The Hoffman Estates, Illinois-based retailer, which has expressed its dissatisfaction with recent Illinois legislation that hiked the corporate tax rate to 7%, has been asking about possible sites around the nation's capitol, according to a Washington Post report that cited two unnamed sources.
“Speculation about whether Sears will remain in Hoffman Estates is not fair to our associates, particularly so early in this process,” a Sears spokeswoman told the Washington Post in a statement.
Sears representatives were not immediately available to comment to Crain's.
Sears has also been in talks with North Carolina, Texas, Tennessee and New Jersey about moving, according to news reports.
Gov. Pat Quinn has said he would work with Sears to find a way to keep it from leaving Illinois.
The retailer is among 107 companies that will see tax breaks expire in the next three years, a situation that could lead to a number of defections.
Caterpillar Inc. and CME Group Inc. are other firms that have threatened to leave Illinois in recent weeks and months.
Mr. Quinn has already cut a deal with Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. in which the state will grant the firm $100 million in tax breaks over the next decade if the mobile-phone manufacturer agrees to keep its headquarters in Libertyville. The cell-phone maker agreed to maintain 3,000 jobs in Illinois.
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