HR0146 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0146 LRB101 04915 ALS 56621 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, It has become common for corporations to seek financial incentives from state and local governments in order to relocate or expand operations across the country; and

WHEREAS, These incentives are funded by taxpayer money in the form of income tax credits, site-specific infrastructure improvements, and property and sales tax waivers; and

WHEREAS, In one instance, the State of Nevada offered $1.3 billion in taxpayer-funded incentives that would allow a $50 billion electric automobile company to be free from sales tax for 20 years and free from property taxes for ten years; and

WHEREAS, Closer to home, very recently, the City of Chicago and the State of Illinois offered an almost $1 trillion dollar company more than $2 billion in taxpayer incentives to attract them to our state; and

WHEREAS, In one extreme example, the State of Washington offered incentives possibly worth $8.7 billion to a top airline manufacturer; and

WHEREAS, The pressure to offer the most generous incentive packages has led to a race to the bottom, pitting communities against each other to the detriment of our tax base, our school districts, and essential government services; and

WHEREAS, There is significant evidence that communities fail to recoup the costs of such incentives, even years after a corporation relocates; and

WHEREAS, Many times, these corporations begin to look for better deals elsewhere and attempt to extract further taxpayer resources from state and local coffers just as a community might begin to see long-term benefits; and

WHEREAS, There are many struggling communities that cannot offer exorbitant incentives, despite having adequate infrastructure, a talented workforce, and other quality of life benefits; and

WHEREAS, These giveaways of taxpayer money are more wisely spent to improve infrastructure, to invest in K-12 and higher education, and to offer workforce training for 21st century jobs; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that the General Assembly urges the government of the United States of America to enact a federal system limiting and regulating the types of incentives that states can offer to poach companies from each other; and be it further

RESOLVED, That by doing so, local governments can instead invest money back into their local communities through beneficial programs, such as workforce training or higher education grants, rather than sending that money into the pockets of multi-billion dollar corporations; and be it further

RESOLVED, That strengthening our local governments further strengthens the economic condition of our State, placing Illinois firmly on the road to prosperity; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be presented to the Governor of Illinois, the President of the United States, the Secretary of Commerce, and the Illinois Congressional Delegation.