Public Act 094-0966
 
SB2885 Enrolled LRB094 19130 JAM 54654 b

    AN ACT concerning business incentives.
 
    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
 
    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
Business Location Efficiency Incentive Act.
 
    Section 5. Definitions. In this Act:
    "Location efficient" means a project that maximizes the use
of existing investments in infrastructure, avoids or minimizes
additional government expenditures for new infrastructure, and
has nearby housing affordable to the permanent workforce of the
project or has accessible and affordable mass transit or its
equivalent or some combination of both.
    "Location efficiency report" means a report that is
prepared by an applicant for increased State economic
development assistance under Section 10 and follows this Act
and any related Department guidelines, and that describes the
existence of (i) affordable workforce housing or (ii)
accessible and affordable mass transit or its equivalent.
    "Employee housing or transportation remediation plan"
means a plan to increase affordable housing or transportation
options, or both, for employees earning up to the median annual
salary of the workforce at the project. The plan may include,
but is not limited to, an employer-financed or assisted housing
program that can be supplemented by State or federal grants,
shuttle services between the place of employment and existing
transit stops or other reasonably accessible places,
facilitation of employee carpooling, or similar services.
     "Accessible and affordable mass transit" means access to
transit stops with regular and frequent service within one mile
from the project site and pedestrian access to transit stops.
    "Affordable workforce housing" means owner-occupied or
rental housing that costs, based on current census data for the
municipality where the project is located or any municipality
within 3 miles of the municipality where the project is
located, no more than 35% of the median salary at the project
site, exclusive of the highest 10% of the site's salaries. If
the project is located in an unincorporated area, "affordable
workforce housing" means no more than 35% of the median salary
at the project site, excluding the highest 10% of the site's
salaries, based on the median cost of rental or of
owner-occupied housing in the county where the unincorporated
area is located.
    "Department" means the Department of Commerce and Economic
Opportunity (DCEO) or its successor agency.
    "Applicant" means a company or its representative that
negotiates or applies for economic development assistance from
DCEO.
    "Economic development assistance" means State tax credits
and tax exemptions given as an incentive to an eligible company
after certification by DCEO under the Economic Development for
a Growing Economy Tax Credit Act (EDGE).
    "Existence of infrastructure" means the existence within
1,500 feet of the proposed site of roads, sewers, sidewalks,
and other utilities and a description of the investments or
improvements, if any, that an applicant expects State or local
government to make to that infrastructure.
 
    Section 10. Economic development assistance awards.
    (a) An applicant that also wants to be considered for
increased economic development assistance under this Act shall
submit a location efficiency report.
    (b) DCEO may give an applicant an increased tax credit or
extension if the applicant's location efficiency report
demonstrates that the applicant is seeking assistance for a
project to be located in an area that satisfies this Act's
standards for affordable workforce housing or affordable and
accessible mass transit. If the Department determines from the
location efficiency report that the applicant is seeking
assistance in an area that is not location efficient, the
Department may award an increase in State economic development
assistance if an applicant (i) submits, and the Department
accepts, an applicant's employee housing and transportation
remediation plan or (ii) creates jobs in a labor surplus area
as defined by the Department of Employment Security at the end
of each calendar year.
    (c) Applicants locating or expanding at location-efficient
sites, with approved location efficiency plans, or creating
jobs in labor surplus areas may receive (i) up to 10% more than
the maximum allowable tax credits for which they are eligible
under the Economic Development for a Growing Economy Tax Credit
Act (EDGE), but not to equal or exceed 100% of the applicant's
tax liability, or (ii) such other adjustment of those tax
credits, including but not limited to extensions, as the
Department deems appropriate.
    (d) The Department may provide technical assistance to
employers requesting assistance in developing an appropriate
employee housing or transportation plan.
 
    Section 15. Summaries; progress reports.
    (a) DCEO shall include summaries of the initial employee
housing or transportation plans for each assisted project in
the annual compilation and publication of project progress
reports required under subsection (d) of Section 20 of the
Corporate Accountability for Tax Expenditures Act. Companies
that fail to do so or that make inadequate progress shall have
their increased tax credit or extension eliminated. Applicants
and submitted data are subject to all disclosure, reporting,
and recapture provisions set forth in Public Act 93-552.
    (b) By June 1, 2008 and by June 1 of each year thereafter
through 2011, the Department shall include, when appropriate,
data on the outcomes or status of approved employee housing or
transportation plans in the project progress reports required
under the Corporate Accountability for Tax Expenditure Act.
 
    Section 20. Duration of incentives; report to General
Assembly.
    (a) Any multi-year incentive awarded under this Act shall
continue for the time period called for in the agreement with
the Department and shall not be altered by the repeal of this
Act.
    (b) By January 1, 2011, the Department shall submit to the
Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of
the Senate, for assignment to the appropriate committees, a
report on the incentives awarded under this Act and the
Department's activities, findings, and recommendations with
respect to this Act and its extension, amendment, or repeal.
The report, when acted upon by those committees, shall be
distributed to each member of the General Assembly.
 
    Section 25. Repeal. This Act is repealed on December 31,
2011.
 
    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January
1, 2007.

Effective Date: 1/1/2007