Stipend and Reimbursement Programs

Assessor Training Stipends
The department awards $500 per year to any supervisor of assessments in counties with less than 3 million inhabitants and in which no county assessor has been elected under Section 3-45 (35 ILCS 200/3‑45), township or multi-township assessor, deputy assessor, or board of review member who has been awarded a Certified Illinois Assessing Officers (CIAO) certificate from the Illinois Property Assessment Institute. The award is subject to the requirements for continued training.

The department also awards an additional $500 per year to any supervisor of assessments, township or multi-township assessor, deputy assessor, or board of review member who has earned a Certified Assessment Evaluator certificate from the International Association of Assessing Officers. In addition, the department awards $250 per year to any supervisor of assessments, township or multi-township assessor, deputy assessor, or board of review member who has been awarded a Residential Evaluation Specialist, Assessment Administration Specialist, or Cadastral Mapping Specialist certificate by the International Association of Assessing Officers, but who has not been awarded a Certified Assessment Evaluator certificate. To continue to be eligible for additional compensation, a supervisor of assessments, township or multi-township assessor, deputy assessor, or board of review member must successfully complete a minimum 30 hours of qualified continuing education classes (at least 15 of the 30 hours must be examination credit).

Qualifying individuals need not apply for the stipend: it is issued automatically to qualified members of the assessment community. Qualifications are 1) hold qualified office 2) completed required education, and 3) possess a valid oath of office covering the qualifying period.

Chief County Assessment Officer (CCAO) Salary Reimbursements
Each month the department will reimburse a county 50 percent of the salary the county paid to its CCAO for the preceding month if the department determines that the total assessed value of property in the county is between 31 1/3 percent and 35 1/3 percent of the total fair cash value of property in the county.

County Treasurer Stipends
The department pays each county treasurer a stipend per year.

Assessor Performance Stipends
Qualifying elected or appointed township or multi-township assessors or chief county assessment officers may petition the Illinois Department of Revenue to receive a $3,000 monetary bonus based on performance. (See 35 ILCS 200/4-20.)

Note: Individuals on contract to assess property for an assessment jurisdiction are not eligible to apply for this monetary bonus award because they do not hold the office as required by statute.

To qualify for the monetary bonus award, assessors must meet the requirements identified below.

For counties with more than 50,000 inhabitants, the requirements are

a three-year average level of assessment between 31 1/3 percent and 35 1/3 percent of the fair cash value for the assessment jurisdiction, and
a coefficient of dispersion (COD) no greater than 15 percent.

For counties with fewer than 50,000 inhabitants, the requirements are

a three-year average level of assessment between 31 1/3 percent and 35 1/3 percent of the fair cash value for the assessment jurisdiction, and
a COD no greater than 30 percent.