Illinois House approves megaprojects bill, but the Bears want changes

SPRINGFIELD — After more than three years on the legislative backburner, the Illinois House on Wednesday approved a major economic development bill that would clear the path for the Chicago Bears to build a new domed stadium in Arlington Heights.

The measure, which passed 78-32, is ostensibly a step toward keeping “the pride and joy of Illinois” from bolting for Indiana, where Hoosier lawmakers have tried to lure the NFL’s founding franchise with the promise of more than $1 billion in public subsidies to build a football palace just across the state line in Hammond.

But as floor debate on the bill kicked off after hours of closed-door meetings at about 7 p.m. Wednesday, House Republican Floor Leader Patrick Windhorst, of Metropolis, asked the question on everyone’s mind.

“If this bill passes, will the Bears remain in Illinois?” he asked.

“I don’t work for the Bears, so I can’t answer that question specifically,” Rep. Kam Buckner, D-Chicago, the bill’s chief sponsor, responded. “But what I can tell you, Leader Windhorst, is that this bill puts together the mechanism that makes it possible for the Bears to stay here in the state.”

“Do the Bears support this bill?” Windhorst followed.

“I think this framework is aligned with the things that they have said that they want to see from an Illinois bill,” Buckner said.

The team said in a statement after the vote they “welcome the progress,” but will need more changes.

“Additional amendments are necessary to make the Arlington Heights site feasible for our stadium project,” the statement said.

House drove the amendment

The 377-page measure being debated Wednesday was about 10 times the length of a version a House committee passed in February. But it’s an open question as to whether other stakeholders agree with the bevy of economic development incentives that the House tacked onto the measure this week.

Windhorst asked Buckner whether Pritzker and the Senate support the bill. They were not consulted before the latest version of the legislation passed the House, but both will have to approve it before it can become law.

Buckner said he hadn’t spoken personally to the governor, but that it reflects the “intense, robust conversations” over the past three months “about the framework that we need to put together.”

In a measured statement, Pritzker’s office also signaled that the House bill needs work.

“Today is an important step, and the Governor’s Office looks forward to working with the Illinois General Assembly to advance a bill that reflects our shared priorities,” they said.

A key Senate lawmaker was also noncommittal about moving the measure when senators return next week.

“As we do with every bill the House passes to us, we will evaluate the legislation, get input from senators, and then decide what the best path forward is,” Sen. Bill Cunningham, D-Chicago, the Senate Democrats’ top negotiator on the megaprojects bill, told Capitol News Illinois.

Pressure on multiple fronts

Nevertheless, the bill’s passage represents a long-elusive sign of progress after a futile three years where the issue wasn’t a priority for state lawmakers. The Bears suggested looking at the Indiana site late last year and the Hoosier State has since been used by the team and its supporters as leverage to goad Illinois into action.

Most of the votes came from Democrats, who cleared House Speaker Emanuel “Chris” Welch’s unofficial rule that a bill have 60 members of his caucus in support. Ten Republicans joined most Democrats to support the measure while five from the Democratic supermajority voted against it.

The team also appears to be getting pressure from the NFL to decide. The league’s stadium committee – comprised of owners – is slated to meet April 29 to discuss the Bears’ stadium situation.

Pritzker has also been turning up the pressure on lawmakers, telling reporters last week that he’d like them “to move faster” and get the bill done ahead of its May 31 adjournment.

Unlike Indiana, Illinois’ deal would not fund direct stadium construction but would allow the Bears to negotiate their property tax bill with surrounding taxing bodies for up to 40 years. The so-called “megaproject” designation is not Bears-specific and would be available for all large developments on a tiered basis based on meeting certain levels of financial investment.

“This bill says Illinois is not going to sit back and watch other states build the future while we argue over yesterday’s tools,” Buckner said. “And this bill gives us the chance to compete – and not compete recklessly, not compete desperately, not compete by giving away the store. This bill says we can compete with standards. We can grow with guardrails. We can welcome private investment and still demand public benefit.”

The team said the long-term tax certainty is a prerequisite for building on the 326-acre site, which formerly housed Arlington Park racetrack. The state is also expected to kick in hundreds of millions of dollars needed for public infrastructure surrounding the proposed stadium – provisions likely to be spelled out in separate legislation.

