Sec. 23. (a) PILOTS may be imposed under this section for an assessment date occurring after December 31, 2021.

     (b) As used in this section, the following terms have the meanings set forth in IC 6-1.1-1:

(1) Assessed value.

(2) Exemption.

(3) Owner.

(4) Person.

(5) Property taxation.

(6) Real property.

(7) Township assessor.

     (c) As used in this section, “PILOTS” means payments in lieu of taxes.

     (d) As used in this section, “property owner” means the owner of real property described in IC 6-1.1-10-16.7 that is not located in a county containing a consolidated city.

     (e) Subject to the approval of a property owner, the fiscal body of a county may adopt an ordinance to require the property owner to pay PILOTS at times set forth in the ordinance with respect to real property that is subject to an exemption under IC 6-1.1-10-16.7. The ordinance remains in full force and effect until repealed or modified by the legislative body, subject to the approval of the property owner.

     (f) The PILOTS must be calculated so that the PILOTS are in an amount that is:

(1) agreed upon by the property owner and the legislative body of the county;

(2) a percentage of the property taxes that would have been levied by the legislative body of the county upon the real property described in subsection (e) if the property were not subject to an exemption from property taxation; and

(3) not more than the amount of property taxes that would have been levied by the legislative body of the county upon the real property described in subsection (e) if the property were not subject to an exemption from property taxation.

     (g) PILOTS shall be imposed in the same manner as property taxes and shall be based on the assessed value of the real property described in subsection (e). Except as provided in subsection (j), the township assessor, or the county assessor if there is no township assessor for the township, shall assess the real property described in subsection (e) as though the property were not subject to an exemption.

     (h) PILOTS collected under this section shall be distributed in the same manner as if they were property taxes being distributed to taxing units in the county.

     (i) PILOTS shall be due as set forth in the ordinance and bear interest, if unpaid, as in the case of other taxes on property. PILOTS shall be treated in the same manner as taxes for purposes of all procedural and substantive provisions of law.

     (j) If the duties of the township assessor have been transferred to the county assessor as described in IC 6-1.1-1-24, a reference to the township assessor in this section is considered to be a reference to the county assessor.

As added by P.L.74-2021, SEC.4.