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Illinois Chamber Joins US Chamber Coalition in Call for Federal Permitting Reform
This week, the Illinois Chamber signed-on to the US Chamber's Coalition letter calling for federal permitting reform. In part, the letter says the following.
Today, the single biggest obstacle to building the infrastructure of the future is a broken permitting system. That is why the undersigned list of diverse groups across the country and economy is calling on Congress to Permit America to Build by enacting meaningful, durable legislation to modernize America’s permitting processes before the end of the summer.
We are pleased to see support for modernizing our permitting process from across the ideological spectrum, and a recognition that the current system is broken. We know there are differing perspectives in Congress on how best to address current challenges. Our organizations will not agree on every issue. We are committed, however, to working with Congress to find solutions and pass meaningful and durable legislation.
As a starting point, we are united on the following principles:
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Predictability – Project developers and financers must have an appropriate level of certainty regarding the scope and timeline for project reviews, including any related judicial review.
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Efficiency – Interagency coordination must be improved to optimize public and private resources while driving better environmental and community outcomes.
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Transparency – Project sponsors and the public must have visibility into the project permitting milestones and schedule through an easily accessible public means.
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Stakeholder Input – All relevant stakeholders must be adequately informed and have the opportunity to provide input within a reasonable and consistent timeframe.
IDOT Launches Rebuild Illinois Dashboard
The Illinois Department of Transportation announced the launch of a new webpage dedicated to keeping the public informed of the progress delivering the Rebuild Illinois capital program. The online dashboard offers up-to-date cumulative data on accomplishments for improving roads and bridges since the 2019 passage of Rebuild Illinois.
On the dashboard, the public can find information on number of projects awarded, miles and bridges improved and safety improvements completed, as well as the total amount of investment that has been made possible by Rebuild Illinois. The data can be looked up annually or by each quarter of each fiscal year, showing the impact of Rebuild Illinois on roads and bridges under IDOT’s jurisdiction as well as accomplishments on the local system overseen by counties, municipalities and townships.
The page will be updated on a quarterly basis, adding accomplishments as the year progresses.
Senate Joint Transportation & Appropriation - Public Safety & Infrastructure Committee Hearing
On Tuesday, there was a Joint Senate Transportation & Appropriation - Public Safety & Infrastructure Committee subject matter hearing on accessibility, affordability, safety & funding for public transportation in the RTA service area. In addition to funding, Chairman Villivalam said the mission of the hearing was to begin looking at the successes and challenges of the public transportation system in the region which included topics such as equity, economic impact, and environmental impact. The hearing held in Chicago ran for about 3 hours.
The hearing started with a panel from RTA, CTA, Pace and Metra. Representatives from the transit agencies cited reasons for the decline in ridership, future innovations, current staff diversity numbers and a general need for state assistance. Other organizations proving comment included the Civic Committee, Chicagoland Chamber, Chicago Federation of Labor, Metropolitan Planning Council, CMAP and the Center for Neighborhood Technology.
The RTA testified to its significant, nearly $730 million-per-year funding gap concerns that it will face by 2026 due predominantly to the post-pandemic decline in ridership and federal relief funding that will expire by 2025. We previously shared information on this approaching funding gap in a newsletter in December. Further, Chairman Villivalam indicated that he and other members of the Senate are willing to be a part of a process whereby the State assists the transit agencies in some way.
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