Definitions.
Springfield, Ill., City Code § 100.00.2
in effect§ 100.00.2. - Definitions.
For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning:
Cannabis. Marijuana, hashish, and other substances that are identified as including any parts of the plant Cannabis sativa and including derivatives or subspecies, such as indicia, of all strains of cannabis, whether growing or not; the seeds thereof, the resin extracted from any part of the plant; and any compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or preparation of the plant, its seeds, or resin, including tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and all other naturally produced cannabinol derivatives, whether produced directly or indirectly by extraction; however, "cannabis" does not include the mature stalks of the plant, fiber produced from the stalks, oil or cake made from the seeds of the plant, any other compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or preparation of the mature stalks (except the resin extracted from it), fiber, oil or cake, or the sterilized seed of the plant that is incapable of germination. "Cannabis" does not include industrial hemp as defined and authorized under the State of Illinois Industrial Hemp Act. "Cannabis" also means concentrate and cannabis-infused products.
Corporation, society, association, foundation, or institution organized and operated exclusively for educational purposes. All tax-supported public schools; private schools which offer systematic instruction in useful branches of learning by methods common to public schools and which compare favorably in their scope and intensity with the course of study presented in tax-supported schools; except where a municipal service occupation tax is levied; licensed day care centers as defined in Section 209 of the Child Care Act of 1969 which are operated by a not-for-profit corporation, society, association, foundation, institution or organization; vocational or technical schools or institutes organized and operated exclusively to provide a course of study of not less than six weeks duration and designed to prepare individuals to follow a trade or to pursue a manual, technical, mechanical, industrial, business, or commercial occupation. However, a corporation, society, association, foundation, or institution organized and operated for the purpose of offering professional, trade, or business seminars of short duration, self-improvement or personality development courses, courses which are vocational or recreational in nature, courses pursued entirely by open circuit television or radio, correspondence courses, or courses which do not provide specialized training within a specific vocational or technical field shall not be considered to be organized and operated exclusively for educational purposes.
Director. The director of the office of budget and management.
Gross receipts. Sales of tangible personal property at retail with respect to any period of time means the aggregate selling price, as hereinbefore defined, received by a seller during that period of time. In the case of charge and time sales, receipts include compensation only as and when payments are received by the seller. Receipts or other consideration derived by a seller from the sale, transfer or assignment of accounts receivable to a wholly owned subsidiary will not be deemed payments prior to the time the purchaser makes payment on such accounts.
Hotel. Any building or buildings in which the public may, for a consideration, obtain living quarters, sleeping or housekeeping, accommodations. The term includes inns, motels, tourist homes or courts, lodging houses, rooming houses, room and/or house rentals and apartment houses.
Motor vehicle. A motor vehicle of the First Division, as defined in 625 ILCS 5/1-157, including a multipurpose passenger vehicle that is designed for carrying not more than ten persons.
Office. The office of budget and management of the city.
Online travel company (OTC). An organization that books reserves, or rents hotel accommodations and makes other travel arrangements for consumers via the internet or other digital means.
Operator. Any person who rents or leases hotel accommodations to the public for consideration or who, directly or through an agreement or arrangement with another party, collects the price, charge or rent paid for the rental or lease of hotel accommodations. This term includes, but is not limited to, persons engaged in the business of selling or reselling to the public the right to occupy hotel accommodations, whether on-line, in person or otherwise. This term also includes persons engaged in the business of facilitating the rental or lease of hotel accommodations for consideration, whether on-line, in person or otherwise. This term also includes persons who, for compensation or a fee, use a platform to connect guests with a party providing hotel accommodations, The term does not include banks, credit card companies, payment processors or other persons whose involvement is limited to performing functions similar to those performed by such entities.
Occupancy. The use or possession, or the right to the use or possession, of any room or rooms in a hotel for any purpose, or the right to the use or possession of the furnishings or to the services and accommodations accompanying the use and possession of the room or rooms.
Permanent resident. Any person who occupied or has the right to occupy any room or rooms in a hotel for at least 30 consecutive days.
Person. Any natural individual, firm, society, foundation, institution, partnership, association, joint stock company, joint adventure, public or private corporation, or a receiver, executor, trustee, guardian, or other representative appointed by order of any court.
Platform. An internet-enabled application, mobile application, or any other digital platform.
Purchase at retail. The acquisition of the ownership of or title to tangible personal property through a sale at retail.
