In its answer to the lawsuit, Chicago denies that it is now prohibited from enacting an OTP tax and also denies most of the other principle claims in the complaint regarding the state legislature’s intent to limit cities from adopting an OTP tax and that the imposition of minimum package size and minimum pricing would penalize retailers for pursuing their rights in court.
“These kinds of denials were to be expected since the Chicago City Council approved the new OTP tax after NATO, other organizations and industry members informed the council members that Illinois state law pre-empted the adoption of a local OTP tax,” says Briant. The City of Chicago and the attorney for all the plaintiffs filed an Agreed Order with the court to delay the implementation of the OTP tax for a period of 60 days after the date that the court issues a ruling on the lawsuit. A hearing on the lawsuit is scheduled for Sept. 14, 2016.
