Fisk Kart Katz & Regan LtD

Significant Illinois Property Tax Case Summaries

Cook County Board of Review v. Illinois Property Tax Appeal Board & Robert Bosch Corporation
791 N.E.2d 8, 274 Ill.Dec. 212 (1st Dist. 2002)
- Must Assessment Levels Be Uniform Among Property Classes?

The issue presented in this case is whether the assessment level must be uniform within each class of property when it is lower than the prescribed ordinance level.  The Property Tax Appeal Board (PTAB), in determining the correct assessment, used the median level of assessment for a particular class as determined by the sales ratio studies of the Department of Revenue.  The PTAB concluded that an assessed valuation must be established consonant with the Illinois Department of Revenue’s three-year Median Level of Assessment for Cook County properties.  This case is currently pending in the Illinois Court of Appeals.

Walsh v. Property Tax Appeal Board 181 Ill.2d 228, 692 N.E.2d 260, 229 Ill.Dec. 487 (Ill. 1998)
- Use of Sales Price in Valuation Violates Constitutional Guarantee of Uniform Taxation

In this case, a taxpayer challenged the County’s use of recent sales prices to upwardly revise the assessment of the taxpayer’s property to 33% of true fair cash value.  The Supreme Court held that the County’s selective departure from a mass appraisal method of valuation for a small group of properties violated the state constitutional guarantee of uniformity in taxation.

Oregon Community Unit School District No. 220, et al, v. Property Tax Appeal Board 285 Ill.App.3d 170, 674 N.E.2d 129, 220 Ill.Dec. 858 (2nd Dist. 1996)
- Steam Generators Properly Assessed as Personal Property

In this case, the PTAB determined that steam generators at a nuclear power plant should be assessed as personal property.  The evidence showed that the classification of steam generators as real property was unlawful because it was inconsistent with other classifications in the County.