HR1105 99TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1105 LRB099 21177 MST 46599 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, In 2013, free trade agreements with the United States benefited the State of Illinois by accounting for nearly 54% of goods exported from the State, totaling approximately $35.7 billion; and

WHEREAS, In 2015, the City of Chicago lost nearly 2,000 manufacturing jobs and the State of Illinois lost more than 7,000; and

WHEREAS, Mondelez International has almost 3,000 employees in the State of Illinois, who work at one of three different manufacturing facilities, its global headquarters office, or in sales/distribution at sites throughout the State; and

WHEREAS, The National Biscuit Company, which formally changed its corporate name to Nabisco, operates a bakery on Chicago's Southwest side at 7300 S. Kedzie Avenue, where some of the most popular food brands in America are made, such as Oreo and Chips Ahoy cookies and Ritz and Premium crackers; and

WHEREAS, Philip Morris Companies, Inc. acquired Nabisco and merged it with Kraft Foods in 2001; and

WHEREAS, In 2012, Kraft Foods split from Nabisco, creating a separate parent company called Mondelez International for its snack food business, including the Nabisco operations at 7300 S. Kedzie Avenue; and

WHEREAS, Mondelez International announced in July of 2015 that it would be removing older, inefficient manufacturing lines from its plant on Kedzie Avenue, impacting almost 600 of 1,200 jobs; and

WHEREAS, Over 20 years ago in 1993, Nabisco, Inc., the previous owner of the Kedzie Avenue plant, cited much-needed upgrades as the reason for proposing an outsourcing of its plant; local authorities responded to Nabisco's concerns and provided support for the plant upgrades; the Department of Commerce and Community Affairs extended an enterprise zone to accommodate Nabisco with a multi-million dollar tax incentive package over the course of 10 years if the company invested in itself; the City of Chicago's Department of Planning and Development established a tax increment financing district to support investment in modernization of the plant within three years, and the acquisition and development of an adjacent property at 7600 S. Kedzie Avenue that could result in $35 million dollars in tax savings; and

WHEREAS, In 2012, the City of Chicago's Department of Housing and Economic Development prematurely terminated the designation of the 73rd and Kedzie Avenue tax increment financing district; and

WHEREAS, In July of 2015, Mondelez International announced plans to move the production lines currently at the Kedzie Avenue plant to the newly built state of the art facility in Salinas, Mexico; and

WHEREAS, The union workers at the Chicago Nabisco bakery have been producing high-quality baked goods for more than 50 years and have dedicated decades of their lives to fuel the company's financial success; and

WHEREAS, Manufacturing jobs are needed to provide for adequate income for families, support for public services to keep our communities safe, effective education of our children, and additional employment opportunities; and

WHEREAS, A sound economic base, tied to good paying jobs, is necessary to create opportunities within our communities; and

WHEREAS, Work created by companies doing business the State of Illinois are essential for the well-being of communities; and

WHEREAS, The State of Illinois expects corporate partners to make an earnest effort to retain and promote future capital investment in the State of Illinois; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-NINTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge Mondelez International to identify ways to invest in its plants across the State; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we encourage Mondelez International and the members of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers Local 300, International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 8, and the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 399 to find ways to maintain their relationship and maintain jobs within the State of Illinois and engage in discussions with the immediate communities that they operate in; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be delivered to Mondelez International; Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers Local 300; International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers District 8; and the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 399.