Full Text of HB4988 97th General Assembly
HB4988eng 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | AN ACT concerning transportation.
| 2 | | Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
| 3 | | represented in the General Assembly:
| 4 | | Section 5. The Illinois Vehicle Code is amended by changing | 5 | | Section 3-704.1 and adding Section 11-1430.1 as follows:
| 6 | | (625 ILCS 5/3-704.1)
| 7 | | Sec. 3-704.1. Municipal vehicle tax liability; suspension | 8 | | of registration.
| 9 | | (a) As used in this Section:
| 10 | | (1) "Municipality" means a city, village or | 11 | | incorporated town with a
population over 1,000,000.
| 12 | | (2) "Vehicle tax" means a motor vehicle tax and any | 13 | | related late fees
or charges imposed by a municipality | 14 | | under Section 8-11-4 or the
Illinois Municipal Code or | 15 | | under the municipality's home rule powers.
| 16 | | (3) "Vehicle owner" means the registered owner or | 17 | | owners of a vehicle
who are residents of the municipality.
| 18 | | (b) A municipality that imposes a vehicle tax may, by | 19 | | ordinance adopted
under this Section, establish a system | 20 | | whereby the municipality
notifies the Secretary of State of | 21 | | vehicle tax liability and the Secretary
of State suspends the | 22 | | registration of vehicles for which the tax has not
been paid. | 23 | | An ordinance establishing a system must provide for the |
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| 1 | | following:
| 2 | | (1) A first notice for failure to pay a vehicle tax | 3 | | shall
be sent by first class mail to the vehicle owner at | 4 | | the owner's address
recorded with the Secretary of State | 5 | | whenever the municipality has reasonable
cause to believe | 6 | | that the vehicle owner has failed to pay a vehicle tax as
| 7 | | required by ordinance. The notice shall include at least | 8 | | the following:
| 9 | | (A) The name and address of the vehicle owner.
| 10 | | (B) The registration plate number of the vehicle.
| 11 | | (C) The period for which the vehicle tax is due.
| 12 | | (D) The amount of vehicle tax that is due.
| 13 | | (E) A statement that the vehicle owner's | 14 | | registration for the
vehicle will be subject to | 15 | | suspension proceedings unless the vehicle owner
pays | 16 | | the vehicle tax or successfully contests the owner's | 17 | | alleged liability
within 30 days of the date of the | 18 | | notice.
| 19 | | (F) An explanation of the vehicle owner's | 20 | | opportunity to be heard
under subsection (c).
| 21 | | (2) If a vehicle owner fails to pay the vehicle tax or | 22 | | to contest
successfully the owner's alleged liability | 23 | | within the period specified in the
first notice, a second | 24 | | notice of impending registration suspension shall be
sent | 25 | | by first class mail to the vehicle owner at the owner's | 26 | | address recorded
with the Secretary of State. The notice |
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| 1 | | shall contain the same information as
the first notice, but | 2 | | shall also state that the failure to pay the amount
owing, | 3 | | or to contest successfully the alleged liability within 45 | 4 | | days of the
date of the second notice, will result in the | 5 | | municipality's notification of
the Secretary of State that | 6 | | the vehicle owner is eligible for initiation of
suspension | 7 | | proceedings under this Section.
| 8 | | (c) An ordinance adopted under this Section must also give | 9 | | the
vehicle owner an opportunity to be heard upon the filing of | 10 | | a timely
petition with the municipality. A vehicle owner may | 11 | | contest the alleged
tax liability either through an | 12 | | adjudication by mail or at an
administrative hearing, at the | 13 | | option of the vehicle owner. The grounds
upon which the | 14 | | liability may be contested may be limited to the following:
| 15 | | (1) The alleged vehicle owner does not own the vehicle.
| 16 | | (2) The vehicle is not subject to the vehicle tax by | 17 | | law.
| 18 | | (3) The vehicle tax for the period in question has been | 19 | | paid.
