Offering even more incentives for Stellantis to retool its Belvidere Assembly Plant, Governor JB Pritzker has signed an expansion of the Reimagining Electric Vehicles in Illinois Act co-sponsored State Senator Steve Stadelman.

“This law will make it easier for automakers and car parts manufacturing companies to qualify for tax credits—opportunities that can help expand local businesses and support working Illinoisans,” said Stadelman, who introduced and helped pass both the REV Act in 2021 and last month's amendment to provide additional stimulus. “I am proud of this legislation and see this as a major win for manufacturers in our state.”

REV is designed to make Illinois a hub for EV and auto battery production. The new incentives contained in the expansion the governor signed yesterday will support existing Illinois automakers seeking to transform their current plants into EV production sites, bolster the state's entire EV ecosystem by giving manufacturers the ability to ramp up production of EV parts and provide those manufacturers with additional flexibility in determining which incentives work best for them as the market evolves.

Pritzker said the lastest incentive package "sends a clear message to EV manufacturers that we are the best place in the nation to call home, thanks to our competitive incentives and ambitious clean energy goals."

Various state tax and investment credits, including income writeoffs agains the cost of employee training, form the basis of the REV Act, which also empowers local jurisdictions to reduce property taxes for EV projects.

Stadelman emphasized that state and local officials continue to work aggressively to avoid a long-term shutdown of the Belvidere plant should Stellantis follow through with a recently announced decision to idle production of the Jeep Cherokee in February.