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90_SB0680ccr001
LRB9003192JScwccr
1 90TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
2 CONFERENCE COMMITTEE REPORT
3 ON SENATE BILL 680
4 -------------------------------------------------------------
5 -------------------------------------------------------------
6 To the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the
7 House of Representatives:
8 We, the conference committee appointed to consider the
9 differences between the houses in relation to House Amendment
10 No. 1 to Senate Bill 680, recommend the following:
11 (1) that the House of Representatives recede from House
12 Amendment No. 1; and
13 (2) that Senate Bill 680 be amended by replacing the
14 title with the following:
15 "AN ACT concerning the acceptance by local governmental
16 entities of payment by credit card."; and
17 by replacing everything after the enacting clause with the
18 following:
19 "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
20 Local Governmental Acceptance of Credit Cards Act.
21 Section 10. Definitions.
22 "Authorized obligation" means, in connection with a
23 county, city, town, or other similar form of local municipal
24 government, any fine, fee, charge, tax, or cost imposed by,
25 owing to, or collected by or on behalf of a unit of local
26 government. In connection with a community college district,
27 "authorized obligation" means tuition costs, books, charges
28 for meals, and other education or college-related fines,
29 fees, charges, or costs imposed upon or incurred by students
30 or pupils.
31 "Credit card" means an instrument or device, whether
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1 known as a credit card, bank card, charge card, debit card,
2 automated teller machine card, secured credit card, smart
3 card, electronic purse, prepaid card, affinity card, or by
4 any other name, issued with or without fee by an issuer for
5 the use of the holder to obtain credit, money, goods,
6 services, or anything else of value.
7 Section 15. Local government credit card acceptance
8 program.
9 (a) Any unit of local government and any community
10 college district that has the authority to accept the payment
11 of funds for any purpose is authorized, but not required, to
12 accept payment by credit card.
13 (b) This Act shall be broadly construed to authorize,
14 but not require, acceptance of credit card payments by all
15 units of local government and community college districts.
16 (c) This Act authorizes the acceptance of credit card
17 payments for all types of authorized obligations.
18 (d) This Act does not limit the authority of clerks of
19 court to accept payment by credit card pursuant to the Clerks
20 of Court Act or the Unified Code of Corrections.
21 (e) A local governmental entity may not receive and
22 retain, directly or indirectly, any convenience fee,
23 surcharge, or other fee in excess of the amount paid in
24 connection with the credit card transaction. In addition, a
25 financial institution or service provider may not pay,
26 refund, rebate, or return, directly or indirectly, to a local
27 governmental entity for final retention any portion of a
28 surcharge, convenience fee, or other fee paid in connection
29 with a credit card transaction.
30 Section 20. Election by local governmental entities to
31 accept credit cards.
32 (a) The decision whether to accept credit card payments
33 for any particular type of obligation shall be made by the
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1 governing body of the local governmental entity that has
2 general discretionary authority over the manner of acceptance
3 of payments. The governing body may adopt reasonable rules
4 governing the manner of acceptance of payments by credit
5 card. No decision to accept credit card payments under this
6 Act shall be made until the governing body has determined,
7 following a public hearing held not sooner than 10 nor later
8 than 30 days following public notice of the hearing, that the
9 acceptance of credit card payments for the types of
10 authorized obligations specified in the public notice is in
11 the best interests of the citizens and governmental
12 administration of the local governmental entity or community
13 college and of the students and taxpayers thereof.
14 (b) The governing body of the entity accepting payment
15 by credit card may enter into agreements with one or more
16 financial institutions or other service providers to
17 facilitate the acceptance and processing of credit card
18 payments. Such agreements shall identify the specific
19 services to be provided, an itemized list of the fees
20 charged, and the means by which each such fee shall be paid.
21 Such agreements may include a discount fee to cover the costs
22 of interchange, assessments and authorizations, a per item
23 processing fee for the service provider, and any other fee,
24 including a payment of a surcharge or convenience fee, that
25 may be applicable to specific circumstances. Any agreement
26 for acceptance of payments by credit cards may be canceled by
27 the governmental entity upon giving reasonable notice of
28 intent to cancel.
