recoverable in the same manner as 33 the original charge for delivering the electricity. Any tax 34 required to be collected pursuant to an ordinance authorized SB284 Engrossed -7- LRB9105520PTpk 1 by subparagraph 3 and any such tax collected by a person 2 delivering electricity shall constitute a debt owed to the 3 municipality by such person delivering the electricity, 4 provided, that the person delivering electricity shall be 5 allowed credit for such tax related to deliveries of 6 electricity the charges for which are written off as 7 uncollectible, and provided further, that if such charges are 8 thereafter collected, the delivering supplier shall be 9 obligated to remit such tax. For purposes of this subsection 10 (c), any partial payment not specifically identified by the 11 purchaser shall be deemed to be for the delivery of 12 electricity. Persons delivering electricity shall collect the 13 tax from the purchaser by adding such tax to the gross charge 14 for delivering the electricity, in the manner prescribed by 15 the municipality. Persons delivering electricity shall also 16 be authorized to add to such gross charge an amount equal to 17 3% of the tax to reimburse the person delivering electricity 18 for the expenses incurred in keeping records, billing 19 customers, preparing and filing returns, remitting the tax 20 and supplying data to the municipality upon request. If the 21 person delivering electricity fails to collect the tax from 22 the purchaser, then the purchaser shall be required to pay 23 the tax directly to the municipality in the manner prescribed 24 by the municipality. Persons delivering electricity who file 25 returns pursuant to this paragraph (c) shall, at the time of 26 filing such return, pay the municipality the amount of the 27 tax collected pursuant to subparagraph 3. 28 (d) For the purpose of the taxes enumerated in this 29 Section: 30 "Gross receipts" means the consideration received for the 31 transmission of messages, the consideration received for 32 distributing, supplying, furnishing or selling gas for use or 33 consumption and not for resale, and the consideration 34 received for distributing, supplying, furnishing or selling SB284 Engrossed -8- LRB9105520PTpk 1 water for use or consumption and not for resale, and for all 2 services rendered in connection therewith valued in money, 3 whether received in money or otherwise, including cash, 4 credit, services and property of every kind and material and 5 for all services rendered therewith, and shall be determined 6 without any deduction on account of the cost of transmitting 7 such messages, without any deduction on account of the cost 8 of the service, product or commodity supplied, the cost of 9 materials used, labor or service cost, or any other expenses 10 whatsoever. "Gross receipts" shall not include that portion 11 of the consideration received for distributing, supplying, 12 furnishing, or selling gas or water to, or for the 13 transmission of messages for, business enterprises described 14 in paragraph (e) of this Section to the extent and during the 15 period in which the exemption authorized by paragraph (e) is 16 in effect or for school districts or units of local 17 government described in paragraph (f) during the period in 18 which the exemption authorized in paragraph (f) is in effect. 19 "Gross receipts" shall not include amounts paid by 20 telecommunications retailers under the Telecommunications 21 Municipal Infrastructure Maintenance Fee Act. 22 For utility bills issued on or after May 1, 1996, but 23 before May 1, 1997, and for receipts from those utility 24 bills, "gross receipts" does not include one-third of (i) 25 amounts added to customers' bills under Section 9-222 of the 26 Public Utilities Act, or (ii) amounts added to customers' 27 bills by taxpayers who are not subject to rate regulation by 28 the Illinois Commerce Commission for the purpose of 29 recovering any of the tax liabilities described in Section 30 9-222 of the Public Utilities Act. For utility bills issued 31 on or after May 1, 1997, but before May 1, 1998, and for 32 receipts from those utility bills, "gross receipts" does not 33 include two-thirds of (i) amounts added to customers' bills 34 under Section 9-222 of the Public Utilities Act, or (ii) SB284 Engrossed -9- LRB9105520PTpk 1 amount added to customers' bills by taxpayers who are not 2 subject to rate regulation by the Illinois Commerce 3 Commission for the purpose of recovering any of the tax 4 liabilities described in Section 