Rahimi, Harris & Grote Show
Examining the Bears' struggle to to achieve tax certainty for stadium push
22 Jan 2026
Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Rahimi Harrison-Grody, middays 10 a.m. to 2 on Chicago Sports Radio 670 The Score.
This is Rahimi Harrison-Groney on 670 The Score. And earlier today on Mullion Hall, the Arlington Heights mayor, Jim Tenaglia, joined the show and he was asked why other NFL teams have been able to achieve tax certainty. And that's what the Bears are looking for. That's part of the reason why Indiana is part of the discussion. They might build their stadium there.
Tax certainty to the Bears means a locked-in rate. But he explained why that's easier said than done.
I can tell you that the next closest, highest paid, newest stadium being SoFi in California is $8.8 million a year. And that's a stadium that is going to be, I would say, our new stadium will be very similar in many ways. It's going to be Super Bowl ready. It's going to be Final Four ready. It's going to be in a situation where people can go and enjoy it for a long, long time.
But the property tax bill that the bears are fearing, it could be very easily by calculations that we're already seeing in the hundreds of millions per year. And so the only issue I could say with real certainty is that the bears need to have some control or understanding of what that number will be.
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Chapter 2: What challenges does the Bears face in achieving tax certainty for their stadium?
And so far, it's been... Really difficult to get to, but it's possible, Molly, it's possible that maybe the needle's moving just a little bit.
OK, but here's the issue is when he talks about California, California's entire taxing structure is different. That's why whenever Crane Kenny, for example, brought up entertainment tax and how that plays into Wrigley. Again, it's different. California's state income tax goes up to 13 percent. 13.3% to be exact. That's outside of your federal tax in the state of California.
Because of that, property taxes are traditionally very low. 1% levy, 1.1% to 1.3%. That is not the case, as we know, in the state of Illinois. I estimate a 5% tax. Sometimes they say 4.95%. But you know, when you're doing your math, it's typically you clock it in at 5%. Now that half a percentage makes a big difference.
But the state income tax or the property income tax varies by county in this state. It's anywhere from 2.4% to Lake, going down to 2, 2.5% for Kendall. Kane is 2.4% according to the latest data. 1.8% for Cook.
Chapter 3: Why is tax certainty crucial for the Bears' new stadium plans?
Now that's going to vary based on, for example, the property taxes being levied, as a lot of you know, very late. So given all of that, unless you change the entire structure of the state taxing, then this is the issue. But you can't compare SoFi Stadium, where, by the way, Stan Kroenke spent $5 billion of his own dollars. It was entirely privately financed in this discussion.
I think there's a battle going on right now before the ultimate battle, if you were. And Indiana stepping in has made it more interesting because I think it's expediting something that we could be talking about at the beginning of next year, if we're being honest.
because kicking the can down the road is something that illinois is want to do in this situation and looking at what indiana's injection of hey we have a plan it's a really good plan for you financially is going to make the defecator get off the pot quicker in this instance
It's really the smartest thing the Bears have done throughout this whole process, really. I'm exhausted by it all. Shovels are not in the ground, all of that stuff. But this Indiana move and getting the high-profile people to look at it, getting the legislature involved, Illinois doesn't want to lose the Bears to Indiana.
It's the Bears' best move yet to be threatening Indiana and to have gone about it the way that they have.
If Illinois doesn't have the multiple billion dollars to help subsidize the stadium, then they will lose to Indiana. But I don't think it should come at that type of money for taxpayers, as in us.
That is correct. I don't think Indiana is the Bears' preferred destination by any stretch. Of course not. But you can't ignore the sweetheart deal that they're apparently going to be getting from Indiana.
Right, and it's beautiful, beautiful leverage. Even if the Bears are not serious at all, they have put themselves back in a position of power, which just simply had not been the case once they lost Chicago.
Yeah, I mean, they were going to have to go farther out to get what they wanted.
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Chapter 4: How do property tax rates in Illinois compare to California?
I just want to point that out.
Do you know who is still just a baby?
Who?
Kayla Williams.
He is just a 24.
He and PCA, they're just babies. And Conor Bedard.
They've been hanging out like Muppet babies lately at the United Center.
They'll make their dreams come true.
I do have something to say about that, too. The Caleb hanging out everywhere.
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