State of Illinois
91st General Assembly
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Public Act 91-0914

SB334 Enrolled                                 LRB9102941NTsb

    AN ACT regarding electricity excise taxes.

    Be it  enacted  by  the  People  of  the  State  of  Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:

    Section 5.  The Illinois Enterprise Zone Act  is  amended
by changing Section 5.5 as follows:

    (20 ILCS 655/5.5) (from Ch. 67 1/2, par. 609.1)
    Sec. 5.5.  High Impact Business.
    (a)  In  order  to  respond  to  unique  opportunities to
assist  in  the  encouragement,   development,   growth   and
expansion   of   the   private  sector  through  large  scale
investment  and  development  projects,  the  Department   is
authorized  to  receive  and  approve  applications  for  the
designation  of  "High Impact Businesses" in Illinois subject
to the following conditions:
         (1)  such applications may be submitted at any  time
    during the year;
         (2)  such  business  is  not located, at the time of
    designation, in an enterprise zone designated pursuant to
    this Act;
         (3)  the  business  intends  to   make   a   minimum
    investment of $12,000,000 which will be placed in service
    in qualified property and intends to create 500 full-time
    equivalent  jobs  at a designated location in Illinois or
    intends to make a minimum investment of $30,000,000 which
    will be placed  in  service  in  qualified  property  and
    intends  to  retain  1,500 full-time jobs at a designated
    location  in  Illinois.  The  business  must  certify  in
    writing that the  investments  would  not  be  placed  in
    service in qualified property and the job creation or job
    retention  would  not  occur  without the tax credits and
    exemptions set forth in subsection (b) of  this  Section.
    The  terms  "placed  in service" and "qualified property"
    have the same meanings as described in subsection (h)  of
    Section 201 of the Illinois Income Tax Act; and
         (4)  no  later  than 90 days after an application is
    submitted, the Department shall notify the  applicant  of
    the  Department's  determination  of the qualification of
    the proposed High Impact Business under this Section.
    (b)  Businesses  designated  as  High  Impact  Businesses
pursuant to this Section shall qualify for  the  credits  and
exemptions described in the following Acts: Section 9-222 and
Section  9-222.1A of The Public Utilities Act, subsection (h)
of Section 201 of the Illinois Income Tax Act;  and,  Section
1d  of the Retailers' Occupation Tax Act, provided that these
credits and exemptions described in these Acts shall  not  be
authorized   until  the  minimum  investments  set  forth  in
subsection (a) of this Section have been placed in service in
qualified properties and,  in  the  case  of  the  exemptions
described  in  the Public Utilities Act and Section 1d of the
Retailers'  Occupation  Tax  Act,   the   minimum   full-time
equivalent jobs or full-time jobs set forth in subsection (a)
of  this  Section  have  been created or retained. Businesses
designated as High Impact Businesses under this Section shall
also qualify for the exemption described in Section 5l of the
Retailers'  Occupation  Tax  Act.  The  credit  provided   in
subsection  (h) of Section 201 of the Illinois Income Tax Act
shall be applicable to investments in qualified  property  as
set forth in subsection (a) of this Section.
    (c)  High   Impact   Businesses   located   in  federally
designated foreign trade zones or sub-zones are also eligible
for  additional  credits,  exemptions   and   deductions   as
described  in  the  following Acts: Section 9-221 and Section
9-222.1 of the Public Utilities Act; and  subsection  (g)  of
Section 201, and Section 203 of the Illinois Income Tax Act.
    (d)  Existing   Illinois   businesses   which  apply  for
designation as  a  High  Impact  Business  must  provide  the
Department   with   the  prospective  plan  for  which  1,500
full-time jobs would be eliminated  in  the  event  that  the
business is not designated.
    (e)  New  proposed facilities which apply for designation
as High Impact Business  must  provide  the  Department  with
proof  of  alternative non-Illinois sites which would receive
the proposed investment and job creation in  the  event  that
the business is not designated as a High Impact Business.
    (f)  In  the  event  that a business is designated a High
Impact Business and it is later determined  after  reasonable
notice and an opportunity for a hearing as provided under The
Illinois  Administrative  Procedure  Act,  that  the business
would have  placed  in  service  in  qualified  property  the
investments  and  created or retained the requisite number of
jobs  without  the  benefits  of  the  High  Impact  Business
designation, the Department shall be required to  immediately
revoke  the  designation  and  notify  the  Director  of  the
Department  of Revenue who shall begin proceedings to recover
all wrongfully  exempted  State  taxes  with  interest.   The
business  shall  also  be  ineligible  for  all  State funded
Department programs for a period of 10 years.
    (g)  The Department shall revoke a High  Impact  Business
designation  if  the  participating  business fails to comply
with the terms and conditions of the designation.
    (h)  Prior to  designating  a  business,  the  Department
shall  provide  the  members  of  the  General  Assembly  and
Illinois Economic and Fiscal Commission with a report setting
forth  the  terms  and  conditions  of  the  designation  and
guarantees  that  have  been  received  by  the Department in
relation to the proposed business being designated.
(Source: P.A. 89-89, eff. 6-30-95.)

