Sen. Bill Cunningham

Filed: 3/23/2021

 

 


 

 


 
10200SB0665sam001LRB102 15453 AWJ 23860 a

1
AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 665

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 665 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 5. The Property Tax Code is amended by adding
5Section 15-62 as follows:
 
6    (35 ILCS 200/15-62 new)
7    Sec. 15-62. Exemption for lease or sale of property for
8cultivation and sale of fresh fruits and vegetables or
9recreation. Property that is leased or conveyed to a nonprofit
10corporation or association for cultivation and sale of fresh
11fruits and vegetables or recreation under Section 11-11-4 of
12the Illinois Municipal Code is exempt when actually and
13exclusively used such purposes and not leased or otherwise
14used with a view to profit.
15    The Department of Revenue shall, by rule, develop an
16application process for a nonprofit corporation or association

 

 

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1to prove it will be eligible for the property tax exemption
2under this Section once the property is leased or sold to it by
3the municipality. Once eligibility has been established, the
4Department shall issue an exemption certificate, contingent on
5the lease or conveyance, to the nonprofit corporation or
6association and, thereafter, an annual certificate of status
7upon proof of continued eligibility.
 
8    Section 10. The Illinois Municipal Code is amended by
9adding Section 11-11-4 as follows:
 
10    (65 ILCS 5/11-11-4 new)
11    Sec. 11-11-4. Lease or sale of property for cultivation
12and sale of fresh fruits and vegetables or recreation.
13    (a) The General Assembly finds:
14        (1) There exists in certain older, urban
15    municipalities an excess of vacant property that is not
16    needed for public use.
17        (2) Vacant properties present numerous problems for
18    these municipalities, such as: presenting the opportunity
19    for criminal activity; deterring neighboring property
20    owners from improving their properties and prospective
21    purchasers and renters from locating into these areas; and
22    serving as a location to dispose of unwanted items.
23        (3) These municipalities are often centers of high and
24    increasing populations and population densities comprised,

 

 

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1    in part, of lower-income families.
2        (4) Due, in part, to increasing population densities,
3    the deterioration of infrastructure, such as parks, and
4    fiscal constraints, these municipalities have been
5    challenged to offer residents opportunities to enhance the
6    quality of their lives.
7        (5) Due to the scarcity of full service supermarkets
8    and farmer's markets within these municipalities,
9    municipal residents often suffer from a shortage of fresh
10    fruits and vegetables.
11        (6) The shortages of recreational opportunities and
12    sources of fresh fruits and vegetables have contributed to
13    alarming increases in childhood obesity and other adverse
14    health consequences for municipal residents.
15        (7) It would be beneficial to enlist nonprofit
16    corporation or associations to develop these properties
17    for a range of public purposes that could enhance the
18    recreational, educational, and nutritional needs of local
19    residents.
20        (8) Authorization for municipalities to lease and sell
21    vacant land to nonprofit entities to cultivate these lands
22    can provide both recreational opportunities and a source
23    of fresh, locally-grown fruits and vegetables for local
24    residents.
25        (9) The nonprofit cultivation of previously vacant
26    land by nonprofit entities is a public purpose for which

 

 

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1    the long term lease and sale of these properties, and
2    exemption from property taxation, is warranted, even in
3    those instances when produce is sold to further the
4    mission of these nonprofit corporations or associations.
5    (b) A leasehold for a term not in excess of 50 years may be
6made with a nonprofit corporation or association and extended
7for an additional 25 years by ordinance or resolution
8thereafter for any purpose described under subsection (a),
9including, but not limited to:
10        (1) The cultivation or use of vacant lots for
11    gardening or recreational purposes.
12        (2) The lease of a tract of land of less than 5 acres
13    to sell fresh fruits and vegetables. Any lease entered
14    into pursuant to this paragraph may permit the nonprofit
15    corporation or association to sell fresh fruits and
16    vegetables on the leased land, off the leased land, or
17    both, provided, that the sales are related and incidental
18    to the nonprofit purposes of the corporation or
19    association and the net proceeds received by the nonprofit
20    corporation or association are used to further the
21    nonprofit purposes of the corporation or association.
22    (c) When the city council of a municipality determines
23that all or any part of a municipal-owned tract of land, with
24or without improvements, is not then needed for municipal
25purposes, the city council may, by resolution or ordinance,
26authorize a private sale and conveyance of the same, or any

 

 

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1part thereof, for nominal consideration without compliance
2with any other law governing disposal of lands by
3municipalities requiring adequate consideration. Such
4conveyance shall contain a limitation that the lands or
5buildings shall be used only for the purposes of such
6organization or association, and to render such services or to
7provide such facilities as may be agreed upon and, if said
8lands or buildings are not used in accordance with the
9limitation, title shall revert back to the municipality
10without any entry or reentry made on the property on behalf of
11the municipality.
12    Whenever a sale of property is proposed pursuant to this
13subsection, the municipality shall give at least 10 days'
14notice of such sale prior to a public hearing where an
15ordinance or resolution approving the sale is adopted.
16    (d) If the nonprofit organization or association uses the
17property leased or purchased under this Section for the
18cultivation and sale of fresh fruits and vegetables on a tract
19of land of less than 5 acres, the nonprofit organization or
20association may not be controlled, directly or indirectly, by
21any agricultural, commercial, or other business. The nonprofit
22organization or association is authorized to sell fresh fruits
23and vegetables either on the land that was leased or conveyed,
24off that land, or both, and the sales must be related and
25incidental to the nonprofit purposes of the organization or
26association and the net proceeds received by the nonprofit

 

 

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1organization or association must be used to further the
2nonprofit purposes of the organization or association.
3    (e) Property leased or conveyed under this Section is
4exempt from property taxation under under the Property Tax
5Code if the property is actually used for the cultivation and
6sale of fresh fruits and vegetables and owned by a nonprofit
7organization or association that includes among its principal
8purposes the cultivation and sale of fresh fruits and
9vegetables. Before property may be leased or conveyed under
10this Section, the nonprofit organization or association shall
11provide to the municipality an exemption certificate issued
12under Section 15-62 of the Property Tax Code.".