“The governor certainly cannot afford for the Bears to leave the state of Illinois, and more time will cause greater expense to the tunes of billions of dollars of incentives,” Rep. Martin McLaughlin, R-Barrington Hills, said. “So for that reason, to stop the bleeding on incentives and taxpayers, I urge that we move forward.”

What would the bill do?

The core of the bill is a provision that allows the Bears or other “megaproject” developers to negotiate a payment in lieu of taxes, or PILOT, with local taxing bodies.

Developments would qualify for megaproject status with an investment of at least $100 million. Projects at that level could lock in property tax payments for up to 25 years. A second tier, for investments of at least $500 million, would allow a 30-year agreement. A third tier, for investments of at least $1 billion — like the Bears’ proposal — would allow a 40-year agreement. Another five years could be added to projects in each tier if the megaproject site requires environmental remediation.

While some House Democrats were hesitant to include the lowest tier, the governor’s office insisted on keeping it, arguing projects in that range could have an outsized impact in downstate communities.

Megaprojects would also qualify for a sales tax exemption on building materials under the state’s existing High Impact Business Program.

Rep. Blaine Wilhour, R-Beecher City, opposed the bill, saying it was setting up “”a two-tier tax system” that rewards big business at the expense of everyone else.

“If you’re big and politically connected, your property taxes are frozen at three development values, your construction taxes get waived and your final tax bill gets negotiated behind closed doors,” Wilhour said. “But if you’re a homeowner, a farmer, a small businessperson, you pay the full value, no questions asked.”

The latest amendment includes language aimed at winning over lawmakers hesitant to give large developers property tax breaks while cost-of-living remains a burning issue.

In a major change from legislation that passed committee in February, 50% of the receipts from the PILOT would go towards property tax relief. Of that, 60% would go to property tax rebates for residential homeowners in taxing districts with a megaproject and 40% would be deposited into the state’s existing property tax relief fund.

“It is a direct property tax cut for every single homeowner in the state of Illinois,” said Rep. Dan Didech, D-Buffalo Grove, who called it “a win, win, win, win” before exclaiming “Touchdown, Buckner,” referencing the bill sponsor, a former University of Illinois football player.

However, some expressed concerns that the measure would simply lead to taxing bodies doubling their asks of the Bears and other prospective megaproject developers, sowing doubt in the attractiveness of a tool meant to incentivize economic development.

There’s also a new provision that explicitly prohibits use of the PILOT tool for data centers, which have been identified as a driver of rising energy costs and demand.

The bill also has an ethics component: Lawmakers and local officials would not be allowed to accept free sports tickets from a team with a megaproject deal unless that same deal is offered to the public.

The bill also calls for the megaproject tool to end after seven years, a sunset provision meant to allow lawmakers to reassess its effectiveness.

The bill does not address nearly $500 million in outstanding debt at Soldier Field from renovations that were completed in 2003. It also does not include any paths for redeveloping the stadium located in Buckner’s district for its post-NFL future.

Beyond the Bears

In perhaps the most important sign of progress, about two dozen Chicago Democrats supported the bill that could ultimately end professional football in their city.

“There are proposals out there right now which can provide significant development opportunities while still provide preserving our beautiful lakefront,” Rep. Ann Williams, D-Chicago, said. “If we utilize the tools presented in this package, this could be a game changer for Chicago.”

The bill includes broader economic development provisions, especially for Chicago and Springfield.

Blighted or underused rail yards in Chicago would be eligible for their own type of megaproject aimed at redeveloping and revitalizing the yards. To be eligible, the projects must bring in $40 billion in new tax revenue over at least 40 years and increase transit ridership by 10,000 riders on average each day.

Such legislation could open the door to massive new projects being considered in the city such as a new White Sox stadium being floated for an Amtrak yard along the Chicago River just south of the Loop and the One Central project near McCormick Place.

The bill would also expand the state’s Sales Tax and Revenue, or STAR, bond program to make communities in Cook County with more than 70,000 people eligible for the program for projects. STAR bonds could also be used for entertainment developments, increasing the types of projects eligible for the program.

It would establish a New Opportunities for Vacation and Adventure Urban District that would be expected to generate significant tourism, including 2 million annual visitors, $450 million average annual sales following a capital investment of at least $1 billion. Local governments would have the power to create the new economic development districts.

The bill would also create the Capital Area Tourism Authority and Capital City Downtown Medical District to facilitate economic development in two areas of Springfield. STAR bonds could be used in the city if the Sangamon County Board approves a hotel tax that would supply the revenue.

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.