Corporate Tax Break Bill Sunk

Freshman state Rep. Thaddeus Jones (D-Calumet City) promised his Senate colleague he would vote for her controversial corporate tax break bill aimed at keeping Chicago-based CME Group and Sears Holdings Corporation from leaving the state.

So when 99 red lights — which indicate no votes — lined up on the voting boards in the House Tuesday night torpedoing the bill, Jones’ light was one of only seven to glow a steady green. The bill’s failure was so pronounced, an audible gasp swept through the chamber as the final tally appeared.

“Your word is your bond, and I told Sen. Toi Hutchinson I would support her bill, come hell or high water,” Jones said.

“And it was hell,” joked state Rep. Rich Brauer, a Republican from downstate Petersburg who voted against the measure, as the two stood in a hallway shortly after the vote.

Hutchinson’s bill would have allowed CME Group, which operates two futures exchanges, and Sears to take advantage of a tax relief package worth more than $200 million. The bill also included an expansion of the state’s Earned Income Tax Credit, which provides tax breaks to working poor families, and included new tax credits aimed at research and development.

The legislature adjourned Tuesday without a plan to revive the bill. Lawmakers aren’t scheduled to return to Springfield until January.

The bill came about after lawmakers approved an increase in the state corporate income tax that CME Group executive chairman Terrence Duffy said unfairly taxed transactions on the futures exchange that do not derive from Illinois. Sears, meanwhile, wanted to extend a tax break at its Hoffman Estates headquarters, at least until the company could recapture about $125 million it invested in infrastructure.

Both companies have threatened to move out of Illinois without tax relief.

A version of the bill passed the Senate by a vote of 36-18 earlier Tuesday, before landing with a thud in the House. Legislative leaders and Gov. Pat Quinn had spent months negotiating terms, which included a sprinkle of tax relief for working families in an attempt to defray criticism that the bill only aided deep-pocketed corporations.

But even that wasn’t enough to ensure passage in the House. Moments after shooting down the bill, the House rejected a simple resolution supporting Occupy Wall Street protesters, even though the occupy movement worked to kill the CME/Sears legislation. Occupy supporters were encouraged Tuesday through social media sites to phone legislators and urge a “no” vote on the corporate tax breaks.

Kristen McQueary covers state government for The Chicago News Cooperative and WBEZ.