[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. IV)]
As used in this article, unless the context otherwise requires:
CLERK
The Village Clerk of the Village of Dwight.
HOSTING PLATFORM or PLATFORM
A person who provides an online application, software, website, or system through which a short-term rental located in this state is advertised or held out to the public as available to rent for occupancy. For purposes of this definition, "short-term rental" means an owner-occupied, tenant-occupied, or non-owner-occupied dwelling, including, but not limited to, an apartment, house, cottage, or condominium, located in this state, where i) at least one room in the dwelling is rented to an occupant for a period of less than 30 consecutive days; and ii) all accommodations are reserved in advance; provided, however, that a dwelling shall be considered a single room if rented as such.
HOTEL
Any building or buildings in which the public may, for a consideration, obtain living quarters, sleeping or housekeeping accommodations. The term includes inns, motels, tourist homes or courts, lodging houses, rooming houses, bed-and-breakfast, and apartment houses. For the purposes of re-renters of hotel rooms only, "hotel" does not include a short-term rental.
OCCUPANCY
The use or possession, or the right to use or possession, of any room or rooms in a hotel for any purpose; or the right to the use or possession of the furnishings or to the services and accommodations accompanying the use and possession of the room or rooms.
OPERATOR
Any person operating a hotel.
PERMANENT RESIDENT
Any person who occupied or has the right to occupy any room or rooms in a hotel for at least 30 consecutive days.
PERSON
Any natural individual, firm, partnership, association, joint-stock company, joint venture, public or private corporation, or a receiver, executor, trustee, guardian or other representative appointed by the court.
RENT or RENTAL
The consideration received for occupancy, valued in money, whether received in money or otherwise, including all receipts, cash, credits and property or services of any kind or nature. "Rent" or "rental" includes any fee, charge, or commission received from a guest by a re-renter of hotel rooms specifically in connection with the re-rental of hotel rooms, but does not include any fee, charge, or commission received from a short-term rental by a hosting platform.
ROOM or ROOMS
Any living quarters, sleeping or housekeeping accommodations.
[Amended 11-3-2008]
A. 
A tax is imposed on persons engaged in the business of renting, leasing or letting rooms in a hotel at the rate of 5% of the gross rental receipts for such renting, leasing, or letting; excluding, however, from gross rental receipts the proceeds of such renting, leasing or letting to permanent residents of that hotel and excluding therefrom any amount collected pursuant to the Hotel Operators' Occupational Tax Act (35 ILCS 145).
B. 
Persons subject to the tax imposed by this article may reimburse themselves for their tax liability under this article by separately stating such tax as an additional charge, which charge may be stated in combination, in a single amount, with any tax imposed pursuant to the Hotel Operators' Occupation Tax Act.
C. 
If any hotel operator collects an amount (however designated) which purports to reimburse such operator for hotel operators' occupational tax or if any hotel operator, in collecting an amount (however designated) which purports to reimburse such operator for hotel operators' occupational tax liability, measured by receipts which are subject to tax under this Act, collects more from the customers than the operators' hotel operators' occupational tax liability in the transaction is, the customer shall have a legal right to claim a refund of such amount from the operator. However, if such amount is not refunded to the customer for any reason, the hotel operator is liable to pay such amount to the Clerk.
Every operator shall keep separate books or records of his/her business as an operator so as to show the rents and occupancies taxable under this article separately from his/her transaction not taxable hereunder. If any such operator fails to keep such separate books or records, they will be liable to tax at the rate designated in § 255-31 of this article upon the entire proceeds from the operation of the hotel. Upon reasonable notice to the operator, all applicable books and records shall be made available to the Clerk or other authorized representative for evaluation with respect to this article.
It shall be unlawful for any person to engage in the business of renting, leasing, or letting rooms in a hotel in the Village of Dwight without a certificate of registration from the Village Clerk or the State of Illinois. Those persons who are registered with a and possess a certificate of registration from the State of Illinois do not have to register with the Village Clerk.
A. 
Except as provided hereinafter in this section, on or before the last day of each calendar month, every person engaged in the business of renting, leasing or letting rooms in a hotel in the Village of Dwight during the preceding calendar month shall file a return with the Village Clerk, stating:
(1) 
The name of the operator;
(2) 
The address of the operator's principal place of business and the address of the principal place of business (if that is a different address) from which he engages in the business of renting, leasing or letting rooms in a hotel in the Village of Dwight;
(3) 
Total amount of rental receipts received during the preceding calendar month from renting, leasing or letting rooms during such preceding calendar month and consideration other than money shall be described in detail;
(4) 
Total amount of rental receipts received during the preceding calendar month from renting, leasing or letting rooms to permanent residents during such preceding calendar month and the component parts of this amount shall be described in detail;
(5) 
Total amount of other exclusions from gross rental receipts allowed by this article and the component parts of this amount shall be described in detail;
(6) 
Gross rental receipts which were received during the preceding calendar month and upon the basis of which the tax is imposed;
(7) 
The amount of tax due;
(8) 
The amount of penalty due, if any;
(9) 
Such other reasonable information as the Village Clerk may require.
B. 
If the operator's average monthly tax liability to the Village Clerk does not exceed $50, the Village Clerk may authorize such returns to be filed on a quarterly basis, with the return for January, February, and March of a given year being due by April 30 of such year; with the return for April, May, and June of a given year being due by July 31 of such year; with the return for July, August, and September of a given year being due by October 31 of such year; and with the return for October, November, and December of a given year being due by January 31 of the following year.
C. 
If the operator's average monthly tax liability to the Village Clerk does not exceed $10, the Village Clerk may authorize such returns to be filed on an annual basis with the return for a given year being due by January 31 of the following year.
