Illinois Quick Hits: Delayed Tax Credit Launches; Peotone Airport Bill Advances

By The Center Square Staff:

Delayed tax credit launches

The Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity has announced the launch of the Blue Collar Jobs Act Tax Credit application for eligible companies.

The act is a bipartisan legislative package designed to promote economic expansion and growth in Illinois by incentivizing construction projects. The legislation makes $20 million in tax credits available per year for eligible companies.

Eligible companies can receive tax credits equal to 75% of the income tax attributable to construction workers on eligible projects located in underserved areas, or 50% for projects located in other areas.

Peotone airport bill advances

Illinois lawmakers have passed legislation that takes steps toward the development of a new airport.

If the governor signs the bill, it will direct the Illinois Department of Transportation to create a list of qualifications for proposals to build a cargo airport in Peotone. The project has been debated for about 40 years.

IDOT has spent nearly $100 million acquiring land in the area over the years.

Prison guards charged

A federal grand jury has indicted three Pinckneyville Correctional Center officers in connection with the beating of an inmate. The indictment charges the officers with civil rights violations and conspiring to falsify reports about the incident.

The indictment alleges the officers beat an inmate who was fully restrained with his hands cuffed behind his back and secured in leg irons. Illinois State Police are leading the investigation into the incident.

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