I urge you to vote NO on SB 1350 & HB 3565, the Mega Project Assessment Freeze and Payment Law - also described as a Payment in Lieu of Taxes (PILT or PILOT).
This legislation would authorize the
Village of Arlington Heights to potentially award the Chicago Bears with the
largest taxpayer subsidy in the history of the NFL, and all of U.S.
professional sports.
For any property tax breaks the
Chicago Bears – or other Mega Projects - would receive through this legislation,
it allows local governments to redistribute the burden to other residents and
businesses – dollar for dollar.
The potential cost to taxpayers for
the Chicago Bears project is up to an estimated $200M/year, or $8B over a 40-year agreement – and doesn’t include the cost of state tax breaks in the legislation.
This proposal doesn’t include the
$1B+ in infrastructure improvements the Chicago Bears have asked for, which
would require further tax incentives/revenues outside of a PILT.
Corporate welfare proposals like SB 1350
& HB 3565 tilt the playing field unfairly by providing special benefits to
specific industries, companies, activities, products, or services while hiking
taxes on other taxpayers. It violates the principles of equality before the law
outlined in the U.S. and Illinois Constitutions.
The sports industry is glamorous and
exciting, and its supporters have been very effective in persuading state and
local politicians to provide lucrative giveaways to their private
enterprises. However, the core function of
government is not to subsidize glamorous industries – which are competing with
essential services like public safety, transportation, and education for
limited taxpayer resources.
