Illinois Supreme Court Delays Enforcement of Appellate Ruling On Hospital Property Taxes

The Illinois Supreme Court has agreed to delay the implementation of a lower court ruling on hospital property taxes, while it considers whether it will hear an appeal from Carle. That means Carle and Presence Covenant hospitals in Urbana likely won’t have to pay more than $10-million that the state says they owe this year.

The high court Monday granted the Carle Foundation’s request for a delay of the enforcement of the 4th District Appellate Court decision.  Carle is appealing the ruling that had prompted the Champaign County Board of Review to put it and Presence Covenant hospital back on the local tax rolls.

The appellate court ruling in January threw out a 2012 Illinois law that set guidelines for determining the non-profit status of hospitals based on their level of charity care.

The News-Gazette reported that in the emergency motion arguing for the stay, Carle argued that taxing authorities in Champaign County were the only ones in the state that had used the Appellate Court decision as a basis for removing property tax exemptions for non-profit hospitals.

Urbana Mayor Laurel Prussing expressed disappointment in the high court’s decision, telling the newspaper that her city may not see tax relief until next year.

In a statement, Carle spokesperson Jennifer Hendricks Kaufmann says they’re pleased that the Illinois Supreme Court granted their request to stay the Appellate Court’s ruling. Meanwhile, she says the health care network remains focused on quote “providing care to all who need it regardless of their ability to pay”.