NOTE: Sears has threatened to leave Illinois if tax relief was not granted by the end of this year. The Senate passed a bill that would have granted tax relief to Sears and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange [CME], but this bill was defeated by an overwhelming vote in the Illinois House, where members voted 99 against to only 8 votes in favor of passage.
MEMO TO SEARS EMPLOYEES
Date: Nov. 30, 2011
To: All Hoffman Estates Support Center Associates
From: Chris Brathwaite, VP, Communications and Public Relations
Re: Last Night’s Illinois House Vote
By now many of you have seen or heard the news stories reported by several news outlets speculating on the possibility of moving our company from Hoffman Estates as a result of last night’s Illinois House vote.
We are disappointed that the legislature was not able to reach agreement and pass a package that will help us remain an Illinois company. We received solid support for our portion of the legislation and are hopeful that the unrelated issues, including the earned income tax credit provision, will be resolved in short order by prudent leadership. You should know that our portion of the bill was endorsed on the record by representatives of both Hoffman Estates and District 300. The fight is not over, and we continue to work toward a resolution. Yesterday was another step in this process. But a final decision has not yet been made.
Our commitment to you remains the same; to be thorough in our review of all of our options. We hope that lawmakers will achieve a compromise very soon as our timeline for making a decision about our future by the end of the year has not changed.
We will keep you apprised of any significant developments.
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