Crespo Measure to Help Seniors Seeking Property Tax Relief Signed Into Law

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Cook County seniors receiving cost-saving property tax exemptions will no longer have to go through the burdensome of reapplying every year as a result of a new law passed by state Rep. Fred Crespo, D-Hoffman Estates.  

“While we work to deliver comprehensive solutions to middle-class families and seniors through our bipartisan Property Tax Relief Task Force, we must ensure that cost-saving exemptions are accessible to all qualifying families,” Crespo said. “This new law will benefit seniors, especially those living on fixed income, by doing away with unnecessary bureaucracy and continue providing stable relief.”

Crespo worked with County Cook Assessor Fritz Kaegi to pass House Bill 833, which creates a five-year pilot program from 2020 to 2024 for qualifying seniors to continue receiving their Senior Citizen Homestead Exemption without having to reapply each year. Cook County was the only county in Illinois where older homeowners were forced by state law to go annually through the burdensome application process in order to receive this tax relief exemption.

Crespo’s law will ensure qualifying seniors do not miss out on much-needed exemptions. It was recently learned from the Cook County Treasurer’s office that as many as 26,000 Cook County seniors didn’t reapply for annual property tax exemptions and discounts, totaling an estimated $45 million in relief.

“With the Governor’s signature, I am pleased to see our state government speaking with one united voice on this issue,” Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi said. “Through intergovernmental cooperation and technological modernization within our office, seniors in Cook County will no longer be burdened with the need to reaffirm their age each year.”

“I’m grateful to Representative Crespo for his continued advocacy on this issue,” Kaegi added. “With necessary safeguards in place to prevent fraud, our office plans a swift implementation of this bill for the estimated 740,000 seniors who are eligible for it.”