The City filed this action on July 5, 1994. The complaint seeks an order declaring that the Board is required to collect and remit the parking, amusement, and telecommunications taxes. The motion asserted that the circuit court is without subject matter jurisdiction because the Board is entitled to sovereign immunity. The motion further asserted that the City does not have home rule authority to impose a tax on the university because the university is an instrumentality of the state. The City first claims the circuit court erred in finding that the Board is entitled to sovereign immunity.
Sovereign immunity exists in Illinois pursuant only to statute.
Ill. Const. 1970, art. The Court of Claims Act provides that the Court of Claims shall have exclusive jurisdiction over various actions against the state, including actions founded upon state laws or regulations, actions founded upon contracts entered into with the state, and actions sounding in tort. Illinois case law creates a three-part test for determining whether a defendant is entitled to sovereign immunity. The first step in deciding whether a defendant is entitled to sovereign immunity is to determine whether the defendant is an arm of the state. 102 Ill. 2d at 390-91.