Taxing districts in Cook County may see a slight increase in the funds they receive because of a new type of collection referred to as an Exemption Waiver Distribution. This new collection was established by an amendment to the Illinois Property Tax Code dealing with erroneous homestead exemptions. The Property Tax Code gives the Cook County Assessor the authority to determine when an erroneous homestead exemption from a previous year was applied and demand payment of the principal amount plus interest from the property owner. The Assessor is also authorized to place a lien on any properties where a property owner refuses to pay this penalty. Under the amendment, the Cook County Treasurer will now distribute to taxing districts their pro rata share of the money collected from these erroneous homestead exemptions.  This new type of collection took effect on January 1, 2015 and will be identified as a “WP” distribution on the distribution report.