    Section 10.  The Electricity Excise Tax Law is amended by
changing Sections 2-3 and 2-4 as follows:

    (35 ILCS 640/2-3)
    Sec. 2-3. Definitions.  As used in this Law,  unless  the
context clearly requires otherwise:
    (a)  "Department"  means the Department of Revenue of the
State of Illinois.
    (b)  "Director" means the Director of the  Department  of
Revenue of the State of Illinois.
    (c)  "Person"  means any natural individual, firm, trust,
estate, partnership, association, joint stock company,  joint
venture,   corporation,   limited  liability  company,  or  a
receiver,  trustee,   guardian,   or   other   representative
appointed  by order of any court, or any city, town, village,
county, or other political subdivision of this State.
    (d)  "Purchase price" means the  consideration  paid  for
the  distribution,  supply, furnishing, sale, transmission or
delivery of electricity to a person for  non-residential  use
or  consumption (and for both residential and non-residential
use or consumption in the case of electricity purchased  from
a  municipal  system  or  electric  cooperative  described in
subsection (b) of Section 2-4) and not for  resale,  and  for
all services directly related to the production, transmission
or   distribution   of   electricity  distributed,  supplied,
furnished, sold, transmitted or delivered for non-residential
use or consumption, and includes transition  charges  imposed
in  accordance  with  Article XVI of the Public Utilities Act
and instrument funding charges  imposed  in  accordance  with
Article  XVIII  of the Public Utilities Act, as well as cash,
services and property of every kind or nature, and  shall  be
determined  without  any  deduction on account of the cost of
the service, product  or  commodity  supplied,  the  cost  of
materials  used, labor or service costs, or any other expense
whatsoever.  However,  "purchase  price"  shall  not  include
consideration paid for:
         (i)  any charge for a dishonored check;
         (ii)  any  finance  or  credit  charge,  penalty  or
    charge  for  delayed  payment,  or  discount  for  prompt
    payment;
         (iii)  any charge for reconnection of service or for
    replacement or relocation of facilities;
         (iv)  any   advance   or   contribution  in  aid  of
    construction;
         (v)  repair, inspection or  servicing  of  equipment
    located on customer premises;
         (vi)  leasing or rental of equipment, the leasing or
    rental of which is not necessary to furnishing, supplying
    or selling electricity;
         (vii)  any  purchase  by a purchaser if the supplier
    is prohibited by federal or State  constitution,  treaty,
    convention, statute or court decision from recovering the
    related tax liability from such purchaser; and
         (viii)  any   amounts  added  to  purchasers'  bills
    because of charges made pursuant to the  tax  imposed  by
    this Law.
    In  case  credit is extended, the amount thereof shall be
included only as and when payments are made.
    "Purchase price" shall not include consideration received
from business enterprises certified under Section 9-222.1  or
9-222.1A  of  the  Public  Utilities  Act, as amended, to the
extent of such  exemption  and  during  the  period  of  time
specified   by  the  Department  of  Commerce  and  Community
Affairs.
    (e)  "Purchaser"   means   any   person   who    acquires
electricity  for use or consumption and not for resale, for a
valuable consideration.
    (f)  "Non-residential electric  use"  means  any  use  or
consumption of electricity which is not  residential electric
use.
    (g)  "Residential electric use" means electricity used or
consumed  at  a  dwelling of 2 or fewer units, or electricity
for household purposes used or consumed at  a  building  with
multiple  dwelling  units where the electricity is registered
by a separate meter for each dwelling unit.
    (h)  "Self-assessing purchaser"  means  a  purchaser  for
non-residential  electric use who elects to register with and
to pay tax directly to  the  Department  in  accordance  with
Sections 2-10 and 2-11 of this Law.
    (i)  "Delivering  supplier"  means  any person engaged in
the business of delivering electricity to persons for use  or
consumption  and  not  for  resale and who, in any case where
more  than  one  person  participates  in  the  delivery   of
electricity  to  a  specific  purchaser,   is the last of the
suppliers engaged in delivering the electricity prior to  its
receipt by the purchaser.
    (j)  "Delivering supplier maintaining a place of business
in  this  State",  or  any  like  term,  means any delivering
supplier having or maintaining within this State, directly or
by a subsidiary, an office, generation facility, transmission
facility, distribution facility, sales office or other  place
of  business,  or any employee, agent or other representative
operating within this  State  under  the  authority  of  such
delivering supplier or such delivering supplier's subsidiary,
irrespective  of  whether  such place of business or agent or
other representative is located in this State permanently  or
temporarily,  or  whether  such  delivering  supplier or such
delivering supplier's subsidiary is licensed to  do  business
in this State.
    (k)  "Use"  means the exercise by any person of any right
or power over electricity incident to the ownership  of  that
electricity,  except that it does not include the generation,
production, transmission, distribution, delivery or  sale  of
electricity  in  the regular course of business or the use of
electricity for such purposes.
(Source: P.A. 90-561, eff. 8-1-98.)

