Illinois Lawmakers Consider Broad Sales Tax on Self-Storage Rentals, Other Services

Illinois state senators have proposed a new tax bill that would apply a 6.25 percent sales tax to several services including self-storage. Known as the Budget Economic Stabilization Fund Act, Senate Bill 9 (SB 9) also includes increases to income tax and corporate income tax. Besides self-storage and other storage-related services, the sales-tax portion would affect dry cleaning, Internet streaming, landscaping, laundry and other sectors, according to the source.

The measure includes a broad definition of taxable storage spaces, including “secure areas, such as rooms, units, compartments or containers, whether accessible from outside or from within a building, that are designated for the use of a purchaser, where the purchaser can store and retrieve property, including self-storage units, mini-storage units, and areas by any other name.” Other types of storage included in the bill are lockers at amusement parks and recreational facilities, as well as aircraft parking and hangers, boat docks and slips, and parking garages and lots.

SB 9 has been read twice on the senate floor. A third amended version of the bill is in the committee of assignments. If passed by the general assembly and signed into law, the taxes would go into effect Jan. 1, 2018.

The measure is part of a “grand bargain” budget deal being discussed in the legislature. The state and local tax structure in Illinois is already the highest in the nation, according to the source.