CEO to Gov. Quinn: Caterpillar ‘here to stay‘

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Updated: August 4, 2011 4:20PM

EAST PEORIA — The boss of Caterpillar on Tuesday reiterated his intentions to keep the heavy machinery manufacturer in Illinois after disclosing last month that his firm was being wooed by several states after Illinois raised income taxes.

“I think Caterpillar is here to stay,” Caterpillar CEO Doug Oberhelman told reporters after meeting with Gov. Quinn in a hotel near the company’s headquarters. Caterpillar employs more than 23,000 in the state and about 100,000 worldwide.

Quinn and Oberhelman announced a renewed commitment to doubling Illinois exports in five years and reforming the costly worker’s compensation system. Quinn said his reform package would reduce compensation costs by more than $500 million.

“Nobody is going to get scalped under this plan, but some folks are going to get a haircut,” Quinn said of the package, which he emphasized needed legislative approval right now.

Caterpillar already is a lead exporter for Illinois, with most of the company’s $13.5 billion in exports moving through sites in the state. “We’ve got to be competitive in Illinois, competitive in the United States, to take on emerging competitors we see every day around the world,” Oberhelman said. “I’m convinced the governor is out on front of that.”

He also complimented Quinn on restoring integrity to state government, helping to rebuild the state’s image for businesses after Governors George Ryan and Rod Blagojevich’s scandals tainted its reputation.

In January, Quinn approved income tax increases for the corporate and personal rates, which will generate an estimated $6.8 billion for the state. The corporate rate increased from 4.8 percent to 7 percent.