Senate president to push for CME, CBOE tax relief

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Updated: November 22, 2011 8:31AM

SPRINGFIELD — Senate President John Cullerton plans to lead a legislative push in the coming weeks to cut corporate taxes for the state’s two financial exchanges.

Stung by this year’s jump in the state’s corporate income tax, CME Group Inc. and CBOE Holdings Inc. have threatened to leave Illinois for somewhere with a lower tax climate.

Cullerton (D-Chicago) has not introduced legislation yet, and his office did not provide specific details on what potential tax-relief legislation for the owners of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and Chicago Board of Trade would look like.

“The idea is to only tax trades in Illinois, not every electronic transaction that comes in from around the globe,” said John Patterson, a spokesman for Cullerton.

“It’s a very technical issue, and the details are still in the works. There’s no final agreement because there isn’t a final proposal yet,” Patterson said.

Lawmakers begin their six-day fall veto session Tuesday.