Purchaser. Any person who, through a sale at retail, acquires the ownership of or title to tangible personal property for a valuable consideration.
Rent or rental. The consideration received for occupancy, valued in money, whether received in money or otherwise, including all receipts, cash, credits and property or services of any kind or nature. This shall also include (a) the net rate paid to the hotel by the OTC for occupancy by the consumer and (b) the amount retained by the OTC for travel-related services it provided to the traveler, and any additional amounts retained by the OTC as compensation for its travel services to the consumer for the individual transaction, or in the instance of a direct rental of a room or rooms by the consumer with the hotel, the rental rate shall mean the amount charged by the hotel directly to the consumer for the occupancy.
Retailer. Every person engaged in the business of making sales at retail as defined in this section. This definition shall include the following:
(1) In situations involving Springfield use tax, a person whose activities are organized and conducted primarily as a not-for-profit service enterprise, and who engages in selling tangible personal property at retail (whether to the public or merely to members and their guests) is a retailer with respect to such transactions;
(2) In a situation involving Springfield use tax, a person who holds himself or herself out as having engaged (or who habitually engages) in selling tangible personal property at retail is a retailer with respect to such sales (and not primarily in a service occupation) notwithstanding the fact that such person designs and produces such tangible personal property on special order for the purchaser and in such a way as to render the property of value only to such purchaser, if such tangible personal property so produced on special order serves substantially the same function as stock or standard items of tangible personal property that are sold at retail.
(3) In situations involving Springfield use tax, a person who is engaged in the business of leasing or renting a motor vehicle to others and who in connection with that business sells any used motor vehicle to a purchaser for his use and not for the purpose of resale, is a retailer engaged in the business of selling tangible personal property at retail under this article to the extent of the value of the vehicle sold. For the purpose of this chapter, "motor vehicle" has the meaning prescribed in 625 ILCS 5/1-157, as now or hereafter amended. (Nothing provided herein shall affect liability incurred under section 100.82 of this chapter because of the sale at retail of the motor vehicle to a lessor.)
(4) In situations involving Springfield use tax, a person whose activities are organized and conducted primarily as a not-for-profit service enterprise, and who engages in selling tangible personal property at retail (whether to the public or merely to members and their guests) is a retailer with respect to those transactions, excepting only a person organized, and operated exclusively for charitable, religious, or educational purposes either to the extent of sales by that person to its members, students, patients, or inmates of tangible personal property to be used primarily for the purposes of that person, or to the extent of sales by that person of tangible personal property which is not sold or offered for sale by persons organized for profit.
(5) In situations involving Springfield use tax, any person who is engaged in a business which is not subject to the tax imposed by State Department of Revenue Retailers Occupation Tax Act, is a retailer.
(6) In situations involving Springfield use tax, the definition of "retailer" shall not include the following:
a. The isolated or occasional sale of tangible personal property at retail by a person who does not hold himself out as being engaged (or who does not habitually engage) in selling a tangible personal property at retail;
b. A person organized and operated exclusively for charitable, religious or educational purposes either (1), to the extent of sales by such person to its members, students, patients or inmates of tangible personal property to be used primarily for the purposes of such person, or (2), to the extent of sales by such person of tangible personal property which is not sold or offered for sale by persons organized for profit.
Retailer maintaining a place of business in the city. Any retailer having or maintaining within the city, directly or by a subsidiary, an office, distribution house, sales house, warehouse, or other place of business or any agent or other representative operating within the city under the authority of the retailer or its subsidiary, irrespective of whether such place of business or agent or other representative is located here permanently or temporarily, or whether such retailer or subsidiary is licensed to do business in this city. The definition shall also include those retailers engaging in soliciting orders within this city from users by means of catalogs or other advertising, whether such orders are received or accepted within or without this city; or those engaging in activities in the city which activities in the retailer's city of domicile would constitute maintaining a place of business in that city.
Room or rooms. Any living quarters, sleeping or housekeeping accommodations.
Sale at retail. Any transfer of the ownership of or title to tangible personal property to a purchaser, for the purpose or use or consumption, and not for the purpose of resale in any form as tangible personal property to the extent not first subjected to a use for which it was purchased, for a valuable consideration: Provided that the property purchased is deemed to be purchased for the purpose of resale despite first being used, to the extent to which it is resold as an ingredient of an intentionally produced product or by-product of manufacturing. Transactions whereby the possession of the property is transferred but the seller retains the title as security for payment of the selling price shall be deemed to be sales. "Sale at retail" shall be construed to include any transfer of the ownership of or title to tangible personal property without a valuable consideration, and to include any transfer, whether made for or without a valuable consideration, for resale in any form as tangible personal property.
