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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Housing is our State's most important social and
3economic infrastructure; nearly one in three Illinois families
4struggles with housing costs; over half of our State's renters
5need an affordable home, including over half of seniors who
6rent their homes; we face a critical shortage of an estimated
723,000 supportive housing units for our most vulnerable
8populations, those who are veterans, disabled, and/or at risk
9of homelessness; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human
11Rights recognizes the right to housing as a human right; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Illinois cannot thrive if young adults cannot
13afford housing and leave Illinois, if businesses leave for
14states with lower housing costs, and when families struggle to
15keep a roof over their heads; and
 
16    WHEREAS, The 2009 capital budget set a precedent for
17investing in housing as infrastructure through an allocation of
18approximately $145 million for affordable housing; nearly $70
19million of these funds were used to create 694 affordable
20rental homes across the State, leveraging an additional $82.5
21million in public and private resources; capital budget dollars
22allocated towards affordable housing were highly leveraged

 

 

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1with private and public money and were extremely impactful in
2creating jobs, creating housing, broadening the tax base, and
3creating new economic activity; and
 
4    WHEREAS, Communities across our great State still struggle
5to provide an adequate supply of affordable homes to our
6residents; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Allocating $1 billion towards affordable housing
8in the State's next capital budget provides us with an
9opportunity to make a sizable impact on the housing needs of
10our communities; and
 
11    WHEREAS, This investment in affordable housing would allow
12the development of homes meeting a wide range of needs,
13including, but not limited to, affordable homes for working
14families and seniors, supportive housing for people
15experiencing homelessness, accessible housing for people with
16disabilities, and affordable memory care homes for people with
17Alzheimer's disease; homeownership could be supported by
18rehabbing vacant and abandoned properties; and
 
19    WHEREAS, This investment would be used across the State in
20urban, suburban, and rural communities to rebuild
21neighborhoods, create new jobs, attract new investment, and
22broaden the property tax base; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, With $1 billion in capital budget funds we could
2build 10,000 affordable rental homes for working families,
3seniors, veterans, and people who need supportive housing,
4create 16,000 jobs in the first year alone, and generate $755
5million in taxes and other revenue for local governments and
6$3.9 billion in local income for businesses and workers over
7the course of 15 years; and
 
8    WHEREAS, This investment would provide resources to meet
9the goals of the Comprehensive Housing Planning Act (310 ILCS
10110), which is to maintain the economic health of our
11communities by requiring a comprehensive and unified policy for
12the allocation of resources for affordable housing and
13supportive services for historically underserved populations
14throughout the State; therefore, be it
 
15    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL
16ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we recognize one of the
17most urgently required, realistic, and important ways to
18rebuild our State means investing in where our families live;
19increasing Illinois' stock of affordable housing would give
20people more reasons to stay here and entice employers and
21families to relocate here, save money, build wealth, and
22achieve a middle-class standard of living; and be it further
 

 

 

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1    RESOLVED, That we urge significant funding for affordable
2housing be included in any new capital spending plan; and be it
3further
 
4    RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be
5delivered to the offices of the Governor, the Capital
6Development Board, the Housing Development Authority, the
7Department of Human Services, the Department of
8Transportation, the Department on Aging, the Department of
9Children and Family Services, the Department of Corrections,
10the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, the
11Department of Healthcare and Family Services, and the
12Department of Veterans' Affairs.