Springfield Legislative Update:
Last week, the Governor proposed to restructure the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO) into a private-public partnership hybrid. The restructuring would create the Illinois Business and Economic Development Corporation (IBEDC), a 501(c)(3) non-profit. IBEDC’s mission would focus on business development, small and minority-owned business incubation, trade and investment, tourism, and film.
For funds currently distributed to various grantees, DCEO would act as the primary grantor, while the IBEDC would act as a sub-grantor. The restructuring is meant to streamline the process of grant applications and awards currently fragmented throughout DCEO into one place. The IBEDC would also have the ability to negotiate tax incentives with corporations, while DCEO would maintain final approval over those recommendations. The restructuring would save taxpayers money.
The bill to restructure DCEO is HB574 and was re-assigned to the House Rules Committee. HB574 continues to be analyzed and discussed. You can read Crain’s Chicago Business articles explaining the possible restructuring here and here.
The state legislature passed a bill clarifying the City of Chicago’s authority to designate parkland for the Obama Presidential library if the city is awarded that honor. The Chamber has been highly supportive of the city’s bid to land the Obama Presidential library. The legislation has been sent to the Governor. You can read an article describing the legislation here.
We continue to follow many “smaller” bills that are moving around the legislature that would place burdens on businesses in relation to regulations and/or reporting requirements. We will continue to update you on the progress of our efforts.