9-222 of the Public 5 Utilities Act. For utility bills issued on or after May 1, 6 1998, and for receipts from those utility bills, "gross 7 receipts" does not include (i) amounts added to customers' 8 bills under Section 9-222 of the Public Utilities Act, or 9 (ii) amounts added to customers' bills by taxpayers who are 10 not subject to rate regulation by the Illinois Commerce 11 Commission for the purpose of recovering any of the tax 12 liabilities described in Section 9-222 of the Public 13 Utilities Act. 14 For purposes of this Section "gross receipts" shall not 15 include (i) amounts added to customers' bills under Section 16 9-221 of the Public Utilities Act, or (ii) charges added to 17 customers' bills to recover the surcharge imposed under the 18 Emergency Telephone System Act. This paragraph is not 19 intended to nor does it make any change in the meaning of 20 "gross receipts" for the purposes of this Section, but is 21 intended to remove possible ambiguities, thereby confirming 22 the existing meaning of "gross receipts" prior to the 23 effective date of Public Act 89-325 (January 1, 1996)this24amendatory Act of 1995. 25 The words "transmitting messages", in addition to the 26 usual and popular meaning of person to person communication, 27 shall include the furnishing, for a consideration, of 28 services or facilities (whether owned or leased), or both, to 29 persons in connection with the transmission of messages where 30 those persons do not, in turn, receive any consideration in 31 connection therewith, but shall not include such furnishing 32 of services or facilities to persons for the transmission of 33 messages to the extent that any such services or facilities 34 for the transmission of messages are furnished for a SB284 Engrossed -10- LRB9105520PTpk 1 consideration, by those persons to other persons, for the 2 transmission of messages. 3 "Person" as used in this Section means any natural 4 individual, firm, trust, estate, partnership, association, 5 joint stock company, joint adventure, corporation, limited 6 liability company, municipal corporation, the State or any of 7 its political subdivisions, any State university created by 8 statute, or a receiver, trustee, guardian or other 9 representative appointed by order of any court. 10 "Person maintaining a place of business in this State" 11 shall mean any person having or maintaining within this 12 State, directly or by a subsidiary or other affiliate, an 13 office, generation facility, distribution facility, 14 transmission facility, sales office or other place of 15 business, or any employee, agent, or other representative 16 operating within this State under the authority of the person 17 or its subsidiary or other affiliate, irrespective of whether 18 such place of business or agent or other representative is 19 located in this State permanently or temporarily, or whether 20 such person, subsidiary or other affiliate is licensed or 21 qualified to do business in this State. 22 "Public utility" shall have the meaning ascribed to it in 23 Section 3-105 of the Public Utilities Act and shall include 24 telecommunications carriers as defined in Section 13-202 of 25 that Act and alternative retail electric suppliers as defined 26 in Section 16-102 of that Act. 27 "Purchase at retail" shall mean any acquisition of 28 electricity by a purchaser for purposes of use or 29 consumption, and not for resale, but shall not include the 30 use of electricity by a public utility directly in the 31 generation, production, transmission, delivery or sale of 32 electricity. 33 "Purchaser" shall mean any person who uses or consumes, 34 within the corporate limits of the municipality, electricity SB284 Engrossed -11- LRB9105520PTpk 1 acquired in a purchase at retail. 2 In the case of persons engaged in the business of 3 transmitting messages through the use of mobile equipment, 4 such as cellular phones and paging systems, the gross 5 receipts from the business shall be deemed to originate 6 within the corporate limits of a municipality only if the 7 address to which the bills for the service are sent is within 8 those corporate limits. If, however, that address is not 9 located within a municipality that imposes a tax under this 10 Section, then (i) if the party responsible for the bill is 11 not an individual, the gross receipts from the business shall 12 be deemed to originate within the corporate limits of the 13 municipality where that party's principal place of business 14 in Illinois is located, and (ii) if the party responsible for 15 the bill is an individual, the gross receipts from the 16 business shall be deemed to originate within the corporate 17 limits of the municipality where that party's principal 18 residence in Illinois is located. 