CEO Guide to Site Selection

#48

Illinois

CEO Rank on Best & Worst States for Business

GOING GLOBAL

For the 8th consecutive year, the 2020 IBM Global Location Trends report noted Chicago leads the nation in foreign direct investment (FDI) in North America and is #6 in FDI investments globally. Chicago is now home to more than 1,800 foreign-based companies that account for more than $140 billion in FDI. World Business Chicago works to increase foreign investment through agreements and partnerships with foreign cities and counties. Google, Nielsen, Lion Electric and Cisco have all made announcements and expansions in Illinois in the past year.

“Lion’s historic investment to bring its largest production facility to Illinois represents not only a win for our com- munities but a strong step forward in our work to expand clean energy alternatives and the jobs they bring to our communities. The new Joliet facility will put Illinois at the forefront of a national movement to transition to zero-emission vehicle use, advancing our own goals of putting one million of these cars on the road by 2030.”
JB Pritzker
Governor

TAXES

0 %

top corporate income tax

# 0

on the Tax Foundation’s State Business Tax Climate Index ranking

EDUCATION

0 %

of students graduated high school in 2019

0 %

of adults age 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or higher

UNEMPLOYMENT RATE

0 %

RIGHT TO WORK STATE

No

QUALITY OF LIFE

# 0

POPULATION GROWTH

0 %

increase between 2010 and 2020

KEY INCENTIVES

EDGE (Economic Development for a Growing Economy): Offers tax incentives to encourage companies to locate or expand operations when there is activeconsideration of a competing location in another state.

Enterprise Zone Program: Offers state and local tax incentives, regulatory relief and improved governmental services to stimulate economic growth and neighbor- hood revitalization in economically depressed areas of the state.

Employer Training Investment Program: Offers grants to reimburse new or expanding companies for up to 50% of the cost of training their employees.

Research & Development Tax Credit: Offers a non-re- fundable tax credit of 6.5% of qualifying R&D expenses in the state that exceed the baseline amount of R&Dexpenses.

Manufacturing Machinery & Equipment (MM&E): Offers a 6.25% state exemption against the purchase of consumable items used in the manufacturing process.

EDCs

Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity
illinois.gov/dceo/Pages/default.aspx

Intersect Illinois
intersectillinois.org

World Business Chicago
worldbusinesschicago.com

Chicago Regional Growth Corporation
chicagoregionalgrowth.com

HIGHLIGHTED PROGRAM OR INITIATIVE

ExporTech is the only program in the nation that helps companies develop an export plan. Each cohort is limited to no more than eight companies that work with a coach and receive customized market research. On average, participating companies generate an additional $770,000 in new export sales.

BIG DEALS

  • Nielsen Global Consumer Business announced in October 2020 that Chicago will serve as its global headquarters starting in 2021.
  • As part of its plan to add more than 10,000 employees nationwide in 2021, Google announced it was building out 58,000 square feet of office space in Chicago toaccommodate 200 employees.
  • Lion Electric announced in May 2021 plans to build the largest all-electric commercial vehicle production plant in the U.S. and 745 new jobs in Joliet.
  • Innovafeed, an animal nutrition producer, announced in March 2021 plans to construct the world’s largest insect protein production facility in Decatur.
  • Cisco announced in August 2021, it will move its Mid- west headquarters to Chicago.
  • Cryptocurrency ATM operator CoinFlip announced in August 2021 it will double the size of its headquarters in Chicago.

BIG COMPANIES

38 Fortune 500 companies headquartered in the state, including:

  • Walgreens
  • Boeing
  • State Farm Insurance Cos.
  • Archer Daniels Midland
  • Caterpillar
  • Allstate
  • Deere
  • McDonald’s
  • Ulta
  • Discover Financial Services