Cook taxpayers must reapply for senior exemption

Chiding Illinois lawmakers for saddling senior citizens with an unnecessary nuisance and Cook County government with an added expense, Assessor Joseph Berrios is mailing out almost 300,000 applications for seniors to reapply for their property-tax exemptions.

Seniors previously had the senior exemption applied every year once they qualified, but the state legislature imposed the requirement that they reapply annually. The change came as part of a law extending the current $20,000 reduction in equalized assesssed valuation for Cook County homeowners for one year.

“It’s imperative that we get the word out,” Berrios said.

The forms are due back March 3. Berrios said seniors who do not receive forms in the mail can get them online at the cookcountyassessor.com site or by calling (312) 603-2961. Forms will also be available at suburban courthouses, including those in Rolling Meadows and Skokie.

Berrios called the annual reapplication unnecessary. “Here in Cook County, we can enforce the exemption,” he said, through audits and fines on those who receive it improperly. “We shouldn’t have to punish the people who are entitled to this exemption.”

There are two forms of property-tax relief in Cook County this year for those born in 1945 and before. The senior exemption gives a break on the equalized assessed valuation of a principal residence. Seniors with annual household income of $55,000 and below can also apply to have the equalized assessed valuation frozen for their principal residence.

Berrios said mailing the forms will cost the county $250,000, without factoring in any additional expenditures for outreach. “This is just an additional cost the government doesn’t need,” he added.

“We will be going to Springfield to try to change that legislation,” Berrios said, but that would take effect next year at the earliest, and for now seniors must be sure they reapply.