The Civic Federation urges the General Assembly to establish clear standards of eligibility on property tax exemptions for charitable organizations. We are concerned that many organizations are uncertain about their property tax liabilities due to the lack of clear, definable standards in the Illinois Constitution and state law and recent unexplained exemption denials by the Illinois Department of Revenue. To the extent that the General Assembly lacks plenary authority to define clear standards…
Largely due to the income tax increase that took effect in January 2011, the State of Illinois’ operating deficit is expected to shrink from $3.9 billion in FY2011 to $454 million in FY2012. However, as previously discussed here, FY2012 costs are understated because appropriations do not cover the full cost of the Medicaid program. The operating budget underfunds projected Medicaid costs by as much as $1.7 billion. In addition, revenues are higher because the State plans to divert less revenue…
Two months after the start of the State of Illinois’ 2012 fiscal year on July 1, 2011, Governor Pat Quinn has proposed the closure of seven state facilities and the layoff of more than 1,900 employees in order to cope with a funding shortfall for certain agencies in the budget passed by the General Assembly. At a press conference on September 8, 2011, the Governor said he plans to close a prison, a juvenile boot camp, three mental health institutions and two institutions for the developmentally…
The State of Illinois still owes income tax refunds to many businesses, but the backlog declined in the fiscal year ended June 30, 2011 and is expected to dip further this year. According to the Illinois Department of Revenue, 4,569 businesses were owed $626.9 million in income tax refunds at the end of FY2011, down from $690.9 million at the end of FY2010. Nearly 34,000 individuals were owed $18.6 million at the end of FY2011, down from $43.6 million at the end of FY2010, but all of the…
Illinois’ Personal Property Replacement Tax (PPRT) is a revenue source for local governments that was created by the General Assembly in 1979 to replace a tax on the personal property of businesses that was abolished pursuant to the 1970 Illinois Constitution Article IX Section 5. Although its name refers to the tax it replaces, the PPRT is an income tax on the federal taxable income of corporations, business partnerships, trusts and Subchapter S corporations and a tax on public…
As the State of Illinois enters the third year of its Illinois Jobs Now! capital program, the Governor and General Assembly enacted a capital budget for FY2012 with a considerable increase in spending on new projects. The State’s annual capital budget, which is proposed and approved separately from the operating budget, increased by $2.2 billion for FY2012. This marks the first expansion of the current ongoing capital spending program since its inception in FY2010. The capital budget also…
The Illinois Department of Revenue announced today that the final equalization factor for the Cook County 2010 property assessment year (taxes payable in 2011) is 3.3000. The final equalization factor was calculated after the Cook County Board of Review finished hearing appeals and certified the final assessments for 2010. The tentative equalization factor of 3.1773, which reflected the Cook County Assessor’s final assessments before Board of Review appeals, was announced on June 16, 2011…
The State of Illinois’ plan to relieve some cash flow pressures in FY2011 by borrowing nearly $1 billion from its Special Funds to pay for operations netted less than half of that amount at the close of FY2011. The interfund borrowing program, previously discussed here, was approved by the General Assembly as part of the FY2011 Emergency Budget Act. It allowed the State to transfer cash balances from funds outside the General Funds to pay for operations and required repayment within 18 months…
In April 2011, State of Illinois officials announced plans to award four new contracts for state employee health insurance to replace existing contracts that were scheduled to expire on June 30, 2011. The Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) expected savings of approximately $102 million in FY2012 and more than $1 billion over the 10-year term of the new contracts. However, nearly four months after the State’s announcement and a month after the existing contracts were due…
Governor Pat Quinn’s plan to cancel pay raises for State of Illinois unionized workers due to insufficient funds in the FY2012 budget has hit a major hurdle. The plan, which would have affected 30,000 members of Council 31 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) across 14 state agencies, would have violated a union contract, according to a ruling on July 19, 2011 by independent arbitrator Edwin Benn. Governor Quinn said that the cost of the raises, estimated…
