Quinn OKs Navistar tax break if company still interested

SPRINGFIELD - Should Navistar choose to go forward with relocating to Lisle, the state of Illinois stands ready to give it millions worth of tax breaks.

Gov. Pat Quinn signed a law Friday that was passed specifically to try to ease the manufacturing giant's consolidation efforts in Illinois. Quinn signed the law, which immediately goes into effect, without comment, announcing it in an e-mail sent to media outlets. The tax break could be worth $3.3 million a year for 10 years. It allows employers who create or retain jobs to claim a credit against their corporate taxes.

The problem, however, is Navistar recently announced it would no longer participate in local talks because of what it said was unfair characterizations on the part of local critics. The move appears to jeopardize the entire project in Lisle.

But those involved in negotiating the state incentive believe it's written in a way that would allow Navistar to utilize it anywhere in the state. Proponents say the tax breaks would be more than covered by the jobs the company would bring to Illinois.

Navistar is a leading manufacturer of trucks and truck engines and had announced plans to move several of its operations to the suburbs from Indiana. Last year, the tax incentive deal ran afoul of union interests and was blocked at the Capitol. It then became the focus of local opposition based on environmental concerns over diesel engine research expressed by a school for autistic children, Giant Steps of Illinois, located near the Lisle site.

Those concerns were addressed but then additional local opposition emerged and the company essentially said it had enough.