On Wednesday, Illinois lawmakers overrode Gov. Bruce Rauner’s veto of a bill to forgive a state loan to a Chicago port that’s one of the busiest in the Midwest. 

Nearly 40 years ago, the state of Illinois loaned the Illinois International Port District $15 million. The money was used to purchase land at the mouth of the Calumet River to allow ships to dock and it’s still in use today on Chicago’s Southeast side. But the district never paid the money back because it didn’t have it. 

The port’s director, Clayton Harris III, says forgiving the debt will let the port district move forward. Rauner had vetoed the bill stating the district had no plan to become profitable.