    (35 ILCS 640/2-4)
    Sec. 2-4. Tax imposed.
    (a)  Except as provided  in  subsection  (b),  a  tax  is
imposed  on  the privilege of using in this State electricity
purchased for use or consumption and not  for  resale,  other
than  by  municipal corporations owning and operating a local
transportation system for public service,  at  the  following
rates per kilowatt-hour delivered to the purchaser:
         (i)  For  the  first  2000  kilowatt-hours  used  or
    consumed in a month: 0.330 cents per kilowatt-hour;
         (ii)  For  the  next  48,000  kilowatt-hours used or
    consumed in a month: 0.319 cents per kilowatt-hour;
         (iii)  For the next 50,000  kilowatt-hours  used  or
    consumed in a month: 0.303 cents per kilowatt-hour;
         (iv)  For  the  next  400,000 kilowatt-hours used or
    consumed in a month: 0.297 cents per kilowatt-hour;
         (v)  For the next  500,000  kilowatt-hours  used  or
    consumed in a month: 0.286 cents per kilowatt-hour;
         (vi)  For  the next 2,000,000 kilowatt-hours used or
    consumed in a month: 0.270 cents per kilowatt-hour;
         (vii)  For the next 2,000,000 kilowatt-hours used or
    consumed in a month: 0.254 cents per kilowatt-hour;
         (viii)  For the next 5,000,000  kilowatt-hours  used
    or consumed in a month: 0.233 cents per kilowatt-hour;
         (ix)  For the next 10,000,000 kilowatt-hours used or
    consumed in a month: 0.207 cents per kilowatt-hour;
         (x)  For  all  electricity  in  excess of 20,000,000
    kilowatt-hours used or consumed in a month:  0.202  cents
    per kilowatt-hour.
    Provided, that in lieu of the foregoing rates, the tax is
imposed  on a self-assessing purchaser at the rate of 5.1% of
the  self-assessing  purchaser's  purchase  price   for   all
electricity    distributed,    supplied,   furnished,   sold,
transmitted and delivered to the self-assessing purchaser  in
a month.
    (b)  A  tax  is imposed on the privilege of using in this
State  electricity  purchased  from  a  municipal  system  or
electric cooperative, as  defined  in  Article  XVII  of  the
Public  Utilities  Act,  which  has  not  made an election as
permitted by either Section 17-200 or Section 17-300 of  such
Act,  at  the  lesser  of 0.32 cents per kilowatt hour of all
electricity   distributed,   supplied,    furnished,    sold,
transmitted,  and  delivered  by  such  municipal  system  or
electric  cooperative  to  the  purchaser  or 5% of each such
purchaser's purchase price for all  electricity  distributed,
supplied, furnished, sold, transmitted, and delivered by such
municipal  system  or  electric cooperative to the purchaser,
whichever is the lower rate as applied to each  purchaser  in
each billing period.
    (c)  The  tax  imposed by this Section 2-4 is not imposed
with  respect  to  any  use  of   electricity   by   business
enterprises  certified  under  Section 9-222.1 or 9-222.1A of
the Public Utilities Act, as amended, to the extent  of  such
exemption  and during the time specified by the Department of
Commerce and  Community  Affairs;  or  with  respect  to  any
transaction  in  interstate  commerce,  or  otherwise, to the
extent  to  which  such  transaction  may  not,   under   the
Constitution  and  statutes of the United States, be made the
subject of taxation by this State.
(Source: P.A. 90-561, eff. 8-1-98.)

