Republicans hope to reengage Bears with new proposals

As pressure ramps up on Illinois lawmakers to find a legislative solution to convince the Chicago Bears to stay in Illinois, Republicans are adding proposals to the mix.

Rep. Dan Ugaste, R-Geneva, plans to file legislation that follows the megaproject bill model passed by the House in April with more restrictions on the types of projects that would qualify. Rep. Martin McLaughlin, R-Barrington Hills, is also drafting a bill that would allow for more infrastructure funding for the team’s development.

Their proposals come days after the Bears announced they are shifting their focus away from building a stadium in Arlington Heights to Hammond, Indiana, after Illinois lawmakers failed to pass legislation giving the team property tax certainty. Meanwhile, Indiana legislators earlier this year approved a framework authorizing more than $1 billion in public subsidies for construction of a new stadium across the state line. The team has left the door open to further negotiations in Illinois, however.

While the GOP’s superminority status makes the specific proposals unlikely to advance, the lawmakers behind them say they’re trying to jumpstart talks.

“This is a crucial moment for us,” Ugaste told Capitol News Illinois. “This is a large project, economic development, that we do not want to lose. We need much more of that in this state.”

Gov. JB Pritzker, speaking to reporters in Chicago Tuesday for the first time since the Bears’ Indiana announcement, said he would be “happy” to call a special session if lawmakers can unite behind a bill.

He also said he’s been fielding phone calls from the Bears, though he has not spoken with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

He said he’s told the Bears to “decide what their priorities are for the state, ask what they’re going to ask for.”

“And then we want to make sure that they’re talking — as you know, my team has been in the room the entire time and will continue to be — that they’re talking together with the legislators,” Pritzker said.

The governor said he thinks the Bears are “regrouping” and made some “fumbles” over the years that have stopped Springfield from moving a bill forward. Those include holding a 2024 news conference proposing a massive renovation of Soldier Field financed by the state, and recent meetings the team had with Chicago officials that led some state lawmakers to believe Chicago was still a viable location for a new stadium.

“They didn’t show up for the end of session,” Pritzker said. “You got to work the hallways, as you know, in a very, very busy session, you’ve got to really talk to every legislator if you want to get something done.”

The GOP plans

Ugaste did not vote for the megaproject bill in the House earlier this spring over concerns residents would be hit with higher property tax bills.

His plan would maintain provisions for local governments to negotiate a payment in lieu of taxes, or PILOT, with a developer. However, it would raise the threshold for minimum private investments for a megaproject to $500 million, rather than $100 million under the original House-passed plan. That threshold would have little impact on the Bears, which plan to invest $2 billion for a stadium. The projects must also be for commercial use and, like the original bill, would exclude data centers.

Ugaste’s plan also prevents a project from qualifying as a megaproject if it includes residential development. He said it would prevent school districts from incurring more costs from new residents and help them keep their tax levies down. The Bears’ proposal in Arlington Heights does envision some form of housing being built on the 326-acre Arlington Park site.

“If you include residential development, then you’re allowing a resident to move in, take full advantage of all services and not have to pay the same as everybody else,” Ugaste said.

He added that nothing in his legislation would prohibit Chicago from conceiving a megaproject deal with the Bears, as it would apply statewide. Belief that Chicago could still mount a competitive bid for a new stadium helped sink prospects for a Bears bill at the end of May.

The megaproject framework wasn’t popular in the Senate, Sen. Bill Cunningham, D-Chicago, the lead negotiator of Bears-related legislation in the chamber, told reporters at the end of May.

“Why would anyone oppose economic development in any of our communities?” Ugaste said. “It’s a benefit to everybody. But mine will also have actual property tax relief for all taxpayers in Illinois.”

Ugaste said he has not presented his proposal to the Bears or legislative Democrats while some details are still being worked out, including how developments could use Sales Tax and Revenue, or STAR, bonds. Those are bonds that can be used by local governments to finance large tourism or entertainment projects.

He also proposed additional requirements such as mandating new referendums for renewing bonds and only holding property tax levy referendums during November general elections.

Arlington-only plan

McLaughlin’s plan calls for allowing the Bears to spend up to $2.5 billion to build a stadium that the team would own and the state to spend $1.2 billion on infrastructure. Lawmakers had generally been considering about $800 million in infrastructure for Arlington Heights had legislation moved forward.

McLaughlin’s bill would not include the PILOT and instead would set a value for the property that would increase by 2.5% each year over a 30-year deal. McLaughlin told Capitol News Illinois it would also include an oversight committee to ensure local governments don’t shift additional taxes toward other residents and businesses.

McLaughlin said his bill would only apply to Arlington Park, calling it the only viable site for a new stadium in Illinois. He said the municipality demonstrated its ability to host large events when the former horse racing track occupied the site.

“It really answers a lot of the uncertainty questions that the Bears had and I’m hoping that it incentivizes the Bears to maybe rethink Illinois because I think we made the deal too complex,” he said.

McLaughlin was one of a handful of House Republicans to support the original megaproject bill and he represents a northwest suburban district that he said he believes will see regional economic benefits from having NFL games and other major events nearby.

Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.