Costa Howard Passes Bill to Close DuPage Airport Property Tax Loophole Out of Illinois House Committee

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – State Rep. Terra Costa Howard, D-Glen Ellyn, is joining with DuPage County leaders to close a loophole in state law that has allowed tenants at the DuPage Airport Authority to skip out on nearly $770,000 in overdue property tax payments.

“For years, tenants of the DuPage County Airport Authority have just ignored property tax bills that total in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, which means that DuPage County homeowners have been forced to make up the difference,” said Costa Howard. “Those airport authority tenants have a responsibility to help fund our schools, libraries, police departments, fire departments, and village services – just like the rest of us. Instead, homeowners are paying the price for those lost revenues.”

Under Senate Bill 1041, the DuPage State’s Attorney is empowered to seek civil action to recoup the cost of delinquent taxes, interest, penalties and costs owed by a lessee to a county taxing district. The measure, backed by the Illinois Municipal League and DuPage County, recently passed out of the Illinois House Revenue & Finance Committee with unanimous bipartisan support.

“Closing this loophole in state statute is just common sense,” continued Costa Howard. “Homeowners can’t get away with simply refusing to pay their property tax bills. It’s time these businesses faced real consequences for their actions.”