    Section 15.  The  Public  Utilities  Act  is  amended  by
changing   Section  9-222  and  adding  Section  9-222.1A  as
follows:
    (220 ILCS 5/9-222) (from Ch. 111 2/3, par. 9-222)
    Sec. 9-222.  Whenever a tax  is  imposed  upon  a  public
utility  engaged  in the business of distributing, supplying,
furnishing, or selling gas for use or consumption pursuant to
Section 2 of the Gas Revenue Tax Act, or whenever  a  tax  is
required to be collected by a delivering supplier pursuant to
Section  2-7 of the Electricity Excise Tax Act imposed upon a
public utility in the business  of  distributing,  supplying,
furnishing  or  selling  electricity  for  use or consumption
pursuant to Section 2 of The Public Utilities Revenue Act, or
whenever a tax is imposed upon a public utility  pursuant  to
Section  2-202  of  this  Act,  such  utility  may charge its
customers,  other  than  customers  who   are   high   impact
businesses  under Section 5.5 of the Illinois Enterprise Zone
Act, or certified business enterprises under Section  9-222.1
of  this  Act, to the extent of such exemption and during the
period in which such exemption is in effect, in  addition  to
any  rate  authorized by this Act, an additional charge equal
to the total amount of such  taxes.  The  exemption  of  this
Section  relating  to high impact businesses shall be subject
to the provisions of subsections (a) and (b) of  Section  5.5
of  the Illinois Enterprise Zone Act.  This requirement shall
not apply to taxes on invested capital  imposed  pursuant  to
the  Messages Tax Act, the Gas Revenue Tax Act and the Public
Utilities Revenue Act.  Such  utility  shall  file  with  the
Commission  a  supplemental schedule which shall specify such
additional charge  and  which  shall  become  effective  upon
filing  without  further notice. Such additional charge shall
be shown separately on the utility  bill  to  each  customer.
The Commission shall have the power to investigate whether or
not  such  supplemental  schedule  correctly  specifies  such
additional  charge,  but  shall have no power to suspend such
supplemental schedule.  If  the  Commission  finds,  after  a
hearing,  that  such supplemental schedule does not correctly
specify such additional charge, it shall by order  require  a
refund  to  the  appropriate customers of the excess, if any,
with interest, in such manner  as  it  shall  deem  just  and
reasonable,  and  in  and  by  such  order  shall require the
utility   to   file   an   amended   supplemental    schedule
corresponding  to  the  finding  and order of the Commission.
Except with respect to taxes  imposed  on  invested  capital,
such tax liabilities shall be recovered from customers solely
by  means  of  the  additional  charges  authorized  by  this
Section.
(Source: P.A. 85-1182.)

    (220 ILCS 5/9-222.1A new)
    Sec. 9-222.1A. High impact business.  Beginning on August
1,  1998  and  thereafter,  a  business  enterprise  that  is
certified  as  a  High  Impact  Business by the Department of
Commerce and  Community  Affairs  is  exempt   from  the  tax
imposed  by Section 2-4 of the Electricity Excise Tax Law, if
the High Impact Business is registered  to  self-assess  that
tax, and is exempt from any additional  charges  added to the
business enterprise's  utility  bills  as  a pass-on of State
utility  taxes under Section 9-222 of this Act, to the extent
the tax or charges are exempted by the  percentage  specified
by  the  Department  of   Commerce  and Community Affairs for
State utility taxes, provided the business  enterprise  meets
the following criteria:
         (1)  it   intends  either  (i)  to  make  a  minimum
    eligible investment of $12,000,000 that will be placed in
    service in qualified property in Illinois and is intended
    to create at least 500  full-time equivalent  jobs  at  a
    designated    location  in  Illinois;  or  (ii) to make a
    minimum eligible investment of $30,000,000 that  will  be
    placed  in  service in qualified property in Illinois and
    is intended to retain at least 1,500 full-time equivalent
    jobs at a designated location in Illinois;
         (2)  it is designated as a High Impact  Business  by
    the Department of Commerce and Community Affairs; and
         (3)  it  is  certified by the Department of Commerce
    and Community Affairs as complying with the  requirements
    specified in clauses (1) and (2) of this Section.
    The  Department  of  Commerce and Community Affairs shall
determine the period during  which  the  exemption  from  the
Electricity  Excise  Tax  Law  and  the charges imposed under
Section 9-222 are in effect, which shall not exceed 20  years
from the date of initial certification, and shall specify the
percentage  of  the  exemption from those taxes or additional
charges.
    The Department  of  Commerce  and  Community  Affairs  is
authorized  to  promulgate rules and regulations to carry out
the provisions of  this  Section,  including  procedures  for
complying  with  the  requirements specified  in  clauses (1)
and (2) of this Section and procedures for applying  for  the
exemptions  authorized  under  this  Section;  to  define the
amounts and types  of  eligible   investments  that  business
enterprises  must  make in order to receive State utility tax
exemptions or exemptions from the additional charges  imposed
under Section 9-222 and this Section; to approve such utility
tax exemptions for business enterprises whose investments are
not  yet placed in  service;  and  to  require  that business
enterprises  granted  tax  exemptions  or   exemptions   from
additional  charges  under  Section  9-222 repay the exempted
amount if the business enterprise fails to  comply  with  the
terms and conditions of the certification.
    Upon  certification  of  the  business enterprises by the
Department of Commerce and Community Affairs, the  Department
of Commerce and Community Affairs shall notify the Department
of  Revenue  of the certification.  The Department of Revenue
shall notify the public utilities of the exemption status  of
business enterprises from the tax or pass-on charges of State
utility taxes.  The exemption status shall take effect within
3 months after certification of the business enterprise.

    Section  99.  Effective date.  This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.

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