> Legislation in the General Assembly

Current 2007-2008 Bills

HB 656 amendments 4 and 5  
(P.A. 95-0708)
STATUS: passed House and Senate; amendatorily vetoed by Governor; passed Legislature again; signed by Governor

HB 656 includes RTA reform, funding through an increase in the regional sales tax and an increase in the Chicago Real Estate Transfer tax, CTA pension reform, and downstate operating assistance.

HB 656 comprehensive fact sheet

SB 572
STATUS: passed House; all components incorporated into HB 656

"20 Reasons to Support SB572" fact sheet

SB 1409
STATUS: passed House; pending in Senate

SB 1409 is a "trailer bill" to HB 656.  This bill aims to contain costs resulting from the Governor's amendatory veto.  It would provide free rides to seniors and people with disabilities if they met income elgibility guidelines.

SB 307
STATUS: passed house; no further action taken

SB 307 includes funding mass transit through a diversion of the gas sales tax in Northeastern IL, as well as RTA governance reform, CTA pension reform, and funding for downstate transit.

RTA REFORM-HB 1841
STATUS: Key features have been incorporated into SB 572

House Bill 1841 includes new responsibilities and powers for the RTA, as companion legislation to the request for more funding.
HB 1841 Fact Sheet

PERFORMANCE STANDARDS – HB 520
STATUS: Key features have been incorporated into SB 572

The bill adds transparency to transit agency planning and performance, by adding specific performance measures that must be in an annual report compiled by the state.

Laws Enacted

Paratransit services for the disabled
HB 1663 (P.A. 94 370)

The bill reorganizes ADA paratransit services for the disabled in the RTA region by assigning responsibility for their funding, financial review and oversight to the RTA. Operations and maintenance are assigned to Pace as a regional service. RTA is further directed to produce a funding plan for all ADA paratransit services by April 1, 2007.

Auditor General audit
HR 650

The resolution directs the Auditor General to conduct a performance and management audit of RTA, Metra, Pace and CTA; the final audit is expected in March 2007.

> Testimony and Documents

June 10, 2008
Hastert and Poshard Capital Plan document

October 9th, 2007
Transit Hearing summary and testimony

March 18, 2007
RTA releases its paratransit funding plan.

March 2007
Auditor General Bill Holland releases performance audits of the RTA, CTA, Metra and Pace.

March 8, 2007
Hearing on Suburban Transit Plans and Innovations

Collar County RTA principles

Robert Schillerstrom testimony

Mary Keating testimony

Lake County testimony

Ride In Kane testimony

Will County Board testimony

March 2, 2007
Hearing on service standards and reporting by the service agencies

CTA Testimony

Robert Ginsburg Testimony

Jeffrey Berman Testimony

Jim Labelle Testimony

Pace Testimony 1

Pace Testimony 2

February 23, 2007
Hearing on RTA strategic plan and 2007 budget issues

RTA testimony

February 8, 2007
RTA releases its strategic plan.

RTA testimony by Steve Schlickman

CMAP testimony by Randy Blankenhorn

movingbeyondcongestion.org

February 9, 2006
Hearing on HB 4663, performance standards for transit agencies

Jackie Leavy, Neighborhood Capital Budget Group

NCBG Report on CTA Performance Standards

NCBG Report on Metra Service

Les Knistern, Greater Rockwell Organization

Draft Paratransit Transition Plan Released: 

Summary of Transition Plan
Full draft of Transition Plan
List of public hearing dates

April 13, 2005
Report on Transit Funding Formula, April 13, 2005 (pdf)

Statement by the Chair (pdf)

Fact Sheet (pdf)

March 16, 2005
Ridership data based on AM boardings supplied by service boards

CTA (.xls)
Metra (.xls)
Pace (.xls)

March 17, 2005
Hearing in Springfield

RTA presentation on Universal Fare Card

March 7, 2005
Work session with Urban Transportation Center
Thompson Center, Room 9-031 UTC

Powerpoint presentation

Ridership data supplied by service boards

CTA data (.xls)

Metra overview (.pdf)
Metra data:
weekly stops by station (.xls)
revenue by boarding station (.xls)

Pace overview (.pdf)
Pace data (.xls)

Feburary 4, 2005
Hearing in Chicago
Thompson Center Room 16-503

Testimony

County Transit Plans:

DuPage County Transit Plan presentation

Full DuPage County Transit Plan

Kane County Transit Plan presentation

Full Kane County Transit Plan

Lake County Transit Plan presentation

Full Lake County Transit Plan

McHenry County Transit Plan presentation

Full McHenry County Transit Plan

January 25, 2005
Work session with Urban Transportation Center
Thompson Center, Room 8-033

UTC Powerpoint Presentation

RTA data on "Historical Annual Operating Funding and Revenue by Service Board, 1985-2003"

December 16, 2004
Hearing in Buffalo Grove

Response to data request by RTA

Additonal testimony:

Ray Campbell, DuPage Center for Independent Living

Frank Beal, Chicago Metropolis 2020

Proposal to provide technical support from Urban Transportation Center at UIC

November 17, 2004
Hearing in Springfield

Discussion paper:
Policy Issues Regarding the RTA Act and the Transit Funding Formula

Then and Now:
Performance and Funding data comparison

Data request to RTA for December 16th Hearing

CATS/NIPC information
Report on the Activities of CATS and NIPC Staff

Informational sheets:

Accountability of the MPO

Prioritization of projects in northeastern Illinois

MPO structures throughout the nation

Funding loss from JARC Program

Shared Path 2030 website
www.sp2030.com

October 22, 2004
Hearing in Chicago,
James R. Thompson Center
Testimony

October 15, 2004
Hearing in South Holland,
City Council Chambers
Testimony

 
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