On June 28, Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D-Ill.) signed into law a bipartisan plan that will provide $45 billion for state construction projects and construction-related programs, according to www.constructiondive.com.
The Rebuild Illinois plan primarily will be paid for by increases in gas and cigarette taxes and revenue generated by significant expansion of state gambling laws. The plan consists of four pieces of legislation, the first of which (House Bill 62) identifies the projects that will receive funding, including $33.2 billion of transportation projects; $3.5 billion for education projects; $4.4 billion to renovate or build new state facilities; $1 billion for environmental and conservation projects; $420 million for an expansion of broadband; $465 million toward healthcare and human services projects; and $1.8 billion for projects and programs that spur economic development, such as museums and libraries, apprenticeships and minority-owned business initiatives.
New taxes will help pay for the program during the next six years, including increasing the motor fuel tax from 19 cents to 38 cents and increasing the special fuels tax on diesel fuel, liquefied natural gas and propane from 2.5 cents to 7.5 cents. Additionally, municipalities within Cook County can raise their gas taxes by 3 cents per gallon, and two new counties are able to charge their own motor fuel tax.
An expansion of legalized gambling in Illinois is expected to provide hundreds of millions of dollars to fund new construction projects and generate thousands of new jobs.
Other boosts to the construction industry via the new gambling law are tax breaks for data center owners that make an investment of $250 million or more in Illinois, as well as establishment of the Illinois Works Jobs Program Act. Provisions of the act include creating a pre-apprenticeship program to increase the number of people coming into the state’s construction industry; an apprenticeship program that lawmakers hope will provide 10% of the labor on public works projects; and a bid-credit program intended to encourage contractors to hire a more diverse group of employees.
