Madigan Calls House Back to Springfield to Create New Tax Package for CME, CBOE, Sears

By aaroncynic in News on Dec 7, 2011 4:00PM

Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan called the House back into session on Monday to put together new legislation for tax breaks for CME Group, CBOE and Sears. The House voted 99-8 last week to reject a tax package for the three for more than $100 million in tax breaks.

Both Crain’s and Marketwatch speculate that multiple bills could be introduced. This could mean that the tax breaks might be voted on individually, or that the added increase in the Earned Income Tax Credit and a bump in the personal exemption on the income tax may be separated from the tax cuts. A spokeswoman for Gov. Pat Quinn told Marketwatch “it’s a work in progress.”

The push to find a way to approve the cuts comes as both Sears and CME have been courted by officials from other states. Mayor Greg Ballard of Indianapolis visited CME to discuss a “very competitive offer” and the rumor mill has it that Ohio offered $400 million to Sears to relocate. Ohio Gov. John Kasich isn’t so certain Sears will begin to pack its bags. On Tuesday, Kasich told the Cleveland Plain Dealer he wouldn’t bet on it.

Still, he’s happy for the attention. "We used to be up in the stands selling peanuts,” the governor said. “Now we're at home plate taking swings."