19 (e) Any municipality that imposes taxes upon public 20 utilities or upon the privilege of using or consuming 21 electricity pursuant to this Section whose territory includes 22 any part of an enterprise zone or federally designated 23 Foreign Trade Zone or Sub-Zone may, by a majority vote of its 24 corporate authorities, exempt from those taxes for a period 25 not exceeding 20 years any specified percentage of gross 26 receipts of public utilities received from, or electricity 27 used or consumed by, business enterprises that: 28 (1) either (i) make investments that cause the 29 creation of a minimum of 200 full-time equivalent jobs in 30 Illinois, (ii) make investments of at least $175,000,000 31 that cause the creation of a minimum of 150 full-time 32 equivalent jobs in Illinois, or (iii) make investments 33 that cause the retention of a minimum of 1,000 full-time 34 jobs in Illinois; and SB284 Engrossed -12- LRB9105520PTpk 1 (2) are either (i) located in an Enterprise Zone 2 established pursuant to the Illinois Enterprise Zone Act 3 or (ii) Department of Commerce and Community Affairs 4 designated High Impact Businesses located in a federally 5 designated Foreign Trade Zone or Sub-Zone; and 6 (3) are certified by the Department of Commerce and 7 Community Affairs as complying with the requirements 8 specified in clauses (1) and (2) of this paragraph (e). 9 Upon adoption of the ordinance authorizing the exemption, 10 the municipal clerk shall transmit a copy of that ordinance 11 to the Department of Commerce and Community Affairs. The 12 Department of Commerce and Community Affairs shall determine 13 whether the business enterprises located in the municipality 14 meet the criteria prescribed in this paragraph. If the 15 Department of Commerce and Community Affairs determines that 16 the business enterprises meet the criteria, it shall grant 17 certification. The Department of Commerce and Community 18 Affairs shall act upon certification requests within 30 days 19 after receipt of the ordinance. 20 Upon certification of the business enterprise by the 21 Department of Commerce and Community Affairs, the Department 22 of Commerce and Community Affairs shall notify the Department 23 of Revenue of the certification. The Department of Revenue 24 shall notify the public utilities of the exemption status of 25 the gross receipts received from, and the electricity used or 26 consumed by, the certified business enterprises. Such 27 exemption status shall be effective within 3 months after 28 certification. 29 (f) A municipality that imposes taxes upon public 30 utilities or upon the privilege of using or consuming 31 electricity under this Section and whose territory includes 32 part of another unit of local government or a school district 33 may by ordinance exempt the other unit of local government or 34 school district from those taxes. SB284 Engrossed -13- LRB9105520PTpk 1 (g) The amendment of this Section by Public Act 84-127 2 shall take precedence over any other amendment of this 3 Section by any other amendatory Act passed by the 84th 4 General Assembly before the effective date of Public Act 5 84-127 (August 1, 1985). 6 (h) In any case in which, before July 1, 1992, a person 7 engaged in the business of transmitting messages through the 8 use of mobile equipment, such as cellular phones and paging 9 systems, has determined the municipality within which the 10 gross receipts from the business originated by reference to 11 the location of its transmitting or switching equipment, then 12 (i) neither the municipality to which tax was paid on that 13 basis nor the taxpayer that paid tax on that basis shall be 14 required to rebate, refund, or issue credits for any such tax 15 or charge collected from customers to reimburse the taxpayer 16 for the tax and (ii) no municipality to which tax would have 17 been paid with respect to those gross receipts if the 18 provisions of Public Act 87-773this amendatory Act of 199119 had been in effect before July 1, 1992, shall have any claim 20 against the taxpayer for any amount of the tax. 21 (Source: P.A. 89-325, eff. 1-1-96; 90-16, eff. 6-16-97; 22 90-561, eff. 8-1-98; 90-562, eff. 12-16-97; 90-655, eff. 23 7-30-98.) 24 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 25 becoming law.