| 20 | | At an administrative hearing, the formal or technical rules | 21 | | of evidence
shall not apply. The hearing shall be recorded. The | 22 | | person conducting
the hearing shall have the power to | 23 | | administer oaths and to secure by
subpoena the attendance and | 24 | | testimony of witnesses and the production of
relevant | 25 | | documents.
| 26 | | (d) If a vehicle owner who has been sent a first notice of |
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| 1 | | failure to
pay a vehicle tax and a second notice of impending | 2 | | registration suspension
fails to pay the vehicle tax or to | 3 | | contest successfully the vehicle owner's
liability within the | 4 | | periods specified in the notices, the appropriate
official | 5 | | shall cause a certified report to be sent to the Secretary of
| 6 | | State under subsection (e).
| 7 | | (e) A report of a municipality notifying the Secretary of | 8 | | State of a
vehicle owner's failure to pay a vehicle tax or | 9 | | related fines or penalties
under this Section shall be | 10 | | certified by the appropriate official and
shall contain the | 11 | | following:
| 12 | | (1) The name, last known address and registration plate | 13 | | number of the
vehicle of the person who failed to pay the | 14 | | vehicle tax.
| 15 | | (2) The name of the municipality making the report.
| 16 | | (3) A statement that the municipality sent notices as | 17 | | required by
subsection (b); the date on which the notices | 18 | | were sent; the address to
which the notices were sent; and | 19 | | the date of the hearing, if any.
| 20 | | (f) Following receipt of the certified report under this | 21 | | Section,
the Secretary of State shall notify the vehicle owner | 22 | | that the vehicle's
registration will be suspended at the end of | 23 | | a reasonable specified period
of time unless the Secretary of | 24 | | State is presented with a notice from the
municipality | 25 | | certifying that the person has paid the necessary vehicle tax,
| 26 | | or that inclusion of that person's name or registration number |
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| 1 | | on the certified
report was in error. The Secretary's notice | 2 | | shall state in substance the
information contained in the | 3 | | certified report from the municipality to the
Secretary, and | 4 | | shall be effective as specified by subsection (c) of Section
| 5 | | 6-211 of this Code. The notice shall also inform the person of | 6 | | the person's
right to a hearing under subsection (g).
| 7 | | (g) An administrative hearing with the Office of the | 8 | | Secretary of State
to contest an impending suspension or a | 9 | | suspension made under this
Section may be had upon filing a | 10 | | written request with the Secretary of
State. The filing fee for | 11 | | this hearing shall be $20 to be paid at the time
the request is | 12 | | made.
| 13 | | (1) The scope of any administrative hearing with the | 14 | | Secretary of
State to contest an impending suspension under | 15 | | this Section shall be
limited to the following issues:
| 16 | | (A) Whether the report of the appropriate official | 17 | | of the municipality
was certified and contained the | 18 | | information required by this Section.
| 19 | | (B) Whether the municipality making the certified | 20 | | report to the
Secretary of State established | 21 | | procedures by ordinance for persons to
challenge the | 22 | | accuracy of the certified report.
| 23 | | (C) Whether the Secretary of State notified the | 24 | | vehicle owner
that the vehicle's registration would be | 25 | | suspended at the end of the
specified time period | 26 | | unless the Secretary of State was presented with a
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| 1 | | notice from the municipality certifying that the | 2 | | person has purchased the
necessary vehicle tax sticker | 3 | | or that inclusion of that person's name or
registration | 4 | | number on the certified report was in error.
| 5 | | A municipality that files a certified report with the | 6 | | Secretary of State
under this Section shall reimburse the | 7 | | Secretary for all reasonable
costs incurred by the Secretary as | 8 | | a result of the filing of the report,
including but not limited | 9 | | to the costs of providing the notice required
under subsection | 10 | | (f) and the costs incurred by the Secretary in any
hearing | 11 | | conducted with respect to the report under this subsection
and | 12 | | any appeal from that hearing.
