Illinois Department of Revenue
1999 IL-1363 Instructions
Circuit Breaker and Pharmaceutical Assistance
What benefits may I receive?
IL-1363 General
The amount of money you receive for your Circuit
Breaker grant is determined by a formula that takes into
Information
account the amount you paid in property taxes, mobile
home taxes, rent, or nursing home charges and the
The Senior Citizens and Disabled Persons Property Tax
amount of your total household income.
Relief and Pharmaceutical Assistance Act has created a
To estimate the amount of your grant, turn to the chart
state program that may give you back some of the
on Page 11 of this booklet.
money you paid in property taxes, mobile home taxes,
You may also qualify for Pharmaceutical Assistance (see
rent, or nursing home charges. It also can help you pay
Page 3) and a discount on your vehicle license (see
for certain prescription medicines you may need.
Page 2).
The act is often called the Circuit Breaker law because
When can I expect to receive my grant?
the tax relief it provides works like a circuit breaker in
your home’s electrical system. When property taxes,
If you file your claim early in the year, it will be three to
mobile home taxes, rent, or nursing home charges begin
four months before your grant is issued. For claims filed
to “overload” an elderly or disabled person’s income, the
after May 1, grants are generally issued within eight to
Circuit Breaker law can help. The law provides for a tax
10 weeks. If we need to request additional information
relief program and a pharmaceutical assistance
from you, your grant will be delayed an additional eight
program.
to 12 weeks.
Can I qualify if I live in a nursing home or
What is the Circuit Breaker
Public Housing?
program?
If the nursing home or Public Housing unit where you
The program may provide a yearly grant for relief from
live does not pay property tax, you are not eligible to
property taxes, mobile home taxes, rent, or nursing
receive a Circuit Breaker grant; however, you may still
home charges that qualifying senior and disabled
be eligible for Pharmaceutical Assistance and a discount
persons pay on their residences.
on your vehicle license plates. If you live in a nursing
home or Public Housing unit that pays property tax, you
How do I qualify for a Circuit Breaker
may be eligible for the Circuit Breaker grant.
grant?
Can I qualify if I live part of the year at
To qualify, you must meet the following requirements:
home and part of the year in Public
1
you must have been 65 years of age or older
Housing or a nursing home?
before January 1, 2000; or
you must become 65 years of age during 2000
Yes. For example, for the first part of 1999, suppose you
(for a partial grant); or
lived in your home and that residence was subject to
you must have been 16 years of age or older
property taxes. Suppose you then moved into Public
before January 1, 2000, and totally disabled; or
Housing or a nursing home (that didn’t pay property
taxes) for the remainder of 1999. In this case, you are
you must be a widow or widower who turned 63
eligible to file for a Circuit Breaker grant for the time you
years of age before the deceased claimant’s
lived in your home (see the note on Page 8). You may
death; and
also be eligible for Pharmaceutical Assistance and a
2
you must have lived in an Illinois residence in 1999
discount on your vehicle license plates.
that was subject to property or mobile home tax;
and
What if I turn age 65 during 2000?
3
you must live in Illinois at the time you file the claim
If you turn 65 years of age during 2000, you may be
for relief; and
eligible for a partial Circuit Breaker grant for those
4
you and your husband or wife must have had a
months you were 65. You may submit a claim form
total combined income of less than $16,000 in
during the month of your birthday. We cannot pay grants
1999; and
before that month.
5
you must file Form IL-1363, Circuit Breaker and
If you are applying for a partial Circuit Breaker grant, you
Pharmaceutical Assistance Claim, postmarked on
are not eligible for Pharmaceutical Assistance coverage.
or before December 31, 2000.
(See note on Page 2.)
IL-1363 instructions (R-12/99)
Page 1 of 12