Bill > SB1526

This bill amends the Illinois Property Tax Code to establish a specific method for assessing commercial energy storage systems in counties with fewer than 3,000,000 inhabitants. The bill defines a "commercial energy storage system" as a device used primarily for storing energy for wholesale or retail sale, and introduces a detailed valuation method that calculates fair cash value by subtracting a physical depreciation allowance from the system's trended real property cost basis. The bill requires the system owner to commission a precise survey of the land where the energy storage system is located, and mandates that these systems are not subject to standard equalization factors applied by county assessment offices. The legislation provides that the system's real property cost basis will be calculated at $124 per kilowatt-hour of rated energy capacity, with a trending factor based on the Consumer Price Index. Importantly, the bill limits total depreciation (including physical, functional, and economic obsolescence) to no more than 70% of the trended real property cost basis, and specifies that the owner of the energy storage system is responsible for property taxes. The provisions of this bill will apply to assessment years 2025 through 2040, offering a clear, structured approach to valuing and taxing emerging energy storage infrastructure.

https://www.ilga.gov/legislation/BillStatus.asp?DocNum=1526&GAID=18&DocTypeID=SB&SessionID=114&GA=104