This Illinois State Association of Counties (ISACo) weekly
News and Views
e-newsletter provides an update about an ISACo legislative initiative concerning property tax abatements, provides information about a bill addressing unresolved issues with the new online sales tax collection law, informs readers about a recreational cannabis clean-up bill, summarizes several other bills of interest to counties approved during this week's Veto Session, reports on the retirement announcement made by Senate President John Cullerton, links to a press release about the state's efforts to secure Small Business Administration (SBA) flooding assistance, includes information about registration for the National Association of Counties (NACo) 2020 Legislative Conference, asks county officials to follow ISACo on social media and invites counties to join ISACo.
2019 Spring Session Resources
ISACo's summary of the major legislative issues addressed during the 2019 Spring legislative session is
available via this link.
COUNTIES COUNT!
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ISACo Testifies in Support of Property Tax Abatement Initiative
During a November 12 hearing of the House Revenue and Finance Committee, ISACo Executive Director Joe McCoy provided testimony in support of ISACo's initiative to provide non-home rule local governments under property tax caps with the ability to abate property taxes without losing the amount of the abatement from future tax collections.
House Amendment 2 to Senate Bill 1043
(Representative Wehrli, R-Naperville) includes ISACo's property tax abatement language along with provisions sought by a school district to protect against reductions in property tax distributions to local governments.
ISACo is appreciative of Representative Wehrli's leadership in support of our initiative.
House Revenue and Finance Chairman Michael Zalewski (D-Riverside) opened the hearing by stating that the amendment would be discussed during the hearing but not moved out of Committee. The intent is to consider adding the provisions to a broader property tax reform bill that includes recommendations by the Property Tax Relief Task Force. The Task Force is required to submit its final report by December 31, 2019. More information about the Task Force is
available on ISACo's website.
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Legislation Approved to Correct Problems with Online Sales Tax Collection Law
The General Assembly approved an ISACo-supported bill (
SB 119 - Senator Steans, D-Chicago/Representative Zalewski, D-Riverside
) that makes important technical changes to a law enacted over the summer to facilitate the collection of taxes from sales occurring over the Internet. The need for these changes were known when the original law was enacted and guarantees for the corrections were provided at the time.
The previously-enacted "Leveling the Playing Field for Illinois Retail Law" required the technical changes to ensure collection of the tax revenue generated from online sales involving out-of-state retailers. There are several changes, but two significant fixes within SB 119 are as follows: (1) a closing of a "marketplace loophole" that will facilitate the collection of local sales taxes, particularly from sales associated with warehouses; and (2) the restoration of the erroneously stricken Use Tax provision to ensure that the State of Illinois and local governments receive the sales tax revenue.
SB 119 is an initiative of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association (IRMA) and ISACo is appreciative of their hard work on this very complicated issue. The new law, with the technical changes, will benefit retailers by leveling the playing field between brick-and-mortar stores and online businesses. State and local governments benefit from the additional revenues that will result from taxing sales made over the Internet.
Under the "Leveling the Playing Field for Illinois Retail Law," local governments will begin to see an increase in the local share of the Use Tax (1% of the 6.25%) on January 1, 2020. Collection of the Retail Occupation Tax (ROT) for online sales will begin on January 1, 2021.
The bill will next be considered by the Governor.
ISACo delivered a letter to the Governor (
available via this link
) requesting that he sign the bill into law.
ISACo SUPPORTS
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Changes to Recreational Cannabis Law Approved
Of importance to counties is that the bill moves up the date by which collection of the locally-imposed cannabis sales tax can begin by two months. Local tax ordinances filed with the Illinois Department of Revenue (IDOR) on or before April 1, 2020 (currently June 1, 2020) will result in tax collections beginning on July 1, 2020 (currently September 1, 2020).
Other provisions relevant to local governments include the following:
- Authorizes local governments to permit retail tobacco stores to offer on-premise consumption of cannabis in specially-designated areas of the store.
- Authorizes local governments to allow dispensing organizations to have on-site consumption under certain circumstances.
- Strengthens employer protections when enforcing reasonable drug-free workplace polices.
- Permits employers to prohibit, or take disciplinary action against, law enforcement officers, corrections officers, probation officers, paramedics and firefighters for consumption, possession, sales, purchase or delivery of cannabis-infused substances while on or off-duty.
- Alters the expungement process.
The Governor is expected to sign the bill into law.
ISACo SUPPORTS
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Other Legislation of Interest
The following legislation of interest to counties was approved during the final three days of Veto Session:
Senate Bill 177
(Senator Harris, D-Dolton/Representative Davis, D-East Hazel Crest) provides that emergency rules may be adopted to implement the Illinois Works Jobs Program Act.
The bill includes provisions intended to increase diversity in apprenticeships for construction and the building trades. The bill also includes a provision requiring that, by December 1, 2022, the Department of Central Management Services Business Enterprise Program shall develop a model for social scientific disparity study sourcing for local governmental units to adapt and implement to address regional disparities in public procurement. The bill was approved by both chambers and the Governor indicated he will sign it into law.
