Levies and Truth and Taxation 
File Dates Dead Line 

TAXING DISTRICTS                          DEADLINE                      STATUTORY REFERENCE 
 
All Units                                      Last Tuesday in December                    35 ILCS 200/18-15

Filing of Budgets, Appropriations & Anticipated Revenues  

  Failure may result in property taxes not extended.   

__ 1. Budget and Appropriation Ordinance  

__ 2. Certification of Budget & Appropriation Ordinance (Original signatures and seal)  

__ 3. Certification of Estimated Revenues by Source (original signatures and seal)  

__ 4. Tax Levy  

__ 5. Certification of Tax Levy (original signatures and seal)  

__ 6. Certification of Truth in Taxation Compliance  

__ 7. Annual Financial Report of Taxing District (immediate past year) 

FILING OF BUDGET AND APPROPRIATION ORDINANCES (35 ILCS 200/18-50)  

The governing authority of each taxing district shall file with the County Clerk within 30 days of their adoption a certified copy of its appropriation and budget ordinances or resolutions, as well as an estimate, certified by its chief fiscal officer, of revenues, by source, anticipated to be received by the taxing district in the following fiscal year.  If the governing authority fails to file the required documents, the County Clerk shall have the authority, after giving timely notice of the failure of the taxing district, to refuse to extend the tax levy until the documents are so filed.  In determining the amount of maximum tax authorized to be levied by any statute of this State, the assessed valuation of the current year of property as assessed and reviewed by the local assessment officials or the Department, and as equalized or confirmed by the Department, shall be used.  

FILING OF LEVIES OF TAXING DISTRICTS (35 ILCS 200/18-15)  

Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, all taxing districts shall annually certify to the County Clerk, on or before the last Tuesday in December, the several amounts that they have levied.

 ERROR OR INFORMALITY IN MAKING LEVY OR IN CERTIFYING OR FILING (35 ILCS 200/23-40)

 In all judicial proceedings concerning the levying and collection of taxes, an error or informality of any officer or officers in making any tax levy or in certifying or filing the levy not affecting the substantial justice of the levy itself, shall not vitiate or void the levy or affect the tax.  When the error or informality in a levy, its certification, filing or publication can be corrected by amendment, or a levy can be sufficiently itemized, the purpose defined and made certain by amendment, made prior to the entry of any order of court affecting the levy or the collection of taxes thereon, an amendment or amendments, certification, filing or publication may be made by the taxing bodies affected.  The aggregate amount or rate of the original levy shall not be increased by an action taken under this Section.

 According to court cases, the failure to certify the tax levy within the time limit set by statute does not invalidate the levy, however, if the levy is adopted by the district after the time limit set by statute, it is void.  Consult your State’s Attorney.

 If the levy was filed in a timely manner, but was not certified, this error may be corrected by the unit of government even after the time limit set for certifying the levy.

 Besides filing the tax levy, each unit of government must file certified bond resolution(s) and/or ordinance(s).  All approved rate increases (backdoor, annual town meeting, etc.) must also be filed.  Verify all general election law results with your Election Department.

 LEVY FOR BONDS (30 ILCS 350/16)

A governmental unit may levy a tax for the payment of principal of and interest on general obligation bonds at any time prior to March 1 of the calendar year during which the taxes will be collected.   The County Clerk shall accept the filing of the ordinance levying such tax notwithstanding that such time is subsequent to the end of the calendar year next preceding the calendar year during which such tax will be collected.  In extending taxes for general obligation bonds, the County Clerk shall add to the levy for debt service on such bonds an amount sufficient, in view of all losses and delinquencies in tax collection, to produce tax receipts adequate for the prompt payment of such debt service.  (Your County’s Loss in Collection Factor(s) may be determined by the Treasurer, Auditor, etc. and should be documented.)

 The County Clerk must extend the annual bond levy for all taxing districts with outstanding bonds based on the levy schedule specified in the Resolutions of file in his or her office, considering any loss in tax collection.  Bonds filed prior to 1979 are required to be abated under the Personal Property Replacement Tax provisions. 

AMENDED TAX CERTIFICATE (105 ILCS 5/17-11.1)

 When a school board has authority to levy taxes at an operating tax rate which would qualify the school district for the maximum amount of State aid under Section 18-8 and, after the certificate of tax levy has been filed, a change in the assessed valuation resulting from the application of the equalization multiplier by the Department of Revenue causes the school district’s operating tax rate to be less than that required to qualify for the maximum amount of State aid, the school board may, within 20 days of such change, amend the certificate of tax levy to provide for the amount required to qualify for the maximum amount of State aid.

 The County Clerk is required to accept levies as filed by the Taxing District.  The District is responsible for the accurate and timely filing of documents.  Specific questions from taxing districts should be directed to their attorneys or to the Department of Commerce and Community Affairs-Local Government Management Services.  The Department of Commerce and Community Affairs (DCCA) offers a Budget and Levy Packet for Townships, Road Districts and Multi-Township Assessing Districts.  Copies are available in both hard copy and on computer diskette.  The packets are provided without charge to the Townships or County Clerk.  The Clerk should acknowledge acceptance of filed documents with a receipt.  A duplicate should be retained by the Clerk.  If a County Clerk does not receive the necessary filings from Taxing Districts it is advisable to inform those Districts that proper certifications have not been received by the office, and encourage them to file as soon as possible.

 The Committee strongly recommends that all Clerks verify the levy amounts, maximum rates and Truth in Taxation Compliance with each district prior to extending taxes.  Signed confirmations should be secured before the Clerk proceeds with the extension of taxes.

 NOTE:  Drainage Districts are not ad valorem taxing districts – they are governed by a different code.  They must certify their levies to the Circuit Court by December 1.  If no objections are filed by the 10^th day of December, or if the court fails to hear and determine the filed objections by the 20^th day of December, then the certificate of levy shall stand and shall be delivered to the County Clerk.  If a Drainage District was incorporated as a “Special District”, the date for filing under Special Districts shall apply.  See Section 11.  

BUDGET  

The governing body of each municipality of this State, coming within the provisions of this Act, shall, within or before the first quarter of each fiscal year, adopt a combined annual budget and appropriation ordinance, by which ordinance the governing body may appropriate such sum or sums of money as may be deemed necessary to defray all necessary expenses and liabilities of such municipality, and in such annual budget and appropriation ordinance shall specify the objects and purposes for which such appropriations are made, and the amount appropriated for each object or purpose.  The municipality may pass a continuing annual budget ordinance.  The municipality may expend funds during the first quarter of the fiscal year before the municipality has adopted the combined annual budget and appropriation ordinances.