In another busy day in the Chicago Bears stadium race, Indiana Gov. Mike Braun signed a bill Thursday to establish a stadium authority meant to lure the team to Northwest Indiana, while an Illinois House committee advanced a bill aimed at helping the team lock in low property taxes at its planned complex in suburban Arlington Heights.
Things are finally speeding up after years of starts and stops since the Bears decided to leave their longtime home of Soldier Field for greener pastures and mixed-use developments, but nothing has been settled yet.
On Thursday in Springfield, the Illinois House’s Revenue and Finance Committee recommended a “megaprojects bill” (HB 910) to be adopted by a 13-7 vote that went along party lines. The bill is meant to set guidelines on tax negotiations with municipalities and minority hiring, among other details, for any large construction project worth more than $500 million, but several representatives pointed out the obvious: This is being done to make sure the Bears don’t leave the state.
“Illinois competes nationally for megaprojects, manufacturing, logistics, clean energy, entertainment districts,” the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Kam Buckner (D-26), said Thursday. “And when those projects show up, local governments need a lawful, transparent way to negotiate predictable payments for protecting schools and taxpayers. HB 910 gives municipalities and companies the ability to negotiate a structured, PILOT-style arrangement for megaprojects while putting labor, minority contracting, anti-double-dipping and public accountability into the statute.”
While the amended bill was adopted — after the Bears delayed the hearing by a week — it didn’t make it to the full House floor for a vote. The legislature will reconvene March 18.
Meanwhile, Indiana got its bill signed as its legislature wrapped up its early 2026 session. On Tuesday, the Indiana House passed SB 27 to create a Northwest Indiana stadium authority by a resounding 95-4 vote and on Thursday, the Indiana Senate signed off on its own amended bill by a 45-4 margin. Braun then quickly signed it. All while the Bears’ front office was down the street in Indianapolis, working at the NFL combine.
We made it clear from the beginning that Indiana is open for business. I’m thrilled to sign Senate Bill 27 to create the framework to build a new world-class stadium in Northwest Indiana. Now let’s get this across the goal line. pic.twitter.com/XTRFVTf1yl
— Governor Mike Braun (@GovBraun) February 26, 2026
“We’re excited to bring this project one step closer to fruition and firmly position Indiana as a premier destination for world-class sports and entertainment,” Indiana House Speaker Todd Huston said in a statement. “I thank the ownership and leadership of the Chicago Bears and look forward to building on our partnership.”
The Bears released a pair of statements in response to the two bills:
“Indiana has taken important steps over the last few months, and we are grateful for the leadership reflected by Governor Braun signing SB 27 establishing the framework for a stadium development in Northwest Indiana. We continue to work on the necessary due diligence and appreciate the ongoing engagement with Indiana state and local leaders.”
“We recognize and appreciate the advancement of mega project legislation by the Illinois House Revenue and Finance Committee, and we look forward to continued engagement as the lawmakers determine the legislative path forward.”
Question about details in Illinois bill
During the committee hearing in Springfield, Ill., there were plenty of questions from lawmakers, the interim chief financial officer of the city of Chicago and a deputy director of a political advocacy group about the specifics — or lack thereof.
“I’m compelled to speak today because of the very real and potential devastating impact this legislation will have on property taxpayers and local communities across this state,” said Brian Costin, the deputy director of the Illinois chapter of Americans for Prosperity, a libertarian-conservative group. “This is a property tax-shift bill. It would shift liability from mega-project developers directly onto homeowners, small businesses, creating a mechanism that could double or triple the effective property tax rates over the next few decades.”
Costin noted that instead of paying $280 million a year in property taxes for a proposed $5 billion project, the Bears would pay only about $11 million a year because the taxes would be capped at the original purchase price of the land, which was just under $200 million.
The Bears have said they won’t go through with their plan to build in Arlington Heights without that kind of property tax freeze. This bill would allow them to negotiate a lower, static property tax with a local government board in the Arlington Heights area. There was nothing about infrastructure costs in this specific legislation, but Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker has said the state will help fund the necessary improvements to make the project feasible.
While the bill wasn’t supposed to be about the Bears and the Arlington Park project specifically, Steven Mahr, the interim CFO for Chicago, asked for the city to get a fair shake at getting state funds to help keep the team in the city.
“The relocation of the Bears would have negative long-term consequences for the museum campus on Lake Shore Drive, the Loop and the downtown financial district, as well as the city more broadly,” he said. “Some of those long-term consequences are unknowable. However, it is clear that the city of Chicago has been and remains the economic engine of the state of Illinois. … Engines require fuel to run, otherwise the engine stalls and the entire vehicle grinds to a halt. The city is respectfully requesting a fair and equitable opportunity in these negotiations, a level playing field.”
When assistant majority leader Curtis J. Tarver II (D-25) asked Mahr why the city needed more time, given it had been talking for three years, he responded, “One of the challenges in negotiations with the Bears has been truly receiving commitment. And that’s one of the things we’ve been challenged to get from the Bears, but also from the state.”
Buckner, who represents the part of Chicago that includes Soldier Field, later told reporters he would demand some kind of financial restitution from the team to the city if it leaves. The Bears’ stadium lease runs through 2033, though there are already stipulated penalties for breaking it early.
Buckner said they “have not gotten that commitment yet” from the Bears on concessions for Chicago. He didn’t get specific, but again brought up the $100 million the Browns ownership is paying Cleveland for leaving their publicly-owned lakefront stadium as a reference point. https://t.co/pHKiAMd2Mf
— Brenden Moore (@brendenmoore13) February 26, 2026
Illinois Rep. Joe Sosnowski (R-69) said he supported the idea but had questions about the size and scope of the tax break for this bill.
“I’m 100 percent in support of keeping them in the Chicagoland area, and I think it makes sense for some of these projects, like a stadium, that there’s got to be some sort of certainty, especially when you look at other NFL institutions and property taxes that they pay,” he said. “There also has to be certainty for the local property tax districts and local governments and that makes sense. … At the same time, though, I’m still very hesitant when it comes to large tax incentives, and I think it’s very important to have safeguards.”
Rita Mayfield (D-60) represents an area just north of the Bears’ headquarters in Lake Forest, and while she voted for its adoption, she had pointed comments about the details.
“This bill is problematic in the way that it is drafted,” she said. “The 45-year property tax exemption is a non-starter. We do not give (tax increment financing) that long. … I can’t see anyone voting for that and agreeing to that. It’s just not plausible.”
Before the vote broke on party lines, Rep. John Cabello (R-90) asked Buckner to include the Republican minority in further discussions.
“There’s been some good discussions today, but we’re very fearful of some of the language in here about the taxpayers,” he said. “We’ve got to clear some of that up. I know some of the House Republicans that are close to Arlington are wanting to talk because they have a real interest in this. The problem is that we’ve got limited time. This has been going on for quite some time, and every day that goes by is higher costs for anybody wanting to build.”