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$3.4 million released for Cairo Port development
The Illinois Department of Transportation announced on Tuesday that $3.4 million has been released through the Rebuild Illinois capital program to continue advancing plans for a new inland port under development in Cairo. The funding, part of a more than $40 million commitment to the Alexander Cairo Port District, will help to complete federal environmental requirements and studies for the project.
Almost 80% of the nation’s inland barge traffic travels past Cairo, where the Ohio and Mississippi rivers converge, with the site served by three major interstate highways and Class 1 railroads. Major logistics and commodities businesses already have committed to using the new port to move crops, container shipments and bulk products.
Previously, IDOT released $4 million to the Alexander Cairo Port District to launch preliminary engineering activities and other related work, and the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity released a $1 million grant for other related work.
Illinois EPA Announces Notice of Funding Opportunity for Lead Service Line Inventory Grant Program
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (Illinois EPA) Director John J. Kim today announced a new funding opportunity to assist communities in meeting the requirements outlined in the Lead Service Line Replacement and Notification Act. The Lead Service Line Inventory (LSLI) Grant Program offers grants to local government units ranging from $20,000 - $50,000 to fund the creation of a complete lead service line inventory. The Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) has been posted to the Illinois EPA website.
The Lead Service Line Replacement and Notification Act (Public Act 102-0613) requires owners and operators of community water supplies (CWS) in Illinois to deliver a complete water service line material inventory to the Illinois EPA no later than April 15, 2024. The complete inventory must report the composition of all service lines within the CWS’s distribution system.
The LSLI Grant Program will utilize a portion of Illinois EPA Public Water Supply Loan Program (PWSLP) loan support funds generated from loan repayments. Illinois EPA expects to award a total of $2,000,000 and anticipates distributing this amount across forty (40) to one hundred (100) awards. Funding will be limited to a maximum of $50,000 per applicant. It is anticipated that some applicants will require supplemental funding in addition to the funds being offered through this grant program. Applicants may request supplemental funding in the form of a low-interest loan through the Illinois EPA’s PWSLP. To inquire about funding through the PWSLP, please call (217) 782-2027 and ask to speak with the Infrastructure Financial Assistance Section Project Manager on call.
The LSLI NOFO, and all required forms and information, can be found on the Illinois EPA website at: https://www2.illinois.gov/epa/topics/drinking-water/public-water-users/Pages/lead-service-line-information.aspx. Applications for the LSLI Grant Program will be accepted October 18, 2022, through 12:00 PM (CST) on December 2, 2022.
All applicants must pre-qualify through the Grant Accountability and Transparency Act Grantee Portal.
IDOT hosting series of workshops for Disadvantaged Business Enterprise program
The Illinois Department of Transportation is hosting free virtual workshops as part of its continuing Building Blocks of Success series for Disadvantaged Business Enterprise firms interested in strengthening their skills, growing their business and bidding on state projects. New and existing DBEs, as well as firms interested in becoming certified in the program, are invited.
November workshop dates and topics are:
• Nov. 1, 10 a.m. to noon: Expansion of Work Category Codes
• Nov. 3, 10 a.m. to noon: QuickBooks Part 1- Setting up your company
• Nov. 8, 10 a.m. to noon: Accounting Best Practices & Financial Reporting
• Nov. 10, 10 a.m. to noon: Improving Your Personal & Business (D&B) Credit Score
• Nov. 15, 10 a.m. to noon: Navigating the IDOT Website (Basic)
• Nov. 17, 10 a.m. to noon: Navigating the IDOT Website (Advanced)
• Nov. 29, 10 a.m. to noon: QuickBooks Part 2 – Performing Day to Day, Part 2
Future topics covered will include estimating and bidding, insurance, bonding, risk management, steps needed to be certified as a DBE firm and more.
Building Blocks of Success will continue through April. Workshop information, including dates and times, is available through Eventbrite at bit.ly/DBEworkshops. Advance registration is required.
Questions can be directed to IDOT’s DBE Resource Center at (312) 939-1100.
Rulemaking
In the October 21st edition of the Illinois Register there was proposed rulemaking of note from the Secretary of State on Commercial Driver Training Schools (92 IAC 1060; 46 Ill Reg 17318) that require instructors of students seeking Commercial Drivers’ Licenses (CDLs) to have held a CDL in a representative classification for at least 2 years (currently, 3 years).
This rulemaking reduces the requirement that a commercial driving school instructor who will instruct CDL students must hold a CDL in a representative classification from three years to two years to be consistent with federal entry level driver training regulations, combines theory and behind-the-wheel instructor requirements into one paragraph, corrects previous scrivener’s errors, clarifies when a conviction of certain offenses will result in the cancellation or denial of an instructor’s license, removes duplicative paragraphs or language, allows a person to be licensed as an instructor if they have had prior teaching and training experience, makes grammatical change and changes terminology relating to a GED in accordance with a new public act.
View the October 21st Illinois Register here.
Legislative Update
HB 5821, Registration Fees was filed by Representative Brady. This bill provides that for the 2024 registration year only, the annual registration fee for motor vehicles of the first division other than autocycles, motorcycles, motor driven cycles, and pedalcycles shall be $98.
Session Update
As a reminder, the General Assembly has released the schedule for veto session. Lawmakers will be back in Springfield Tuesday, November 15 -November 17 as well as November 29-December 1.
View and download the veto calendar here.
Looking forward, Legislators have been informed to keep their schedules open between January 4th-10th for potential lame duck session dates. We will let you know when those dates are finalized.
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