A. Approval of the minutes from the June 20 meeting.

Upon motion duly made and seconded, the Minutes of the June 20, 2003 SALT Section Council Meeting, were approved.

B. The following members were in attendance at the meeting:

John K. Norris, Chair

John G. Locallo, Vice-Chair

Rodney C. Slutzky, Secretary

Katherine A. Amari, Louise M. Calvert, Stanley Cichowski, Mary Ann Connelly, Thomas Cross, Pat Doody, Joanne Elliott, Russell Hartigan, Board Liaison, Frederic Lane, Martha Mills, Dan O'Neill, Donald T. Rubin, Mark Davis, Thomas A. Jaconetty, Steven Kandelman, Stanley Kaminski, Julie-April Montgomery, Timothy E. Moran, Mary T. Nicolau, William J. Seitz, Jacob Steinfink, John Truskowski, and Mary Grant, Staff Liaison. Also present was Adam Bossov.

A. House Amendment #1 to SB688. Unauthorized Practice of Law

Mr. Rubin reported that the CBA supported SB688 but opposed HA#1. Mr. Jaconetty moved to oppose HA#1 while retaining SALT support for SB688. Mr. Rubin seconded the motion. The motion was unanimously approved.

B. SB620. Elimination of PTAB in Cook County

There was a general discussion regarding the defeat of SB620 and what might unfold in the upcoming veto session. The compromise legislation introduced by the Civic Federation was also discussed and SALT members speculated as to why the proposal couldn't make it out of the House Revenue Committee. Mr. Davis reported that the Civic Federation planned to reintroduce its proposal as its own bill. It was agreed that the situation should be monitored closely. Mr. Rubin suggested that a Sub-Committee be formed to do outreach work with other interested organizations. Chairman Norris authorized Mr. Rubin to proceed, as suggested.

There was a lengthy discussion on whether SALT should get involved in attempting to reinstate the drastic PTAB budget cuts passed in anticipation of eliminating PTAB's jurisdiction in Cook County. The committee was sharply divided on the issue. Mr. Rubin moved that SALT send a letter to the Governor in support of reinstating the PTAB's budget. Fred Lane seconded the motion. The motion was defeated: 6 in favor; 11 opposed; and 2 abstentions.

C. Stan Cichowski discussed various provisions of SB1903. Mr. Cichowski expressed his concerns with the penalty structure. He believed 40% penalties to be somewhat excessive.

A. PTAB/Cook County Board of Review - Steinfink (Chair)

No report.

B. Case Law - White (Chair)

The following cases were discussed:

Brazas v. PTAB, 2-02-0878, 2003 Ill. App. LEXIS 743, June 11, 2003;

Ruth Peacock, 4-02-0554, 2003 Ill. App. LEXIS 776, June 20, 2003;

Cook County Board of Review v. IL PTAB (Bosch), 1-00-1183, 1-00-1184, 1-00-2213, 1-00-2228, 1-00-2237, 1-00-2238, 1-00-2239, 1-00-2595, 2003 Ill. App. LEXIS 920, June 30, 2003; 791 NE 2d 8; 2003 Ill. App. LEXIS 842; 274 Ill. Dec. 212;

Krueger v. Lewis, 1-02-1212, 2003 Ill. App. LEXIS 940, July 24, 2003;

Board of Education v. Burr Ridge,

Dieringer v. Somer, 1-01-1151, June 30, 2003.

C. Membership - Amari (Chair)

Katherine Amari reported on the ISBA membership drive. Prizes will be given to those bringing in new members. Mr. Moran suggested that a membership table be set up at SALT's continuing education seminar. Mr. Locallo advised of plans to go into the law schools to promote the Young Lawyer's Division.

D. Unauthorized Practice of Law - Elliott (Chair)

Joanne Elliott reported that the ISBA UPL Committee had developed a mission statement and moved that it be adopted by the SALT Section Council. After the motion was seconded, it was unanimously adopted.

Ms. Elliott reported that everyone involved was working hard and stressed that the committee was not about "turf protection." UPL was launching an educational effort. A reminder letter was being sent to the Cook County Board of Review and the PTAB. The ISBA was sending similar letters to all Illinois Boards of Review. Ms. Elliott reported that statewide, 64 Boards of Review now allow non attorneys to represent complainants. She encouraged a Tax Trends article on the subject of UPL; also newspaper articles cautioning property owners who hire a "consultant" rather than an attorney.

