CHICAGO – State lawmakers are up against a midnight deadline on Sunday to pass major pieces of legislation, including a deal aimed at keeping the Bears in Illinois.
State Sen. Bill Cunningham (D-Chicago), the point person on the legislation, said the provisions like allowing for a payment in lieu of taxes, or PILOT, in the megaprojects bill did not have enough support among Senate Democrats.
“There is not support in the Senate Democratic Caucus to pass a bill like that right now. But we’re not giving up,” Cunningham said. “We’re working on an alternative plan. We have a couple of ideas in the work that we are working through with some Democratic Caucus members. And we’re hopeful we’ll have a more clear path, a better plan, some better framework.”
That new bill could include a framework that would have the Bears pay for a new stadium on publicly owned land.Â
“I want to get on with this and get past this, give the Bears what they need to stay in the state. But we'll see what happens,” Buckner said.
The latest developments come as lawmakers are also expected to take up a number of important issues, including the budget for the next fiscal year.
This latest news also comes about three months after Indiana lawmakers swiftly passed legislation establishing funding for a potential stadium for the Bears in Hammond, which included tax hikes.
What we don’t know:
