Pritzker announces bond expansion, says progress has been made with
Bears
[February 10, 2026]
By Jim Talamonti | The Center Square
(The Center Square) – Gov. J.B. Pritzker says progress has been made in
conversations with the Chicago Bears.
Pritzker announced the expansion of sales tax and revenue bonds for
capital projects at a press conference in Belleville on Monday.
The governor said STAR bonds were not written for the Bears.
“This can be used by local governments. We’re not specifically looking
at it that way, perhaps the Bears are,” Pritzker said.
Pritzker said he would let the Bears talk about what they want to get
done.
“There’s a lot of discussion, a lot of ongoing conversation with the
Bears and indeed, frankly, progress that’s been made, so I’m pleased
about that,” Pritzker said.
The governor added that he did not think the Bears were bluffing when
they said they had expanded their stadium site search to include
Northwest Indiana.
When asked if he was looking to attract the St. Louis Cardinals to
Illinois, Pritzker said the state is trying to attract businesses,
including teams.
The governor also said he was not looking at “throwing money at a
stadium” for anybody.
The expansion of the STAR bonds program follows Pritzker’s signing of
Senate Bill 1911 in December. The measure initially contained language
to amend the property tax code but was changed several times to decouple
Illinois from federal tax code changes, including bonus depreciation for
newly-constructed non-residential property.
The amended bill also included language Pritzker said would provide
local governments with financing options for capital projects.
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Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker speaks at a news conference in Chicago,
June 30, 2025. Photo: BlueRoomStream / Screenshot
The governor said STAR bonds can generate transformational levels of
economic growth.
“When all of the current projects are complete, they are projected
to generate $1 billion in sales and more than 5,000 new jobs. That’s
just at the beginning of this wave of opportunity with STAR bonds,”
Pritzker said.
The legislation provides that the governor’s office has final
approval of all STAR bond districts and projects.
The number of projects available for each area is based on the
economic development region’s population.
Four projects are available for regions with a population of 1
million or more, three projects are available for regions with
population between 600,000 and 999,999. Only one project is
available to regions with population less than 600,000.
Interested municipalities and counties must notify the Illinois
Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity of an intent to
establish a STAR bond district by June 1. |
