Property tax code could get easier

More senior citizens would be eligible for property tax relief, and other homeowners would benefit from a simplified assessment formula under a proposal crafted by Kane County officials with state Rep. Tim Schmitz, a Batavia Republican.

Unveiled at the county board's annual legislative breakfast Wednesday, the proposal aims to simplify the state's property tax code, said Kane County Board Chairman Karen McConnaughay and county Assessment Supervisor Mark Armstrong.

"Illinois property tax code is cumbersome and difficult to understand," said McConnaughay, a St. Charles Republican.

Schmitz, the assistant Republican leader, plans to introduce the bill in the General Assembly next week.

If approved by state lawmakers, the measure would allow middle-class seniors with annual household incomes of $75,000 to be eligible for the assessment freeze currently available to seniors who earn $55,000 or less annually. Eligible seniors must have lived in their homes for at least five years.

It also would:

• index all property homestead exemptions to the annual rate of inflation.

• Require counties with populations in excess of 75,000 to develop and maintain an assessment database Web site, which Kane already does.

• Allow taxpayers to receive refunds for missed exemptions or assessment errors for up to three years.

• Permit local governments to recoup dollars lost due to fraudulent exemptions.