Clark Kaericher l Senior Vice President, Government Affairs l 217-522-5512


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August 5, 2022
The Infrastructure Council is an initiative of the
Illinois Chamber that brings together Chamber members with a focus on increasing
infrastructure investments in a strategic and thoughtful way to boost the overall business climate in Illinois. Our focus is on the public and private systems that are essential to Illinois businesses. 


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The State Fair is coming up in less than 2 weeks. If you live in Springfield, you know that this is our Super Bowl. I must admit that the lineup at the Grandstand is pretty solid this year. Are you planning on attending any of the concerts? I’m going to see Brooks n Dunn, nothing like some 90s nostalgia.   

Aviation System Plan Released 

Yesterday, IDOT officially released the Illinois Aviation System Plan. This plan was the first comprehensive study of its kind in more than 25 years. The report looks at the short- and long-term needs of the state’s airports. Analyzing over 85 public use airports and determined these facilities contribute $95.5 Billion to the state’s economy while providing nearly half a million jobs.  

I was happy to serve on the advisory panel for this report and am grateful to many of your input. Governor Pritzker has proclaimed August as Aviation Appreciation Month in Illinois. You can read the full report at www.ILaviation.com

Rail Needs Assessment 

Speaking of advisory panels, the Chamber was also pleased to participate in the Illinois Rail Needs Assessment. That report was recently released and is ready for your review. You can read the final report here: ,https://ilrna.sharefile.com/share/view/s443304a15c204a4880701e603eab65c6 

Rail Crossing Elimination Plan 

I wanted to make sure you are aware The Railroad Crossing Elimination Program has been added to the Federal Register (https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2022/07/06/2022-14344/notice-of-funding-opportunity-for-the-railroad-crossing-elimination-program), the official application due date is October 4th at 5:00PM 

Attached is the application template for the crossing grant, developed by AAR. It is seven pages of fairly detailed guidance on applying to the program and a great resource for those who want to pursue the grant. Or available here: https://gorail.org/wp-content/uploads/crossing-grant-requirements.pdf Also some slides from the recent webinar from our friends at GoRail.  
Illinois Chamber Annual Luncheon- Sponsorships Available!  

The Chamber’s biggest event of the year is our annual luncheon. This year’s event will be held at the Palmer House Hilton in Chicago on October 6th from 10:30 am to 1:30 pm. We have a fantastic lineup.  

The agenda includes our one-hour pre-event reception “All Council Mix & Mingle”. The luncheon program is the “Future of Energy and Impact on Illinois: Actions of the Federal Reserve”. Featured speakers include the Chief Sustainability Officer at Boeing, the Vice President of Strategic and Corporate Planning at CITGO and the CEO of LS Power.  We will also hear from Charles Evans, the President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.  

Sponsorship of the All Council Mix & Mingle is available for $2,500.00. Benefits of sponsorship are: 

· Two seats for your company at the Annual Luncheon 
· Acknowledgement on signage at pre-event reception, on website, and 
invite for the event 
· Exhibitor space to highlight your company during the pre-event reception. 

View more about the sponsorship levels here.

For more information or to register call Clark Kaericher at (618) 806-1501 or ckaericher@ilchamber.org or go to www.ilchamber.org/annual-meeting 
 
The event is always a great time and I hope to see you there!  
Attention Local Governments: Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program Live 

The Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program (ITEP) began on August 1st.  An all-time high of $125 million is available. Eligible projects for funding include biking and walking paths, trails, streetscape beautification work and other improvements designed to encourage safe transit. Applicants can include local governments and regional planning commissions. Nonprofit and private entities that apply must have a public sponsor. The maximum award is $3 million. For more information, including instructions on how to view and participate in webinars on the application process, visit the Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program page. The deadline to apply is September 30th.  


CMAP Data for NE Illinois  

The Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning (CMAP) released a new set of Community Data Snapshots to help local leaders, community organizations, and others plan and make informed decisions in their communities. 

These data-rich snapshots — one for each of the region’s 284 municipalities, 77 Chicago neighborhoods, and seven counties — summarize demographic, housing, employment, transportation, land use, revenue, and water information. 
The Community Data Snapshots include original CMAP data to help communities implement recommendations from ON TO 2050, the region’s long-range plan. 
 
This is a cool tool to play with for data heads. You can check out your community here: https://www.cmap.illinois.gov/data/community-snapshots?utm_source=eblast&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=cds 


Legislative Schedule Updates   

We still do not have any announced dates for the long rumored special session. That session was originally rumored for this month. Now the gossip is September. The expected topics are the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision and guns. That said, any time the legislature is in town business needs to be on our toes. I’ll let you know a date as soon as we have one.   
 
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. 
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Not a member and want to learn more about the Illinois Chamber - click here to contact Lauryn Thornton. Click here to contact Jack Bernhardt.