(50 ILCS 750/15.3) (from Ch. 134, par. 45.3)

(Section scheduled to be repealed on December 31, 2027)

Sec. 15.3. Local non-wireless, wireless, and advanced service surcharges.

(a) The corporate authorities of any municipality with a population over 500,000 may, subject to the limitations of subsection (a-5), and in addition to any tax levied pursuant to the Simplified Municipal Telecommunications Tax Act, impose a monthly surcharge on billed subscribers for wireline, wireless and VoIP network connections provided by telecommunication carriers engaged in the business of transmitting messages by means of electricity originating within the corporate limits of the municipality imposing the surcharge at a rate per network connection determined in accordance with subsection (b). However, the monthly surcharge shall not apply to a network connection provided for use with pay telephone services, and if multiple voice grade communications channels are connected between the subscriber's premises and a public switched network through private branch exchange (PBX) or Centrex type service, a municipality imposing a surcharge at a rate per network connection, as determined in accordance with this Act, shall impose:

(1) in a municipality with a population of over 500,000, as of March 1, 2010, of over 500,000, 5 surcharges per network connection, as defined under Section 2 of this Act, for regular service provisioned voice paths or trunk lines, and 12 surcharges per network connection, as defined under Section 2 of this Act, for advanced service provisioned voice paths or trunk lines, except where an advanced service voice path or provisioned trunk line supports at least 2 but fewer than 23 simultaneous voice grade calls ("VGC's"), a telecommunication carrier may elect to impose fewer than 12 surcharges per voice path or trunk line as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection; or

(2) for an advanced service provisioned voice path or trunk line connected between the subscriber's premises and the public switched network through a PBX, where the advanced service provisioned voice path or trunk line is capable of transporting at least 2 but fewer than 23 simultaneous VGC's per voice path or trunk line, the telecommunications carrier collecting the surcharge may elect to impose surcharges in accordance with the table provided in this Section, without limiting any telecommunications carrier's obligations to otherwise keep and maintain records. Any telecommunications carrier electing to impose fewer than 12 surcharges per an advanced service provisioned voice path or trunk line shall keep and maintain records adequately to demonstrate the VGC capability of each advanced service provisioned trunk line with fewer than 12 surcharges imposed, provided that 12 surcharges shall be imposed on an advanced service provisioned voice path or trunk line regardless of the VGC capability where a telecommunications carrier cannot demonstrate the VGC capability of the advanced service provisioned voice path or trunk line.

Paragraphs (1) and (2) are not intended to make any change in the meaning of this Section, but are intended to remove possible ambiguity, thereby confirming the intent of subsection (a) as it existed prior to and following the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly.

(a-5) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (a), a municipality with a population over 500,000 may not impose a monthly surcharge in excess of $5.00 per network connection. On or after January 1, 2029, a municipality with a population over 500,000 may not impose a monthly surcharge in excess of $2.50 per network connection.

(a-10) In addition to any other lawful purpose, a municipality with a population over 500,000 may use the moneys collected under this Section for any anti-terrorism or emergency preparedness measures, including, but not limited to, preparedness planning, providing local matching funds for federal or State grants, personnel training, and specialized equipment, including surveillance cameras, as needed to deal with natural and terrorist-inspired emergency situations or events.

For mobile telecommunications services, if a surcharge is imposed it shall be imposed based upon the municipality that encompasses the customer's place of primary use as defined in the Mobile Telecommunications Sourcing Conformity Act.

(b) For purposes of computing the surcharge imposed by subsection (a), the network connections to which the surcharge shall apply shall be those in-service network connections, other than those network connections assigned to the municipality or county, where the service address for each such network connection or connections is located within the corporate limits of the municipality levying the surcharge. For mobile telecommunication services the customer's place of primary use is used for the purposes of computing the surcharge.

(c) (Blank).

(d) (Blank).

(e) (Blank).

(f) The surcharge authorized by this Section shall be collected from the subscriber by the telecommunications carrier providing the subscriber with the network connection as a separately stated item on the subscriber's bill.

(g) The amount of surcharge collected by the telecommunications carrier shall be paid to the particular municipality not later than 30 days after the surcharge is collected, net of any network or other 9-1-1 or sophisticated 9-1-1 system charges then due to the particular telecommunications carrier, as shown on an itemized bill. The telecommunications carrier collecting the surcharge shall also be entitled to deduct 3% of the gross amount of surcharge collected to reimburse the telecommunications carrier for the expense of accounting and collecting the surcharge.

(h) (Blank).

(i) (Blank).

(j) (Blank).

(k) (Blank).

(l) (Blank).

(Source: P.A. 103-366, eff. 1-1-24; 104-204, eff. 8-15-25.)