On Friday, The Chicago Sun-Times reported that Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi is moving to send notices to all property owners in Cook County regarding the effect of the coronavirus on property owners. Reassessment notices...more
On Friday, Governor Pritzker issued Executive Order 2020-15 allowing school districts to communicate, respond to, and open bids electronically for school construction projects. Section 10-20.21 of the Illinois School Code...more
Today the Illinois Property Tax Appeal Board (PTAB) issued guidance to practitioners on filing dates and deadlines in light of the unprecedented changes occasioned by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)....more
Last week, Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi announced a temporary suspension of reassessment notices and filing deadlines. This follows the Assessor’s closing his office to the public on March 13, 2020 in light of the growing...more
Last week, nine Cook County school districts and Calumet City filed an amicus curiae (“friend of the court”) brief in the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in support of rehearing in the case A.F. Moore & Associates Inc. v....more
2/26/2020
/ Amicus Briefs ,
Class Action ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
County Assessors ,
Lack of Jurisdiction ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Municipalities ,
Petition For Rehearing ,
Property Tax ,
Property Valuation ,
School Districts ,
State and Local Government ,
Tax Appeals ,
Tax Assessment ,
Tax Planning ,
Tax Refunds ,
Tax Revenues
A recent Illinois Appellate Court decision highlights the importance of keeping a complete record of board proceedings that are subject to judicial review. In Board of Education of Kewanee School District 229 v. The Regional...more
Franczek P.C. is pleased to announce the publication of its annual Legislative Update for schools. With the flood of legislative changes in Illinois this year, it is more imperative than ever for education stakeholders to...more
Franczek P.C. is pleased to announce the publication of its annual Legislative Update for schools. With the flood of legislative changes in Illinois this year, it is more imperative than ever for education stakeholders to...more
10/2/2019
/ Cannabis Products ,
Charter Schools ,
Educational Institutions ,
FOIA ,
Human Rights ,
Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) ,
Marijuana ,
Mental Health ,
Military Service Members ,
Minimum Salary ,
Minimum Wage ,
New Legislation ,
Public Accommodation ,
Public Acts ,
Risk Assessment ,
Safety Precautions ,
Salary/Wage History ,
School Boards ,
School Districts ,
School Restrooms ,
Sex Offenders ,
Special Education ,
State Budgets ,
Students ,
Teachers ,
Threat Management ,
Wage and Hour
Governor Pritzker recently signed into law Public Act 101-0455 amending the School Safety Drill Act (105 ILCS 128/1) to require threat assessment procedures and the creation of threat assessment teams in school districts...more
9/18/2019
/ Adverse Events ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
FERPA ,
FOIA ,
Incident Response Plans ,
Information Sharing ,
New Legislation ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Public Acts ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Risk Assessment ,
School Districts ,
State and Local Government ,
Threat Management ,
Vulnerability Assessments
An Illinois Appellate Court recently ruled that the general homestead exemption applies to a couple leasing a single-family home. In Shrake v. The Rock Island Treasurer, the Court determined the couple, as leaseholders, were...more
Recently, The Civic Federation, a government research organization, released a report of the Property Tax Appeal Board that details the history of the PTAB backlog of appeals, extrapolates data from the last fifteen years,...more
Last week the Illinois Appellate Court ruled that the Truth in Taxation Law does not require a taxing district to document its estimated property tax levy and that a public hearing is not required if a proposed levy is less...more
The evolution and expansion of the health care industry continues to test the limits of Illinois’ charitable real estate tax exemption laws, with significant implications for school district revenues. In addition to...more
Yesterday, the Illinois Supreme Court issued a decision in Oswald v. Hamer marking the latest chapter in a controversy dating to 2003. The decision finds that Section 15-86 of the Illinois Property Tax Code, which provides a...more
9/21/2018
/ Charitable Organizations ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Health Care Providers ,
Hospitals ,
IL Supreme Court ,
Non-Profit Hospitals ,
Property Tax ,
School Districts ,
Tax Code ,
Tax Exemptions ,
Tax Revenues ,
Taxation
Last week a lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois by a group of seven Cook County taxpayers challenging the time it has taken to adjudicate their claims in the Cook County Circuit...more
Tucked inside the 763-page budget implementation bill adopted by the Illinois House is a provision that imposes penalties on school districts entering into contracts and collective bargaining agreements that provide TRS...more
Yesterday, the Illinois Supreme Court heard oral argument in Oswald v. Beard, a case challenging the constitutionality of the statute exempting most hospitals from paying any property taxes. ...more
5/23/2018
/ Charitable Organizations ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Health Care Providers ,
Hospitals ,
IL Supreme Court ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Non-Profit Hospitals ,
Property Tax ,
Tax Exemptions ,
Taxation
Illinois Courts are currently examining several different aspects of property tax exemptions, all of which impact the revenues of school districts and other units of local government. Most notably, the Illinois Supreme Court...more
10/26/2017
/ Appeals ,
Assisted Living Facilities (ALFs) ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Homestead Exemption ,
Hospitals ,
Local Revenues ,
Property Tax ,
Real Estate Market ,
School Districts ,
Tax Assessment ,
Tax Exemptions
Governor Rauner recently signed into law changes to the Illinois School Student Records Act. The changes in P.A. 100-532 create new procedures for responding to parents’ requests to inspect or copy their child’s permanent and...more
As reported in an earlier alert, the State’s new school funding bill, Senate Bill 1947 (Public Act 100-0465), provides new mandate relief. School districts have been eligible to petition the General Assembly for waivers from...more
The rollercoaster ride of the past weeks on school funding is coming to an end as the General Assembly has passed a new compromise bill that is expected to be signed by Governor Rauner as early as the end of this week. ...more
The Illinois Appellate Court recently reversed a decision of the Illinois Property Tax Appeal Board (PTAB) involving the taxation of a mobile home in Jones v. State Property Tax Appeal Board. While the opinion addresses a...more
A recent article in Education Week has caught the attention of many local educators. The article, available here, discusses a national trend in property tax assessment appeals that can have devastating effects on school...more
For the past eight years, Franczek Radelet has tracked property tax assessment data obtained from the Cook County Assessor's Office. Our data set begins in tax year 2009 when the classification ordinance was amended to...more
This week the Chicago Tribune published a three-part series of investigative reporting on the Cook County property tax system and the appeals process entitled “The Tax Divide”. Tribune reporters are examining 1) how the tax...more