The Illinois 96^th General Assembly ended yesterday, putting to rest fears on behalf of self-storage operators that the state would soon attach a service tax to their businesses. In lieu of legislation that would have added a service tax to self-storage and more than 40 other industries, the House and Senate passed Senate Bill 2505, which instead increases corporate and income tax.

The Illinois Self Storage Association (ISSA), with support from the national Self Storage Association and lobby firm Cook-Witter, has battled the issue of sales tax over the past two years, rallying the backing of members and other local facility operators. Previous threats came in the form of House Bill 174, which would have instituted a 6 percent sales tax on self-storage, and the recent amendment proposed for House Bill 1665.

ISSA plans to introduce a new bill in the 97th General Assembly to amend the Self-Service Storage Act. The clean-up language will include lien notification, late fees, validation limits and vehicle removal. The bill is currently at the Legislative Reference Bureau. Once the bill is drafted, the ISSA lobby team will seek bipartisan sponsorship. With a Democrat already lined up, the team hopes to win the support of Republican Senator William Bill Brady Jr.

The ISSA will send regular updates regarding the bills movement and calls for grassroots support.