98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2013 and 2014
HB2958

 

Introduced , by Rep. Scott Drury

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
New Act

    Creates the Economic Policy Planning Act. Creates the Economic Policy Planning Commission to address the State's lack of a comprehensive policy on economic development incentives. Provides that the Commission will conduct a review of current economic conditions, and will hold at least 3 public hearings on the creation of a policy on economic development incentives. Provides that the Commission will report to the General Assembly with specific policy recommendations on economic development incentives on or before December 31, 2014. Repeals the Act on December 31, 2015. Effective immediately.


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A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning economic planning.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5Economic Policy Planning Act.
 
6    Section 5. Findings and purpose. The General Assembly finds
7that:
8    (a) The State of Illinois does not currently have a
9comprehensive policy on economic development incentives.
10Instead, the State has a wide variety of incentives reducing
11specific State or local tax burdens that are provided mostly
12upon request by citizens and corporations. This creates an
13uncertain tax environment for businesses in Illinois and, as
14witnessed during the fall 2011 veto session, can leave the
15State vulnerable to competition from other states that have
16tried to entice businesses with financial incentives to
17relocate or expand outside of Illinois.
18    (b) In Fiscal Year 2010, the State spent a total of
19$313,600,000 on tax incentives for businesses. According to
202009 Illinois Department of Revenue data, only 0.7% of the more
21than 450,000 corporations filing taxes in Illinois take
22advantage of these tax incentives.
23    (c) The State of Illinois must develop a formal economic

 

 

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1development policy to guide the awarding of incentives. A
2transparent economic development policy would effectively curb
3economic brinksmanship by Illinois businesses by creating a
4predictable process for applying for and earning tax
5incentives. Such a policy needs to be in place before the State
6renews, expands, or creates any economic development
7incentives, and to guide policy makers in determining which tax
8incentives are most beneficial to the State.
 
9    Section 10. Economic Policy Planning Commission.
10    (a) There is created the Economic Policy Planning
11Commission. The Commission shall have 10 voting members
12appointed as follows:
13        One member of the General Assembly, who shall serve as
14    co-chairperson, and one member of the public appointed by
15    the President of the Senate;
16        One member of the General Assembly and one member of
17    the public appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate;
18        One member of the General Assembly, who shall serve as
19    co-chairperson, and one member of the public appointed by
20    the Speaker of the House of Representatives;
21        One member of the General Assembly and one member of
22    the public appointed by the Minority Leader of the House of
23    Representatives; and
24        2 members appointed by the Governor.
25        The Director of the Department of Commerce and Economic

 

 

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1    Opportunity, or his or her designee, the Secretary of the
2    Department of Transportation, or his or her designee, the
3    Executive Director of the Capital Development Board, or his
4    or her designee, and the Executive Director of the Illinois
5    Finance Authority, or his or her designee, shall serve as
6    non-voting, ex-officio members of the Commission.
7    (b) The co-chairpersons may appoint such other individuals
8as they may deem helpful as non-voting members of the
9Commission.
10    (c) The members of the Commission shall serve without
11compensation, but may be reimbursed for expenses from funds
12appropriated for that purpose.
13    (d) The Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity
14shall provide administrative support, together with meeting
15space, to assist the Commission in fulfilling its mission.
 
16    Section 15. Meetings.
17    (a) The Commission shall conduct monthly meetings,
18conference calls, or both, and shall conduct at least 3 public
19hearings, as the co-chairpersons shall direct, before filing
20its final written findings and recommendations as provided in
21Section 25 of this Act. Additional public hearings may be held
22at the discretion of the co-chairpersons.
23    (b) The public hearings shall be held at geographically
24convenient locations around the State. The locations, dates and
25times of the hearings shall be determined by the

 

 

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1co-chairpersons, on a schedule that is publicly announced in
2area newspapers, State buildings, websites, and other media no
3less than 3 weeks in advance of each hearing. All hearings
4shall be completed at least 2 months prior to the time for
5submission of the final written findings and recommendations as
6provided in Section 25 of this Act.
7    (c) At the public hearings, the Commission shall allow
8interested persons to present their views and comments and to
9present any written literature, statements, articles, or
10comments. Based on attendance and time frames, the Commission
11may set limits for the time each speaker may comment. These
12hearings may be continued if all persons could not be heard.
 
