Indiana Gov. Mike Braun signs Bears stadium bill

INDIANAPOLIS — The state of Indiana took its last legislative step to try to lure the Bears to Hammond when, just steps from the NFL Scouting Combine, the state Senate passed a bill Thursday to establish the Northwest Indiana Stadium Authority. Gov. Mike Braun signed it about an hour later.

All that’s left is for the Bears to decide whether to build a domed stadium in Hammond or Arlington Heights.

“We sure give the Bears a lot to think about to come here,” state Sen. Rick Niemeyer said on the Senate floor.

Niemeyer, from Lowell, acknowledged that the Bears have flirted with moving to Indiana off and on for generations.

“It’s a little different this time,” he said. “I think it’s very serious.”

The Bears have said they would pay $2 billion to build a stadium, be it in Hammond or Arlington Heights, but need state help to pay for surrounding infrastructure.

The Bears wouldn’t be flirting with Indiana if they weren’t willing to play there, but it’s unclear if that’s their first choice. On Thursday, the Illinois Finance and Revenue Committee advanced the so-called mega-project bill, which would allow the Bears to negotiate for property tax breaks, by sending it to the House floor. The House then adjourned for the week.

The Bears issued statements about developments in both states, saying they “recognize and appreciate” the Illinois advancement and look forward to continue working with lawmakers. The team said Indiana “has taken important steps over the last few months” and the Bears “continue to work on the necessary due diligence” of the project.

“Let’s get this across the goal line,” Gov. Braun said in a statement.

Senate Bill 27 empowers the NISA to acquire and finance a Bears stadium. It also would be tasked with construction, equipping, operating and maintaining a stadium near Wolf Lake in Hammond. The bill would draw financing from Lake and Porter county food and beverage tax and the Lake County innkeeper’s tax. Hammond would also impose an admissions tax, and the state would renegotiate toll road fees.

State Sen. Ryan Mishler, who authored the bill and wore an orange tie to the proceedings, said he spoke with Bears president/CEO Kevin Warren, who came to town for the NFL Scouting Combine, during the week. He said he enjoyed engaging with him “regardless of what happens” and said he fully expected the Bears to listen what Illinois has to offer.

It’s difficult to make direct comparisons between the two states, Mishler said. While the Bears are trying to negotiate down property taxes on their 326-acre plot in Arlington Heights, they wouldn’t have to pay them at all in Indiana. The Bears would keep stadium naming-rights fees at either spot.

If the Bears pick Hammond, they could break ground in the spring of 2027, Mishler said. There might be work done to prepare the site this year. State Sen. Lonnie Randolph, who represents Hammond, Munster, East Chicago, Whiting and parts of Highland, praised the stadium’s potential economic impact.

“This Bears thing is a major historical event,” he said.

The Indiana House of Representatives passed the bill by a 95-4 vote Tuesday, sending it to the Senate, which passed it by a vote of 45-4 on Thursday.

In the last 22 months, the Bears have declared three sites as the only location that worked for them — first a Lakefront plot south of Soldier Field, then Arlington Heights and then, earlier this month, Hammond.

The Bears first turned their attention to Indiana when Warren sent a letter to season-ticket holders in December stating that Illinois lawmakers had told the team that “our project will not be a priority in 2026.”