29 (c) An entity accepting payments by credit card may pay
30 amounts due a financial institution or other service provider
31 by (i) paying the financial institution or other service
32 provider upon presentation of an invoice or (ii) allowing the
33 financial institution or other service provider to withhold
34 the amount of the fees from the credit card payment. A
35 discount or processing fee may be authorized whenever the
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1 governing body of the entity determines that any reduction of
2 revenue resulting from the discount or processing fee will be
3 in the best interest of the entity. Items that may be
4 considered in making a determination to authorize the payment
5 of fees or the acceptance of a discount include, but are not
6 limited to, improved governmental cash flows, reduction of
7 governmental overhead, improved governmental financial
8 security, a combination of these items, and the benefit of
9 increased public convenience. No payment to or withheld by a
10 financial institution or other service provider may exceed
11 the amounts authorized under subsection (b) of Section 25.
12 (d) Unless specifically prohibited by an ordinance or
13 rule adopted by the governing body of the local governmental
14 entity, a person may pay multiple tax bills in a single
15 transaction.
16 Section 25. Payment of fees by cardholders.
17 (a) The governing body of a local governmental entity
18 authorizing acceptance of payment by credit card may, but is
19 not required to, impose a convenience fee or surcharge upon a
20 cardholder making payment by credit card in an amount to
21 wholly or partially offset, but in no event exceed, the
22 amount of any discount or processing fee incurred by the
23 local governmental entity. This convenience fee or surcharge
24 may be applied only when allowed under the operating rules
25 and regulations of the credit card involved. When a
26 cardholder elects to make a payment by credit card to a local
27 governmental entity and a convenience fee or surcharge is
28 imposed, the payment of the convenience fee or surcharge
29 shall be deemed voluntary by the person and shall not be
30 refundable.
31 (b) No fee, or accumulation of fees, that exceeds the
32 lesser of $20 or 5% of the principal amount charged may be
33 imposed in connection with the issuance of any license,
34 sticker, or permit, or with respect to any other similar
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1 transaction. No fee, or accumulation of fees, that exceeds
2 the lesser of $5 or 5% of the transaction involved may be
3 imposed in connection with the payment of any fine. No fee,
4 or accumulation of fees, in excess of the lesser of $40 or 3%
5 of the principal amount charged may be imposed in connection
6 with the payment of any real estate or other tax.
7 (c) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (b), a
8 minimum fee of $1 may be imposed with respect to any
9 transaction.
10 Section 30. Relief from underlying obligation. A person
11 who makes a payment by credit card to a local governmental
12 entity shall not be relieved from liability for the
13 underlying obligation except to the extent that the local
14 governmental entity realizes final payment of the underlying
15 obligation in cash or the equivalent. If final payment is
16 not made by the credit card issuer or other guarantor of
17 payment in the credit card transaction, then the underlying
18 obligation shall survive and the local governmental entity
19 shall retain all remedies for enforcement that would have
20 applied if the credit card transaction had not occurred. A
21 person making payment by credit card is not liable for any
22 discount or fee paid to a credit card issuer or other party
23 by a local governmental entity.
24 Section 35. Liability of local governmental employees.
25 A local governmental employee who accepts payment by credit
26 card in accordance with this Act and any applicable rules
27 shall not incur personal liability for the final collection
28 of the payment.
29 Section 95. The Property Tax Code is amended by changing
30 Section 20-25 as follows:
31 (35 ILCS 200/20-25)
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1 Sec. 20-25. Forms of payment. Taxes levied by taxing
2 districts may be satisfied by payment in legal money of the
3 United States, cashier's check, certified check, post office
4 money order, bank money order issued by a national or state
5 bank that is insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance
6 Corporation, or by a personal or corporate check drawn on
7 such a bank, to the respective collection officers who are
8 entitled by law to receive the tax payments or by credit card
9 in accordance with the Local Governmental Acceptance of
10 Credit Cards Act. A county collector may refuse to accept a
11 personal check within 30 days before a tax sale.
12 (Source: P.A. 86-345; 88-455.)
13 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
14 becoming law.".
15 Submitted on , 1997.
16 ______________________________ _____________________________
17 Senator O'Malley Representative Bugielski
18 ______________________________ _____________________________
19 Senator Walsh, T. Representative Capparelli
20 ______________________________ _____________________________
21 Senator Geo-Karis Representative Hannig
22 ______________________________ _____________________________
23 Senator Rea Representative Churchill
24 ______________________________ _____________________________
25 Senator Carroll Representative Deuchler
26 Committee for the Senate Committee for the House