Selling price (or amount of sale). The consideration for a sale valued in money whether received in money or otherwise, including cash, credits, property, other than as hereinafter provided, and services, but not including the value of or credit given for traded-in titled tangible personal property where the item that is traded in is of like kind and character as that which is being sold.
Selling price. The phrase "like kind and character" shall be liberally construed (including but not limited to any form of motor vehicle for any form of motor vehicle, or any kind of farm or agricultural implement for any other kind of farm or agricultural implement), while not including a kind of item which, if sold at retail by that retailer, would be exempt from retailers' occupation tax and use tax as an isolated or occasional sale.
(1) Where Springfield use tax is at issue this definition shall not include charges that are added to prices by sellers on account of the seller's tax liability under this chapter, or on account of the seller's duty to collect, from the purchaser, use tax imposed under sections 100.42 through 100.48 of this chapter, or on account of the seller's tax liability under Section 8-1-1 of the Illinois Municipal Code, as heretofore and hereafter amended, or on account of the seller's tax liability under the County Retailers' Occupation Tax Act or on account of the seller's tax liability under any tax imposed under the Regional Transportation Authority Act, approved December 12, 1973.
(2) Where Springfield use tax is at issue this definition shall not include interest or finance charges which appear as separate items on the bill of sale or sales contract nor charges that are added to prices by sellers on account of the seller's tax liability under State's Retailer's Occupation Tax Act, or on account of the seller's duty to collect, from the purchaser, the Springfield use tax, or on account of the seller's tax liability under 65 ILCS 5/8-11-1, as heretofore and hereafter amended, or on account of the seller's tax liability under the County Retailers' Occupation Tax Act.
Tax collector. A retailer of titled tangible personal property or a business that rents, leases, or lets rooms, maintaining a place of business in the city, or a retailer of titled tangible personal property authorized by the office of budget and management of the city to collect the taxes imposed by this chapter. Where the Springfield use tax is at issue, that tax is not paid to a retailer in his capacity as tax collector shall be paid to the office directly by any person using such property within this city.
Transfer. Any transfer of the title to property or of the ownership of property whether or not the transfer of retainers title as security for the payment of amounts due him from the transferee.
Use. The exercise by any person of any right to or power over tangible personal property incident to the ownership of that property. Where liability for city use tax is at issue, "use" shall mean title and registration of a motor vehicle, aircraft, or other eligible item of tangible property for which title and registration is required by any State of Illinois agency as well as either delivery to, entrance into, or use, either generally or for doing business, within the boundaries of the City of Springfield. However, "use" does not include the sale of property in any form as tangible personal property in the regular course of business to the extent that the property is not first subjected to a use for which it was purchased, and does not include the use of the property by its owner for sales demonstration purposes; provided that the property purchased is deemed to be purchased for the purpose of resale, despite first being used, to the extent to which it is resold as an ingredient of an intentionally produced product or by-product of manufacturing. "Use" does not mean the interim use of tangible personal property by a retailer before he sells that tangible personal property and does not mean the physical incorporation of tangible personal property, to the extent not first subjected to a use for which it was purchased, as an ingredient or constituent into other tangible personal property which is sold in the regular course of business or which the person incorporating the ingredient or constituent therein has undertaken at the time of purchase to cause to be transported in interstate commerce to destinations outside the state or to destinations outside the city and within the state: provided that the property purchased is deemed to be purchased for the purpose of resale, despite first being used, to the extent to which it is resold as an ingredient of an intentionally produced product or by product of manufacturing.
(Ord. No. 366-7-98, § 1(Exh. A), 7-21-98; Ord. No. 034-02-18, § 1(Exh. A), 2-6-18; Ord. No. 228-05-19, § 1(Exh. A), 5-21-19; Ord. No. 400-09-19, § 1(Exh. A), 9-17-19)
Source: City of Springfield, Illinois, Code of Ordinances (Municode Library, library.municode.com)URL: https://library.municode.com/il/springfield/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=TITIXGERE_CH100TA_ARTIGEPR_S100.00.2DEFetched: 11/8/2026