Walter's Perspective: Say No To Tax Breaks For CME
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Hear ye, hear ye, the Illinois General Assembly is back at work for the people of Illinois and it's not doing very well – cutting our services and raising our taxes.
But, for some corporations of Illinois, the Legislature is doing fabulously well. Yes, it's raising their taxes, too, but then giving them tax breaks – huge tax breaks – to induce them to stay in Illinois and provide jobs.
Motorola, for instance, got a $100 million dollar tax break over the next ten years, in exchange for a promise to keep jobs in Illinois. Well, never mind the promise. Motorola's about to pink slip 185 employees in its offices in Libertyville.
CME Group, owner of the Chicago Board of Trade and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, and CBOE Holdings, owners of the Chicago Board Options Exchange, also are asking multimillion dollar tax breaks and Gov. Pat Quinn and the lawmakers are working on that.
Oh what, oh what to do? I know what to tell the board, the Merc and the CBOE: no. Give us a break.
