The Cook County Board approved a new Tax Incentive Ordinance on Mar. 22 that will work alongside the recently passed Workforce Ordinance for all tax incentives processed by the Cook County Bureau of Economic Development.
The ordinance aims to improve the business climate and stimulate job growth in Cook County. It also seeks to ensure that recipients of tax incentives comply with their commitments. “This ordinance is a result of a major effort by municipalities, businesses and property owners throughout the County to reactivate vacant property,” said Cook County President Toni Preckwinkle. “It is designed to improve the business climate, stimulate job growth in Cook County and ensure that those who receive the incentives comply with their commitments.”
Under the new rules, recipients of tax incentives processed through the Bureau of Economic Development must enter into an agreement with the Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership for the duration of their incentive. These recipients are required to work directly with the Partnership to fill job openings and vacancies for at least seven business days from when positions become available.
The amended Tax Incentive Ordinance and Workforce Ordinance are expected to facilitate faster processing of applications in Industrial Growth Zones and designated retail corridors. They also make recipients more accountable for fulfilling agreements with the county, increase transparency by requiring applicants to submit an Economic Disclosure Statement to their municipality, create avenues for revoking incentives if businesses do not comply with development agreements, and clarify as well as expand living wage requirements so employees at incentivized properties are paid a living wage regardless of ownership.
Preckwinkle said these standards primarily apply to tax incentives reviewed by the Bureau of Economic Development and sent through to the Assessor for approval, promoting overall accountability in both tax incentive use and job creation within Cook County.