D. 
Such quarterly and annual returns, as to the form and substance, shall be subject to the same requirements as monthly returns.
E. 
Notwithstanding any other provision in this article concerning the time within which an operator may file a return, in the case of any operator who ceases to engage in a kind of business which makes operator responsible for filing returns under this article, such operator shall file a final return under this article with the Village Clerk not more than one month after discontinuing such business.
F. 
Where the same person has more than one business registered with the Village Clerk under separate registrations under this article, such operator shall not file such return that is due as a single return covering all such registered businesses, but shall file separate returns for each such registered business.
G. 
When filing returns, the operator shall determine the value of any consideration other than money received in connection with the business and shall include such value in the return and shall describe said value in detail. Such determination shall be subject to review and revisions by the Village Clerk in the manner hereinafter provided for the proper correction and submission of returns.
H. 
Each return filed by an operator shall be signed by the President, Vice President, Secretary, or Treasurer of a corporation; by an active partner of a partnership; by an individual operator or by the properly accredited agent of any operator.
I. 
The person filing the return herein provided shall, at the time of filing such return, pay the Village Clerk the amount of tax herein imposed. If a return is not filed when and as required or if the payment is not made as required, the taxpayer shall be liable for a penalty equal to 5% of the tax due during the applicable period for each month or fraction of a month until such return is filed and payment is made as required. The Finance Committee shall be authorized to compromise or waive part or all of the penalty requirements of this section if it finds that the situation for which the individual(s) charged was due entirely or in part of the fault of the Village or any agent thereof, or the individual(s) to be charged under said section was without fault in bringing about the situation for which the individual is to be charged, and the imposition of the financial requirements would work a hardship upon the said individual(s).
J. 
The Village Clerk may, upon separate written notice to a taxpayer, require the taxpayer to prepare and file with the Village Clerk on a form prescribed by the Village Clerk within not less than 30 days of receipt of the notice an annual informational return for the tax year specified in the notice. Such annual returns to the Village Clerk shall include a statement of gross receipts as shown by the operator's last state income tax return and other reasonable information that the Village Clerk may require. If the total receipts of the business as reported in the state income tax return do not agree with the gross receipts reported to the Village Clerk for the same period, the operator shall attach to the annual information return a schedule showing a reconciliation of the two amounts and the reasons for the difference.
K. 
If the annual information return required by this section is not filed when and as required, the taxpayer shall be liable for a penalty equal to 1% of the tax which became due from such taxpayer under this article during the period to be covered by the annual return for each month or fraction of a month until such return is filed as required. The authority of the Finance Committee to waive part or all of the previously stated penalty is also applicable to this penalty.
L. 
The chief executive officer, proprietor, owner or highest-ranking manager shall sign the annual return to certify the accuracy of the information contained herein. Any person who willfully signs the annual return containing false or inaccurate information shall be guilty of perjury and punished accordingly. The annual return form prescribed by the Village Clerk shall include a warning that the person signing the return may be liable for perjury.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. IV)]
A. 
Any person engaged in the business of renting, leasing or letting hotel rooms in the Village of Dwight who fails to make a return, or to keep the books or violates any rule or regulation of the Village Clerk for the administration and enforcement of the provisions of this article, or any officer or agent of a corporation engaged in the business of renting, leasing or letting hotel rooms in this state who signs a fraudulent return made on behalf of such corporation shall, upon conviction therefor, be subject to the penalty prescribed in § 1-12 of this Code.
B. 
Any hotel operator who collects or attempts to collect an amount (however designated) which purports to reimburse such operator for operators' occupation tax liability measured by receipts which such operator knows are not subject to hotel operators' occupation tax, or any hotel operator who overcollects or attempts to overcollect an amount purporting to reimburse such operator for hotel operators' occupation tax liability in a transaction which is subject to the tax that is imposed by this article shall, upon conviction therefor, be subject to the penalty prescribed in § 1-12 of this Code.
C. 
Any person who violates any provision of § 255-33 of this article shall, upon conviction therefore be subject to the penalty prescribed in § 1-12 of this Code.
Persons engaged in the business of renting, leasing or letting rooms in a hotel only to permanent residents are exempt from the provisions of this article.
In the event any hotel operators' occupation tax, including penalties, is not paid within 60 days after payment thereof is due, such charges shall be deemed and are hereby declared, and thereafter such delinquent taxes and all subsequent taxes, including penalties, incurred while the delinquent charges remain unpaid and all costs filing any lien notice(s) and of releasing any lien(s) shall constitute a lien upon the real estate to which such taxes relate. The Finance Committee or its authorized representative is hereby authorized to file sworn statements showing such delinquencies and subsequent taxes, including penalties, in the office of the Records and Deeds of Livingston County. These statements shall contain the legal description of the involved premises and the amount of the unpaid taxes for the total amount. The filing of such statements shall be deemed lien notices for the payment of such taxes and penalties.
A. 
Any and all lien(s) for the hotel operators' occupation tax(es) established by law against the premises to which they relate may be enforced and foreclosed by and on behalf of the Village at any time in the Circuit Court of Livingston County, Illinois, according to the rules and practices of said Court. Said lien(s) also may be enforced and foreclosed by intervention at any time in any suit already commenced in said Court or any other court whatever when said intervention is proper under the law. Whenever the Village is made a defendant in any suit in any court, it shall have full power to enforce said lien(s) in said proceedings at any time in any manner permitted by law. The party or parties responsible for said taxes and penalties may also be sued for the amount therefor as debt(s) owed to the Village.
B. 
No method(s) herein provided for collecting said taxes shall be considered as excluding any other remedy of any other method of collecting said taxes but shall be concurrent with all other remedies and methods.