Legislators meet with Gov. JB Pritzker's staff on push for Arlington Heights Bears stadium deal
The clock is ticking for the Chicago Bears to decide if they will continue to play in Illinois or cross the border into Indiana.
Legislators met with with staff from Gov. JB Pritzker's office on Wednesday to consider a "megaprojects bill," which would give the team tax certainty if they build a new stadium in Arlington Heights.
The legislation would allow the developer of any project costing at least $500 million to negotiate a freeze on its property tax assessment, but the bill is getting some pushback in Springfield.
The measure moved out of an Illinois House committee in February, but has not yet received a full floor vote.
Meantime, Indiana state legislators recently passed their own bill to create a stadium authority to fund a new stadium in Hammond for the Bears using taxpayer dollars.
Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect that the meeting was between the governor's office and state legislators, not Bears team management.