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| Sen. McConchie attends bill signing in Chicago. |
On November 16, Gov. Bruce Rauner signed into law a tax credit worth up to $750 for property owners in 18 Illinois counties where flood damages were sustained in July.
The bill, signed at the James R. Thompson Center in Chicago, creates a natural disaster credit that eligible, affected property owners may apply to their 2017 Illinois income taxes.
Included counties are Cook, Lake, Kane, McHenry, Alexander, Clinton, Jackson, Marshall, Union, Woodford, Carroll, Henry, Jo Daviess, Lee, Ogle, Rock Island, Stephenson and Whiteside — all of which were declared state disaster areas by the governor last summer.
“This summer’s flooding was devastating to many northern Illinois residents,” said state Sen. Dan McConchie, R-Hawthorn Woods. “This tax credit is one more tool in the toolbox to help the affected recover and get back on their feet.”
Qualified properties include a taxpayer’s principle residence or land owned by a small business, but not a rental or leasing business. The allowable income tax credit will be the lesser of $750 or the deduction allowed under the Internal Revenue Code for each taxpayer who owns qualified property in a county declared a state disaster area.
The bill provides that township assessors shall issue eligibility certificates for appropriately requesting property owners, and that assessors shall certify to the Illinois Department of Revenue listings of flood-damaged properties.