Illinois Supreme Court voids adverse hospital tax exemption decision

The Illinois Supreme Court today vacated an appellate court decision that declared the state’s property tax exemption standard for hospitals unconstitutional, concluding that the appellate court did not have jurisdiction to take the appeal. In a friend-of-the-court brief, AHA had urged the court to reverse the appellate decision, which it said “would throw into grave doubt the past and future tax-exempt status of every not-for-profit hospital in Illinois.” The court declined to decide whether the legislation creating the hospital standard was constitutional, reserving that question for a future case.