“Use” means the exercise by any person of any right or power over tangible personal property incident to the ownership of that property, except that it does not include the sale of such property in any form as tangible personal property in the regular course of business to the extent that such property is not first subjected to a use for which it was purchased, and does not include the use of such property by its owner for 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 demonstration use or interim use of tangible personal property by a retailer before he sells that tangible personal property. For watercraft or aircraft, if the period of demonstration use or interim use by the retailer exceeds 18 months, the retailer shall pay on the retailers’ original cost price the tax imposed by this Act, and no credit for that tax is permitted if the watercraft or aircraft is subsequently sold by the retailer. “Use” 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 (a) which is sold in the regular course of business or (b) which the person incorporating such ingredient or constituent therein has undertaken at the time of such purchase to cause to be transported in interstate commerce to destinations outside the State of Illinois: 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.
     “Watercraft” means a Class 2, Class 3, or Class 4 watercraft as defined in § 3-2 of the Boat Registration and Safety Act, a personal watercraft, or any boat equipped with an inboard motor.
     “Purchase at retail” means the acquisition of the ownership of or title to tangible personal property through a sale at retail.
     “Purchaser” means anyone who, through a sale at retail, acquires the ownership of tangible personal property for a valuable consideration.
     “Sale at retail” means any transfer of the ownership of or title to tangible personal property to a purchaser, for the purpose of use, 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. For this purpose, slag produced as an incident to manufacturing pig iron or steel and sold is considered to be an intentionally produced by-product of manufacturing. “Sale at retail” includes any such transfer made for resale unless made in compliance with Section 2c of the Retailers’ Occupation Tax Act, as incorporated by reference into Section 12 of this Act. Transactions whereby the possession of the property is transferred but the seller retains the title as security for payment of the selling price are sales.
     “Sale at retail” shall also be construed to include any Illinois florist’s sales transaction in which the purchase order is received in Illinois by a florist and the sale is for use or consumption, but the Illinois florist has a florist in another state deliver the property to the purchaser or the purchaser’s donee in such other state.
     Nonreusable tangible personal property that is used by persons engaged in the business of operating a restaurant, cafeteria, or drive-in is a sale for resale when it is transferred to customers in the ordinary course of business as part of the sale of food or beverages and is used to deliver, package, or consume food or beverages, regardless of where consumption of the food or beverages occurs. Examples of those items include, but are not limited to nonreusable, paper and plastic cups, plates, baskets, boxes, sleeves, buckets or other containers, utensils, straws, placemats, napkins, doggie bags, and wrapping or packaging materials that are transferred to customers as part of the sale of food or beverages in the ordinary course of business.
     The purchase, employment and transfer of such tangible personal property as newsprint and ink for the primary purpose of conveying news (with or without other information) is not a purchase, use or sale of tangible personal property.
     “Selling price” means 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, prior to January 1, 2020 and beginning again on January 1, 2022, not including the value of or credit given for traded-in tangible personal property where the item that is traded-in is of like kind and character as that which is being sold; beginning January 1, 2020 and until January 1, 2022, “selling price” includes the portion of the value of or credit given for traded-in motor vehicles of the First Division as defined in § 1-146 of the Illinois Vehicle Code of like kind and character as that which is being sold that exceeds $10,000. “Selling price” shall be determined without any deduction on account of the cost of the property sold, the cost of materials used, labor or service cost or any other expense whatsoever, but does 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 the Retailers’ Occupation Tax Act, or on account of the seller’s duty to collect, from the purchaser, the tax that is imposed by this Act, or, except as otherwise provided with respect to any cigarette tax imposed by a home rule unit, on account of the seller’s tax liability under any local occupation tax administered by the Department, or, except as otherwise provided with respect to any cigarette tax imposed by a home rule unit on account of the seller’s duty to collect, from the purchasers, the tax that is imposed under any local use tax administered by the Department. Effective December 1, 1985, “selling price” shall include charges that are added to prices by sellers on account of the seller’s tax liability under the Cigarette Tax Act, on account of the seller’s duty to collect, from the purchaser, the tax imposed under the Cigarette Use Tax Act, and on account of the seller’s duty to collect, from the purchaser, any cigarette tax imposed by a home rule unit.
     Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, for any motor vehicle, as defined in Section 1-146 of the Vehicle Code, that is sold on or after January 1, 2015 for the purpose of leasing the vehicle for a defined period that is longer than one year and (1) is a motor vehicle of the second division that: (A) is a self-contained motor vehicle designed or permanently converted to provide living quarters for recreational, camping, or travel use, with direct walk through access to the living quarters from the driver’s seat; (B) is of the van configuration designed for the transportation of not less than 7 nor more than 16 passengers; or (C) has a gross vehicle weight rating of 8,000 pounds or less or (2) is a motor vehicle of the first division, “selling price” or “amount of sale” means the consideration received by the lessor pursuant to the lease contract, including amounts due at lease signing and all monthly or other regular payments charged over the term of the lease. Also included in the selling price is any amount received by the lessor from the lessee for the leased vehicle that is not calculated at the time the lease is executed, including, but not limited to, excess mileage charges and charges for excess wear and tear. For sales that occur in Illinois, with respect to any amount received by the lessor from the lessee for the leased vehicle that is not calculated at the time the lease is executed, the lessor who purchased the motor vehicle does not incur the tax imposed by the Use Tax Act on those amounts, and the retailer who makes the retail sale of the motor vehicle to the lessor is not required to collect the tax imposed by this Act or to pay the tax imposed by the Retailers’ Occupation Tax Act on those amounts. However, the lessor who purchased the motor vehicle assumes the liability for reporting and paying the tax on those amounts directly to the Department in the same form (Illinois Retailers’ Occupation Tax, and local retailers’ occupation taxes, if applicable) in which the retailer would have reported and paid such tax if the retailer had accounted for the tax to the Department. For amounts received by the lessor from the lessee that are not calculated at the time the lease is executed, the lessor must file the return and pay the tax to the Department by the due date otherwise required by this Act for returns other than transaction returns. If the retailer is entitled under this Act to a discount for collecting and remitting the tax imposed under this Act to the Department with respect to the sale of the motor vehicle to the lessor, then the right to the discount provided in this Act shall be transferred to the lessor with respect to the tax paid by the lessor for any amount received by the lessor from the lessee for the leased vehicle that is not calculated at the time the lease is executed; provided that the discount is only allowed if the return is timely filed and for amounts timely paid. The “selling price” of a motor vehicle that is sold on or after January 1, 2015 for the purpose of leasing for a defined period of longer than one year shall not be reduced by the value of or credit given for traded-in tangible personal property owned by the lessor, nor shall it be reduced by the value of or credit given for traded-in tangible personal property owned by the lessee, regardless of whether the trade-in value thereof is assigned by the lessee to the lessor. In the case of a motor vehicle that is sold for the purpose of leasing for a defined period of longer than one year, the sale occurs at the time of the delivery of the vehicle, regardless of the due date of any lease payments. A lessor who incurs a Retailers’ Occupation Tax liability on the sale of a motor vehicle coming off lease may not take a credit against that liability for the Use Tax the lessor paid upon the purchase of the motor vehicle (or for any tax the lessor paid with respect to any amount received by the lessor from the lessee for the leased vehicle that was not calculated at the time the lease was executed) if the selling price of the motor vehicle at the time of purchase was calculated using the definition of “selling price” as defined in this paragraph. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act to the contrary, lessors shall file all returns and make all payments required under this paragraph to the Department by electronic means in the manner and form as required by the Department. This paragraph does not apply to leases of motor vehicles for which, at the time the lease is entered into, the term of the lease is not a defined period, including leases with a defined initial period with the option to continue the lease on a month-to-month or other basis beyond the initial defined period.
     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.
     “Department” means the Department of Revenue.
     “Person” means any natural individual, firm, partnership, association, joint stock company, joint adventure, public or private corporation, limited liability company, or a receiver, executor, trustee, guardian or other representative appointed by order of any court.
     “Retailer” means and includes every person engaged in the business of making sales at retail as defined in this Section.
     A person who holds himself or herself out as being engaged (or who habitually engages) in selling tangible personal property at retail is a retailer hereunder 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.
     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, excepting only 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. The selling of school books and school supplies by schools at retail to students is not “primarily for the purposes of” the school which does such selling. This paragraph does not apply to nor subject to taxation occasional dinners, social or similar activities of a person organized and operated exclusively for charitable, religious or educational purposes, whether or not such activities are open to the public.
     A person who is the recipient of a grant or contract under Title VII of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (P.L. 92-258) and serves meals to participants in the federal Nutrition Program for the Elderly in return for contributions established in amount by the individual participant pursuant to a schedule of suggested fees as provided for in the federal Act is not a retailer under this Act with respect to such transactions.
     Persons who engage in the business of transferring tangible personal property upon the redemption of trading stamps are retailers hereunder when engaged in such business.
     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 such tangible personal property at retail or a sale through a bulk vending machine does not make such person a retailer hereunder. However, any person who is engaged in a business which is not subject to the tax imposed by the Retailers’ Occupation Tax Act because of involving the sale of or a contract to sell real estate or a construction contract to improve real estate, but who, in the course of conducting such business, transfers tangible personal property to users or consumers in the finished form in which it was purchased, and which does not become real estate, under any provision of a construction contract or real estate sale or real estate sales agreement entered into with some other person arising out of or because of such nontaxable business, is a retailer to the extent of the value of the tangible personal property so transferred. If, in such transaction, a separate charge is made for the tangible personal property so transferred, the value of such property, for the purposes of this Act, is the amount so separately charged, but not less than the cost of such property to the transferor; if no separate charge is made, the value of such property, for the purposes of this Act, is the cost to the transferor of such tangible personal property.
     “Retailer maintaining a place of business in this State”, or any like term, means and includes any of the following retailers:
         (1) A retailer having or maintaining within this