E. Exemption Streamlining - David (Chair)

Mark Davis reported that the committee had not met and that there was no report.

F. Treasurer's Issues - Seitz (Chair)

No report.

G. Strategic Planning - Locallo (Chair)

John Locallo reported that the Strategic Planning Committee was currently focused on increasing membership. More emphasis will be placed on recruiting new members in the law schools and targeting attorneys who are also CPAs.

H. Website Development - Connelly (Chair)

Mary Ann Connelly reported that the Website has posted new cases and now has updated SALT Section Council Meeting Minutes. Ms. Connelly also reported that the ISBA has indexed all articles written for the various section council newsletters. She encouraged everyone to log onto the Website to see what is now available on-line.

I. IICLE Cumulative Update - Jaconetty (Chair)

Tom Jaconetty reported that he has been contacted by Nora Crandell and that IICLE wants to publish a new addition of its State and Local Tax Handbook, rather than a Supplement Update. The handbook was last published in 1997, with a supplement published in 2000. Mr. Jaconetty has agreed to be the general project editor. There was a general discussion on the availability of previous authors and their willingness to commit to the project. Also discussed was the proposed timetable suggested by IICLE and whether or not it was feasible.

Upon motion, duly made and seconded, the SALT Section Council agreed to undertake the project, but on a more "relaxed" timetable than that originally proposed by IICLE. Mr. Jaconetty agreed that he would try to give priority to prior authors and try to contact those that weren't immediately available. Mr. Jaconetty will try to get commitments from all authors by October 1^st, with a late February publication target. Authors should expect "engagement letters" from Nora Crandell. Authors were encouraged to think about whether or not any chapters should be added or eliminated, and to give appropriate suggestions to Mr. Jaconetty.

A. ISBA Bar News - Norris

Chairman Norris reported that there will only be 12 Bar News issues published this year and that as a result, publication requirements have become more strict.

B. Attorney General Opinions - O'Neill

No new opinions to report.

C. Local Government - White

No report. Judge White is attending meetings in San Francisco.

A. Chicago License Hold Ordinance - Kaminski

Stan Kaminski reported that a "right to protest" proposal has been drafted on Chairman Norris' letterhead and sent to President Lavin for consideration at the September ISBA Board Meeting. Mr. Kaminski agreed to appear at the Board in support of the proposal, if requested.

B. Status of PTAB Appeals (Bosch and Lurie Cases) - Seitz

No report. Things are still "up in the air."

C. Softball match wrap-up - Norris

Chairman Norris reported on SALT's victory over the Real Estate Section Council at the Annual Meeting in Lake Geneva. The Chairman gave special commendations to Tom Jaconetty for his "unbiased" umpiring, Tim Moran, for his "swift" base running, and John Locallo for his "excellent" defense and hitting. For those who were unable to attend, the game ended on a rare triple play. Chairman Norris forewarned that SALT Softball has been challenged by Tort Law and the Law Division Judges.

A. National Association of State Bar Tax Sections

Chairman Norris raised the question - Should SALT continue to belong to this group? Do the "benefits" justify the membership cost? This year's fee has already been paid. Because Judge White and Robert Barr were not present, further discussion was tabled.

B. Section Council Roster

Chairman Norris reported that all Associate Newsletter Editors will be added to future Section Council Rosters.

C. Section Count

The section council membership report shows that SALT numbers are down slightly, from 729 members on April 30, 2003 to 611 members on June 30, 2003. 42 members receive their newsletters by e-mail. Active membership is down by only 7. Complimentary membership is up by 3.

A. Next Scheduled meeting - Friday, October 17, 2003, Chicago Regional Office, 12:00 Noon

B. ISBA Midyear Meeting will be held on Friday, November 7, 2003 Chicago, and then adjourn to Florida. There will be no SALT Section Council Meeting at the Midyear Meeting.

C. ISBA Annual Meeting, June 17-20, 2004, Lake Geneva, Wisconsin