The financial arm of General Electric is announcing plans to bring 1,000 jobs to Chicago.

At a press conference with Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel on Monday, officials from GE Capital said the expansion will nearly double the company’s presence in the city. Five-hundred of the jobs will be new hires, while the remainder will come from across Illinois and other states, according to a company spokesman.

Emanuel said the plan was worked out after he met with General Electric CEO Jeff Immelt, whom the mayor said he knows from his time in Congress and the White House. That relationship may have “tilted” GE’s decision to expand in Chicago, Emanuel said. But he added it was ultimately an economic decision.

“Could be anywhere. A work force, a quality of life, a place you already have an operation, you’re going to expand - those all get added into as you make a decision. And I’m proud that they’ve decided to double-down on Chicago,” Emanuel said.

The company spokesman says GE is planning to add 500 of the new jobs during the next year. The company said the positions will be for commercial, technical and regulatory workers. GE Capital curently has more than 1,000 jobs in Chicago, and more than 4,000 in Illinois.

The company’s announcement comes at a time when some Illinois businesses have considered leaving the state due to rising taxes.