Despite NFL teams -- and all American professional sports teams -- being owned almost exclusively by billionaires, most franchises still manage to find a way to secure public funding for their new stadiums or to upgrade their existing stadiums. Currently, the Bears are amongst the teams looking to move on from their longtime home, Soldier Field, for newer, nicer digs.
Naturally, there's plenty of controversy about where the stadium will go and how the stadium will be funded, with the Bears seeking more than $2 billion in public money for the project. At least one Illinois politician, State Representative Bob Morgan, would like any funding for the Bears new stadium to be tied to the team's performance.
It technically applies to all professional sports teams in the state of Illinois, but given that it's called the BEARS Act and also described as DA BEARS STADIUM OVERSIGHT ACT, we can safely assume it's the state's NFL team being targeted. The White Sox, apparently, are also seeking money for a new stadium, and, uh, clearly it would be applicable to that trash panda of a baseball team.
The short version of the Balanced Earnings And Record Standards (BEARS) and Stadium Oversight and Expectations Act is this: if you want public money to build a stadium or to upgrade facilities, etc., you must have a winning record in three of the last five years that you've played.
Here's the full version of the proposal he put forth with the Illinois General Assembly:
Creates the Balanced Earnings And Record Standards (BEARS) and Stadium Oversight and Expectations Act. Sets forth the purpose of the Act. Defines terms. Provides that, to be eligible for public financing, a professional sports team must have achieved a 0.500 record in at least 3 out of the last 5 regular seasons. Provides that the eligibility requirement applies to all requests for public financing related to: (1) stadium construction; (2) stadium renovation; and (3) stadium maintenance. Provides that teams that have been in existence for fewer than 5 years are exempt from the eligibility requirement but must demonstrate competitive performance by achieving a 0.500 or above record in at least 2 out of the team's first 5 seasons before applying for additional public financing. Provides that the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority shall issue a public report confirming the team's eligibility before any consideration of public financing by the State or a unit of local government. Provides that, prior to any public hearing on a proposal for public financing, the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority shall publish a report detailing: (1) the team's performance record over the last 5 seasons; (2) the total amount of public financing requested; and (3) the projected economic impact of the proposed financing on the local community. Requires the report to be made publicly available on the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority website at least 30 days prior to the public hearing. Provides that any team found to have intentionally misrepresented its performance record or eligibility criteria shall be subject to: (1) a fine of up to $500,000; and (2) a ban on applying for public financing for a period of 5 years. Allows the Attorney General to pursue legal action to enforce the penalties. Includes a severability clause. Effective immediately.
I mean ... this isn't a terrible idea? It used to be really bad in terms of teams moving cities -- GOATed movie BASEketball once did a famous and hilarious bit about it -- but we still see teams who are terrible manage to use the threat of moving to gain leverage on stadium deals. I suppose this sort of bill wouldn't necessarily prevent the Bears or Bulls or whoever from bouncing out of town, but it would prevent a bad team from being able to demand public money in order to build a new stadium.
There's also a pretty good chance this is just posturing by a public representative to try and point out the Bears haven't been very good for a while and feeding them public cash just because they've been a staple in the Chicago community for the last 100+ years isn't exactly the responsible thing to do.
Clearly it's a big topic, one large enough to be covered by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell at his "State of the League" press conference at Super Bowl LIX.
"The Bears are being very thoughtful, they're speaking to everybody about their needs as well as community needs and where they can find a stadium that can be suitable and can have the kind of impact of having big events," Goodell said this week.
They might not want to be too thoughtful, because if this bill gets passed before they figure out where they want to build, the Bears might face another loophole for building a stadium.
