Lawmakers in Illinois adjourned the 2026 spring legislative session Monday but didn't pass a bill that could keep the Chicago Bears from building a new home in Indiana.
State Sen. Bill Cunningham (D-Chicago) proposed legislation permitting cities within Cook County and populations greater than 70,000 -- such as Arlington Heights and Chicago -- to establish their own sports stadium authority. The Bears would foot the bill for construction -- the team has dedicated $2 billion in funding toward the project
-- on land owned by the public.
Under the proposed plan, the Bears would benefit from paying for the stadium construction by paying taxes only for the property surrounding the stadium. For example, in Arlington Heights, the franchise has a development plan for the land adjacent to the stadium site. The team would then hand the stadium over to the newly created sports authority and pay a stadium lease agreement.
The Illinois Senate passed the bill by a vote of 37-17 at 3:39 a.m. Monday. However, the house adjourned less than an hour later without a vote. Unless Illinois governor JB Pritzker calls a special legislative session, lawmakers won't convene again until October's fall veto session.
The Bears are deciding whether to build their new stadium in Arlington Heights, where they own a 326-acre property at the former site of the Arlington International Racecourse, or in Hammond, Ind. The Bears have never played a home game outside of Illinois since the franchise originated in 1920. But Indiana recently passed legislation, similar to Cunningham's proposal, to get the Bears to build a domed stadium in Hammond, located less than 30 miles from Chicago.
"We will finalize our evaluation of both Arlington Heights and Hammond and remain on the late spring/early summer timeline that we have previously communicated," the Bears said in a statement. "We will provide an update when we have a decision to share."
--Field Level Media
