Court Opinion

ID: 9860678
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-24 23:29:12.456338+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T11:26:22.128624
License: Public Domain

JUSTICE McLAREN, specially concurring. I agree with all that is stated in the majority opinion. I believe that there are additional bases to affirm the trial court that are not declared in the majority opinion. The majority states: “If not, then the court must determine whether applying the statute to past events would have a retroactive impact, i.e., whether it would impair rights a party possessed when he acted, increase a party’s liability for past conduct, or impose new duties with respect to transactions already completed. Commonwealth Edison, 196 Ill. 2d at 38. If there would be no retrospective impact, then the amended law may be applied to past events.” 343 Ill. App. 3d at 386. I believe the amendatory language would have a retroactive impact because it would increase the liability of taxpayers to pay the tax in question past the five-year limitation that was in effect at the time of the referendum. I also believe that the amendatory language would impose new duties on taxpayers because the effect of the amendment would place a new duty upon at least 25 taxpayers to institute a referendum to terminate the tax in question, which they were not required to do prior to the passage of the amendatory legislation. Therefore, assuming arguendo that the statute was intended by the legislature to be retrospective, I believe the amendatory language should not be given retrospective effect under the circumstances of this case for the additional bases set forth above.