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Illinios Ventures
into New Initiatives

The Land of Lincoln has been experiencing a rebirth of interest in industrial recruiting. Conservative, belt-tightening administrations, which were interested in the state paying off debt, gave less focus to industrial recruiting than Gov. George Ryan.

"There's been a whole rebirth of initiatives and leadership in this area," says John Lewis, an economist at Northern Illinois University. "Last fall the legislature passed the Illinois First Program, which has a variety of different aspects that promote economic development. Before Gov. Ryan, the state certainly reduced its willingness to compete. There was a lot of concern; it just never got to the point where it forced a change in policy."

Until now.

Lewis notes that Illinois' latest package of incentives resembles those adopted several years ago in Indiana. They chiefly involve bond-financing programs that give the state more flexibility in helping companies finance new and expanding projects, as well as state-finance work-force training programs.

These programs represent the first phase of a five-year program to bolster Illinois' industrial recruitment efforts. Fashioning the second phase is in the works, and various state officials and academics are now surveying such fields as how the state's telecommunications infrastructure can be improved to meet development challenges in the future. They also are working to get a handle on how capital markets are changing and will affect the state's future growth patterns.

"We're trying to see what local communities need, what they can do for themselves and what the state can do for them," Lewis says. "I think the new initiatives are having an impact."

Part of the new programs is being called VentureTECH, which is being funded by US$1.9 billion from the state. Another program has been dubbed the EDGE program. These two efforts focus on a wide range of needs, from tax credits to work-force training and infrastructure grants. They also include beefing up what had been a scaled back staff at the Illinois Dept. of Commerce and Community Affairs.

From all indications, Illinois' new initiatives are paying off. In 1999, the state ranked No. 6 in Site Selection's list of states in attracting new and expanding industry. Last year, Illinois had 872 plants that were new or expanded in the state. Further, the state is boasting that in 1999, new business incorporations in the state reached 37,095, a record in Illinois.