Senate Bill 222
(Senator Munoz, D-Chicago/Representative Rita, D-Blue Island) includes provisions to rectify problems with previously enacted gaming legislation. Addressing the problems would ensure that the gambling expansion rollout will not be delayed. There was much discussion over the last several days about making changes to the law with respect to casinos and revenue distributions, but these changes were not added to the bill ultimately voted on by legislators. The bill was approved by both chambers and will next be considered by the Governor.
Senate Bill 667
(Senator Manar, D-Bunker Hill/Representative Guzzardi, D-Chicago) would provide that insurers offering prescription insulin drugs must limit the total cost to $100 per 30-day supply of insulin regardless of the type and amount of insulin needed by the insured. The bill was approved by both chambers and will next be considered by the Governor.
The Governor intends to sign the bill into law.
Senate Bill 730
(Senator Bush, D-Grayslake/Representative Williams, D-Chicago) would amend the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act to require the chief administrative officer of each unit of local government to certify to the appropriate county clerk, on or before February 1 of each year, a list of names and addresses of persons that are required to file statements of economic interests. Requires each ultimate jurisdictional authority to submit to the applicable Ethics Commission a report that summarizes the harassment and discrimination prevention training (currently, sexual harassment training) program that was completed during the previous year, and lays out the plan for the training program in the coming year. Contains other provisions. The bill was approved by both chambers and will next be considered by the Governor.
Senate Bill 1300
(Senator Castro, D-Elgin/Representative Hoffman, D-Belleville) would consolidate the assets of approximately 650 downstate and suburban municipal police and fire pension funds into two funds (police and fire) for investment purposes. The bill was approved by both chambers and will be signed into law by the Governor.
Senate Bill 1639
(Senator Steans, D-Chicago/Representative Harris, D-Chicago) would modify lobbyist registration and disclosure requirements. This lobbyist ethics bill was approved by both chambers, but drew criticism from some Republican legislators for not going far enough. The bill will next be considered by the Governor, who indicated support for the bill while acknowledging additional work is required to address corruption.
House Bill 392
(Representative Mason, D-Gurnee/Senator Morrison, D-Deerfield) would require the Lake County Board to reestablish the Lake County Children's Advocacy Center Pilot Program and make two additional reports about the program. The bill was approved by both chambers and will next be considered by the Governor.
House Bill 597
(Representative Ramirez, D-Chicago/Senator Villivalam, D-Chicago) would amend the Equitable Restrooms Act to provide that whether a restaurant meets occupancy criteria is to be determined by the local fire department, fire protection district, building permitting entity or building inspector instead of the State Fire Marshal. The bill was approved by both chambers and will next be considered by the Governor.
House Bill 961
(Representative Crespo, D-Hoffman Estates/Senator Ellman, D-Naperville) would provide that in Cook County, for taxable years 2019 through 2023 (currently, 2020 through 2024), a taxpayer who has been granted a senior citizens homestead exemption need not reapply. The bill was approved by both chambers and will next be considered by the Governor.
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Senate President Cullerton Announces Retirement
In a surprise announcement, Senate President John Cullerton (D-Chicago) announced that he will retire after a 41-year career in the General Assembly - the last 11 years spent serving as Senate President.
His plan is to vacate his seat in January 2020. The Senate is expected to elect a new President during the second week of January.
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State Seeks SBA Disaster Assistance to Aid Flood Recovery Efforts
The State of Illinois is seeking additional recovery assistance from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to aid homeowners and business owners along the Illinois and Mississippi rivers who were impacted by the historic 2019 flood. Governor JB Pritzker submitted a formal request to the SBA seeking a disaster declaration on Wednesday, November 13, 2019.
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Registration Open for NACo Legislative Conference
The NACo Legislative Conference brings together nearly 2,000 elected and appointed county officials to focus on federal policy issues that impact counties and their residents. Attendees have the opportunity to engage in second-to-none policy sessions, interact with federal officials and participate in congressional briefings and meetings. This is a one-of-a-kind advocacy opportunity you will not want to miss.
ISACo is planning an event for Illinois attendees. Registrants from Illinois will receive information about this event at a later date.
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Follow ISACo on Social Media
A great way to stay current on issues affecting or of interest to counties is by following ISACo on social media. Please follow our Facebook page and Twitter feed and join the conversation!
@Isacoil
@IsacoTweets
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The Key to ISACo's Success is YOU!
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Is your county a member of ISACo? If not, why not?
ISACo is a statewide association whose mission is to empower county officials to provide excellent service to their residents.
ISACo member counties are comprised of forward-thinking public servants who recognize that the challenges confronting county governments require new and innovative ideas, collaborative solutions and collective advocacy at the state and federal levels of government.
Members of the association will benefit from education and training opportunities, peer-to-peer networking, shared resources and robust representation before policymakers at various levels of government. ISACo creates and connects county officials to these opportunities and successfully equips them to make counties ideal places to live, work and play.
If your county is interested in discussing membership in ISACo, please contact Executive Director Joe McCoy at (217) 679-3368 or jmccoy@isacoil.org. Thank you for your consideration.
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News and Views
is a service provided by ISACo for county officials and staff. Please feel welcome to share with interested parties. You can contact ISACo Executive Director Joe McCoy at jmccoy@isacoil.org or (217) 679-3368 if we can be of service. Thank you for your support of ISACo.
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