| 13 | | (h) After the expiration of the time specified under | 14 | | subsection
(g), the Secretary of State shall, unless the | 15 | | suspension is successfully
contested, suspend the registration | 16 | | of the vehicle until the Secretary
receives notice under | 17 | | subsection (i).
| 18 | | (i) Any municipality making a certified report to the | 19 | | Secretary of State
under this subsection shall notify the | 20 | | Secretary of State, in a form
prescribed by the Secretary, | 21 | | whenever a person named in the certified
report has | 22 | | subsequently paid a vehicle tax or whenever the municipality
| 23 | | determines that the original report was in error. A certified | 24 | | copy of the
notification shall also be given upon request and | 25 | | at no additional charge to
the person named in the report. Upon | 26 | | receipt of the notification or
presentation of a certified copy |
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| 1 | | of the notification by the municipality, the
Secretary of State | 2 | | shall terminate the suspension.
| 3 | | (j) To facilitate enforcement of municipal vehicle tax | 4 | | liability, a municipality may provide by ordinance for a | 5 | | program of vehicle immobilization as provided by Section | 6 | | 11-1430.1 of this Code. | 7 | | (Source: P.A. 87-1225.)
| 8 | | (625 ILCS 5/11-1430.1 new) | 9 | | Sec. 11-1430.1. Vehicle immobilization for failure to pay | 10 | | municipal vehicle tax violation liability. | 11 | | (a) A municipality may provide by ordinance for a program | 12 | | of vehicle immobilization to facilitate enforcement of | 13 | | municipal vehicle tax liability. The program of vehicle | 14 | | immobilization shall provide for immobilizing an eligible | 15 | | vehicle upon the public way by presence of a restraint in a | 16 | | manner to prevent operation of the vehicle. An ordinance | 17 | | establishing a program of vehicle immobilization under this | 18 | | Section shall include the following provisions: | 19 | | (1) A vehicle shall be eligible for immobilization when | 20 | | the registered owner of the vehicle has accumulated the | 21 | | number of unpaid final determinations of vehicle tax | 22 | | violation liability or other violation liability under | 23 | | subsection (c) of Section 11-208.3 of this Code, or both. | 24 | | (2) The vehicle owner shall be provided with notice of | 25 | | the impending vehicle immobilization and
the right to a |
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| 1 | | hearing to challenge the validity of the action by | 2 | | disproving liability for unpaid final determinations of | 3 | | vehicle tax or other violation liability under subsection | 4 | | (c) of Section 11-208.3 of this Code. | 5 | | (3) The vehicle owner shall have the right to a prompt | 6 | | hearing after a vehicle has
been immobilized or | 7 | | subsequently towed for nonpayment of outstanding fines and | 8 | | penalties for which final determinations have been issued. | 9 | | An order issued after the hearing is a final administrative | 10 | | decision within the meaning of Section 3-101 of the Code of | 11 | | Civil Procedure. | 12 | | (4) A post-immobilization and post-towing notice
shall | 13 | | be provided to the registered owner of the vehicle advising | 14 | | the registered owner of the right to a hearing to challenge | 15 | | the validity of the impoundment. | 16 | | (b) Judicial review of final determinations of vehicle tax | 17 | | violations and final administrative decisions issued after | 18 | | hearings regarding vehicle immobilization and impoundment made | 19 | | under this Section shall be subject to the Administrative | 20 | | Review Law. | 21 | | (c) A fine, penalty, or part thereof, remaining unpaid | 22 | | after the exhaustion of, or the failure to exhaust, | 23 | | administrative remedies and the conclusion of judicial review | 24 | | procedures shall be a debt due and owing the municipality and, | 25 | | as such, may be collected in accordance with applicable law. | 26 | | Payment in full of any fine or penalty resulting from a vehicle |
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| 1 | | tax violation shall constitute a final disposition of that | 2 | | violation.
| 3 | | Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon | 4 | | becoming law.
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