13    Section 20. Activities and purpose.
14    (a) The Commission will conduct a thorough review of the
15current economic condition of the State of Illinois, including
16but not limited to its natural resources, geography,
17infrastructure, businesses, workforce, and educational system,
18within the context of the national and international economy.
19    (b) The Commission will also conduct a thorough review of
20relevant and available studies relating to the current economic
21condition of the State of Illinois, other states, and the
22nation, including those studies conducted by governments,
23universities, and reputable groups and institutions. The
24Commission shall also conduct a review of all laws and
25regulations relating to economic planning in the State of

 

 

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1Illinois, other states, and the nation.
2    (c) Through the public hearings required in Section 15 of
3this Act and otherwise, the Commission will gather information,
4review studies, evaluate testimony, and consider and summarize
5written comments received, and shall make written findings and
6recommendations as required in Section 25 of this Act.
 
7    Section 25. Report; legislation.
8    (a) The Commission shall make its report to the General
9Assembly on or before December 31, 2014. The report of the
10Commission shall detail those findings and recommendations
11supported by a majority of the voting members.
12    (b) The findings and recommendations shall include, but are
13not limited to:
14        (1) Specific goals and objectives for the economy of
15    the State of Illinois, including but not limited to: target
16    economic sectors, business retention or recruitment,
17    geographic focus, job creation, blight mitigation,
18    improving economically distressed neighborhoods, and
19    environmental improvements. The goals and objectives shall
20    be stated measurable terms, so that they can be used to
21    provide context and accountability for the use of economic
22    development incentives.
23        (2) Specified types of economic development
24    incentives, including eligibility and qualifications for
25    individual firms, maximum funding for particular programs,

 

 

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1    the jurisdictions that will use them and the extent to
2    which those jurisdictions may use them.
3        (3) A clearly defined evaluation process for each type
4    of economic development incentive, including, but not
5    limited to:
6            (A) how a proposal measures up to established
7        economic development criteria;
8            (B) a cost/benefit analysis;
9            (C) an evaluation of tax base impact, both in terms
10        of increases in taxable value and, where a Tax
11        Increment Financing District is proposed, the impact
12        on all overlapping taxing jurisdictions;
13            (D) an analysis of the impact of a project on
14        existing businesses;
15            (E) a determination of whether the project would
16        have proceeded if the incentive is not provided; and
17            (F) the required documentation for demonstrating
18        these criteria.
19        (4) Specific performance standards for each project
20    receiving economic development incentives, to help gauge
21    the effectiveness of both the specific economic
22    development incentives provided as well as the State's
23    overall economic development program, together with the
24    recovery of promised financial benefits, through clawbacks
25    or linkage agreements, of recipients failing to fulfill
26    their commitments.

 

 

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1        (5) A process for ongoing and regular monitoring of the
2    economic development incentives granted and the
3    performance of each project receiving incentives,
4    including the designation or creation of a State agency or
5    other body to provide the monitoring. Ongoing and regular
6    monitoring must include, at a minimum, the examination of
7    performance standards relative to each economic
8    development agreement, and the determination of whether
9    the goals for each project have been achieved within the
10    defined timeframe.
11    (c) In addition to the report, the Commission shall provide
12to the General Assembly its recommendations in the form of
13legislation. The Legislative Reference Bureau shall provide
14drafting assistance to the Commission.
 
15    Section 30. Repealer. This Act is repealed on December 31,
162015.
 
17    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
18becoming law.