THE ILLINOIZE: Thursday Free for All...End of session chaos...Budget...Bears...Guns...
May 18, 2023
Good morning, Illinois.
We told subscribers yesterday that the House and Senate adjourned yesterday without movement on any kind of appropriations bill means its highly unlikely the General Assembly adjourns on time tomorrow. When will they finish? Who knows. Nobody seems to know.
There are a lot of rumors and a lot of speculation as to what’s happening in the room on budget negotiations right now, and a lot of those rumors aren’t pretty. It’s going to be a wild couple of days.
The House is in at 11:30. The Senate is in at noon. There is nothing on the Governor’s public schedule.
Subscribers got breaking news yesterday and paid subscribers get our newsletters on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday. Join us now to be on the inside.
Let’s get to it.
YOUR THURSDAY FREE FOR ALL
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As budget negotiations continue, Pritzker announces launch of stalled tax incentive program (Capitol News Illinois)
As budget negotiations for the coming fiscal year continued behind closed doors Wednesday, Gov. JB Pritzker’s office announced it would launch a long-stalled tax incentive program that was part of his first-year budget.
The program – known as the Blue Collar Jobs Act – was a bargaining chip for Republican votes in 2019 for both a massive infrastructure plan and the state budget – the only annual spending plan to land on Pritzker’s desk with bipartisan support from lawmakers. The measure would offer business tax credits for wages paid on certain construction projects.
But in early 2021, with the state staring down an anticipated budget deficit amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Pritzker unilaterally delayed implementation of the program, angering the GOP members who had pushed for it.
The state’s fiscal outlook has since rebounded, leading to unforeseen revenue spikes as federal stimulus funds circulated through the economy in fiscal years 2022 and 2023. With the governor’s office currently anticipating about $50.4 billion in revenue for the upcoming Fiscal Year 2024, his office on Wednesday announced that it had finally opened the Blue Collar Jobs Act application window.
“Today, I am proud to announce yet another investment in our communities — the Blue Collar Jobs Act Tax Credit — to promote construction projects in underserved areas, while creating more good-paying jobs up and down the state,” Pritzker announced in a news release.
Republicans chalked the announcement up as a win, even as some in the minority party lamented that the details of the upcoming budget remained unknown just two days ahead of Friday’s scheduled adjournment of the spring legislative session.
“We have consistently requested that the governor implement the long-stalled Blue Collar Jobs Act that was a part of the 2019 Rebuild Illinois bipartisan agreement,” Senate Minority Leader John Curran, R-Downers Grove, said in a statement.
He hailed implementation of the act as “a step in the right direction for rebuilding our economy and providing more job opportunities to Illinois workers.”
The program offers tax breaks of up to $20 million per year to eligible companies. The tax credit would offset wages paid to construction workers, up to 75 percent in “underserved areas” as determined by the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, and 50 percent elsewhere.
Related: Another $150 million deposited in Illinois’ Rainy Day Fund (WCIA)
Tax breaks for Bears punted to state legislature’s fall veto session (WBEZ)
A measure to help the Chicago Bears move to northwest suburban Arlington Heights got its first hearing in the statehouse Wednesday – but it will be late autumn before it goes any further.
State Rep. Marty Moylan (D-Des Plaines) presented a measure to help the Bears move from their longtime home at Soldier Field to a new stadium and entertainment complex they’re considering building at the site of the old Arlington International Racecourse.
“This project presents a once in a lifetime opportunity, which makes it of critical importance to work together,” Moylan told the House Executive Committee Wednesday in a subject matter hearing.
“I want to stress that this hearing and this proposal are just [steps] along the way to help move this debate forward,” he said. “It would allow us time over the summer to create consensus with our members, the Chicago Bears, local officials and business and labor leaders.”
The Bears bought the old racecourse site for $197 million earlier this year.
Moylan’s bill would freeze property values, which means the Bears would not pay more taxes as the Racecourse property value increases. The measure sets up an oversight committee composed of local and state officials. Every year they will negotiate what the team should pay surrounding communities to offset the loss to schools, road maintenance and other services reliant on property tax revenue.
Related: Chicago Bears call latest state plan to aid Arlington Heights move an ‘excellent foundation,’ but talks will continue (Chicago Tribune)
Bears finding it’ll take more than two-minute offense to win Springfield help for new stadium in Arlington Heights (Chicago Sun-Times)
How might Bears advance subsidy bill downfield? By giving Chicago a bigger cut (Daily Herald)
US Supreme Court denies request to block Illinois and Naperville gun bans (Chicago Tribune)
The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday denied a request from a Naperville gun store owner to block a city ordinance and an Illinois law banning the sale of certain high-powered firearms and high-capacity ammunition magazines.
Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who oversees emergency requests from Illinois and neighboring states, referred the request from gun shop owner Robert Bevis to the full court, which denied it in an unsigned order.
The state law is being challenged in both state and federal court. Wednesday’s high court ruling indicates the ban will remain in effect while those challenges play out.
Related: U.S. Supreme Court declines to temporarily halt Illinois assault weapons ban (Chicago Sun-Times)
U.S. Supreme Court leaves assault weapons ban in place, for now (Capitol News Illinois)
Opinion: Gun marketing to kids is irresponsible and dangerous (Chicago Sun-Times)
SOME TOP LINKS FROM THE WEEK SO FAR
POLITICAL POTPOURRI
Bill allowing punitive damages in wrongful death suits advances House (State Journal-Register)
Lawmaker's personal story strikes powerful chord as Illinois House approves abortion bills (Quad-City Times)
Exelon is paying the legal tab for two former executives convicted in ComEd bribery scheme (WBEZ)
Legislators OK putting Illinois on path toward a new state flag (Chicago Tribune)
Bill expanding Central Illinois Regional Airport's tax base takes flight in Springfield (Bloomington Pantagraph)
Editorial: Chicago can’t afford $3 billion more in pension obligations (Chicago Tribune)
Editorial: Keep Illinois law strong on protecting personal biometric information (Chicago Sun-Times)
Editorial: The book ban movement grows. Illinois is right to fight back. (Chicago Tribune)
Editorial: Not a game when business owner with old mob ties gets a gambling license (Chicago Sun-Times)
Editorial: On Brandon Johnson’s first day, he puts out a disastrous job description for deputy mayor (Chicago Tribune)
Preckwinkle: Lawmakers must make county's pension code change permanent (Crain’s Chicago Business)
Opinion: Chasing the moving target of affordable housing (Shaw Media)
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