SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) — Illinois has historic funding for construction projects under the Rebuild Illinois plan, but industry leaders believe thousands of engineering jobs will stay unfilled if state lawmakers don't help with workforce development.
The American Council of Engineering Companies of Illinois is proposing a tax credit worth 10% of the salary for recent graduates of Illinois engineering schools and 5% of the salary for graduates from schools in other states.
"These are tax credits to keep Illinois residents and Illinois graduates here in Illinois instead of leading the state," said ACEC Illinois President and CEO Kevin Artl. "They're going to be working in high-paying jobs for growing companies. This is a net positive for the state."
Engineers are also calling for lawmakers to earmark $750,000 in the Fiscal Year 2025 budget for the Illinois Department of Transportation's student loan repayment program. State lawmakers passed a bipartisan plan last year to create an IDOT pilot program to help engineering graduates pay off their student loans.
Meanwhile, ACEC leaders said they are strongly opposed to any efforts to roll back or divert funding for Rebuild Illinois capital investments. Gov. JB Pritzker's budget proposal diverts $175 million for bridge repairs, road improvement and other critical projects to pay for spending on public transportation operations in the Chicagoland area.
Artl noted that the Transportation for Illinois Coalition estimates the $175 million divestment of road funding could multiply to over $1 billion of loss encompassing bridge and road improvements over the coming years. He said such a blow could limit plans for IDOT, delay projects and slow the state's effort to modernize transportation.
"Our legislative priorities aim to ensure that the progress so far made is protected and not diminished by infrastructure funding cutbacks or diversion and that incentives for research, training and workforce development are maintained to make Illinois a destination point for engineers from across the world to locate here and work on these critical projects," Artl said.
Engineering leaders would also like to see lawmakers pass legislation to modernize the state's research and development tax credit to attract new companies to the state. The current R&D tax credit has not been modified since 1986, and the tax credit has expired four times. The modernized plan could make the tax credit permanent and match the federal research and development credit.
A separate plan could allow engineering firms to share their cutting-edge technology and designs with state agencies. Advocates noted that the legislation would allow for greater communication and knowledge transfer between the private and public sector.
"Right now, Illinois engineers are changing the world," said ACEC Illinois Board Chair Linda Moen. "With a focus on sustainability, engineers are working on bringing safe drinking water to communities, the creation of a statewide infrastructure for charging electric vehicles and a smarter, more resilient transportation network. While these challenges are diverse, so is our industry and we view that diversity as an immense strength and benefit to the state."
Engineers are also concerned that the U.S. Department of Transportation's disadvantaged business enterprise program and other local programs are at risk due to the Supreme Court's ruling to block considerations of race in university admissions. Advocates noted that the state of Illinois, IDOT, the Illinois Tollway and Capitol Development Board have effectively and credibly used the programs to help businesses grow.
"We are going to seek adoption of a Senate Resolution to urge Congress to protect these programs," said ACEC Illinois Board Treasurer Tanya Adams.
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