102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2021 and 2022
SB2475

 

Introduced 2/26/2021, by Sen. Ram Villivalam

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
20 ILCS 2705/2705-203 new
70 ILCS 3615/2.39 new

    Amends the Department of Transportation Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois. Requires the Department of Transportation to establish and implement a transportation performance program for all transportation facilities under its jurisdiction. Provides that the Department shall develop a risk-based, statewide highway system asset management plan to preserve and improve the conditions of highway and bridge assets and enhance the performance of the system while minimizing life-cycle cost. Provides requirements for the asset management plan. Provides that the Department shall develop a needs-based asset management plan for State-supported public transportation assets, including vehicles, facilities, equipment, and other infrastructure. Limits the plan to certain transit services. Provides that the Department shall develop a performance-based project selection process to prioritize taxpayer investment in transportation assets that go above and beyond maintaining the existing system in a state of good repair and to evaluate projects that add capacity. Adds various requirements regarding the new asset management plan and performance-based programming. Amends the Regional Transportation Authority Act. Requires the Regional Transportation Authority to develop a transparent prioritization process for Northeastern Illinois transit projects receiving State capital funding. Adds process and reporting requirements. Provides that, starting April 1, 2022, no project shall be included in a capital program of the Authority without being evaluated under the selection process. Effective immediately.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

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1    AN ACT concerning transportation.
 
2    Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3represented in the General Assembly:
 
4    Section 5. The Department of Transportation Law of the
5Civil Administrative Code of Illinois is amended by adding
6Section 2705-203 as follows:
 
7    (20 ILCS 2705/2705-203 new)
8    Sec. 2705-203. Transportation asset management plan and
9performance-based programming.
10    (a) The General Assembly declares it to be in the public
11interest that a statewide transportation performance program
12and project prioritization process be developed and
13implemented to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the
14State's transportation system, transportation safety, and
15transportation accessibility for people and goods and
16environmental quality and to promote inclusive economic growth
17throughout the State.
18    (b) The Department of Transportation shall establish and
19implement a statewide transportation performance program for
20all transportation facilities under its jurisdiction. The
21purposes of the statewide transportation performance program
22are to:
23        (1) establish a strategic approach that uses

 

 

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1    transportation system information to make investment and
2    policy decisions to achieve statewide and regional
3    performance goals;
4        (2) ensure transportation investment decisions emerge
5    from an objective and quantifiable technical analysis;
6        (3) evaluate the need and financial support necessary
7    for maintaining, expanding, and modernizing existing
8    transportation infrastructure;
9        (4) ensure that all State transportation funds
10    invested are directed to support progress toward the
11    achievement of performance targets established in asset
12    management plans and the State and regional performance
13    targets under the National Performance Management Measures
14    Program;
15        (5) make investment decisions transparent and
16    accessible to the public;
17        (6) decrease carbon emissions and reduce
18    infrastructure vulnerability to climate change; and
19        (7)reduce disparities in transportation system
20    performance experienced by racially marginalized
21    communities, low-to-moderate-income residents, and other
22    disadvantaged groups.
23    (c) The Department shall develop a risk-based, statewide
24highway system asset management plan to preserve and improve
25the conditions of highway and bridge assets and enhance the
26performance of the system while minimizing life-cycle cost.

 

 

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1The asset management plan shall include, at a minimum,
2strategies leading to a program of projects that would make
3progress toward achievement of targets for asset condition and
4performance of the State highway system. The asset management
5plan shall be made publicly available on the Department's
6website.
7    (d) The Department shall develop a needs-based asset
8management plan for State-supported public transportation
9assets, including vehicles, facilities, equipment, and other
10infrastructure. The transit asset management plan shall
11include transit services using federal funding under 49 U.S.C.
125311, transit services having fewer than 100 vehicles
13operating in the peak hours in all fixed-route modes, and
14transit services having fewer than 100 vehicles in one
15nonfixed route, and that do not develop their own asset
16management plans. The goal of the transit asset management
17plan is to preserve and modernize capital transit assets that
18will enhance the performance of the system. The transit asset
19management plan shall establish a strategic and systematic
20process to invest in operating, maintaining, and improving
21public transportation capital assets effectively through their
22entire life cycle. Federally required transit asset management
23plans developed by the Regional Transportation Authority (RTA)
24or service boards, as defined in Section 1.03 of the Regional
25Transportation Authority Act, shall become the transportation
26asset management plan for all public transportation assets

 

 

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1owned and operated by the service boards. The Department's
2transit asset management plan shall be made publicly available
3on the Department's website. The RTA shall be responsible for
4making public transit asset management plans for its service
5area publicly available.
6    (e) The Department shall develop a performance-based
7project selection process to prioritize taxpayer investment in
8transportation State-owned assets that go above and beyond
9maintaining the existing system in a state of good repair and
10to evaluate projects that add capacity, make operational
11improvements, or modernize the system. The goal of the process
12is to select projects equitably through an evaluation process
13that assesses the costs and benefits of new investment. This
14process shall provide the flexibility to take into
15consideration the unique needs of communities across the
16State. The Department shall solicit input from localities,
17metropolitan planning organizations, transit authorities,
18transportation authorities, representatives of labor and
19private businesses, and other stakeholders in its development
20of the prioritization process pursuant to this subsection.
21    The selection process shall include a defined, public
22means by which candidate projects shall be identified,
23evaluated, and selected. The process shall include both a
24quantitative analysis of the evaluation factors and
25qualitative review by the Department. The Department may apply
26different weights to the performance measures based on

 

 

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1regional geography or project type. Projects selected as part
2of the process shall be included in the State's multi-year
3transportation plan and the annual element of the multi-year
4plan. The policies that guide the performance-based project
5selection process shall be derived from State and regional
6long-range transportation plans. Starting January 1, 2022, no
7system expansion or safety or system modernization project (or
8similar category of project) shall be included in the
9multi-year transportation plan or annual element without being
10evaluated under the selection process described in this
11subsection. The Department shall certify that it is making
12progress toward condition targets anticipated in its
13transportation asset management plan before including system
14expansion or safety or system modernization projects in the
15multi-year plan using the process described in this
16subsection. All plan and program development based on the
17project selection process described in this subsection shall
18include consideration of regional balance. The selection
19process shall be based on an objective and quantifiable
20analysis that considers, at a minimum, the following factors:
21(1) congestion mitigation or improved traffic operations, (2)
22economic development, (3) livability, (4) environmental
23impact, (5) accessibility, (6) increased benefits and reduced
24harms to racially marginalized black, brown, and indigenous
25communities and low-to-moderate-income communities, and (7)
26safety.

 

 

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1    (f) The prioritization process developed under subsection
2(e) shall apply to projects funded with both State and federal
3transportation funds but shall not apply to:
4        (1) projects funded by the Congestion Mitigation and
5    Air Quality Improvement funds apportioned to the State
6    pursuant to 23 U.S.C. 104(b)(4) and State matching funds;
7        (2) projects funded by the Highway Safety Improvement
8    Program funds apportioned to the State pursuant to 23
9    U.S.C. 104(b)(3) and State matching funds;
10        (3) projects funded by the Transportation Alternatives
11    funds set-aside pursuant to 23 U.S.C. 213 and State
12    matching funds;
13        (4) projects funded by the National Highway Freight
14    Program pursuant to 23 U.S.C. 167 and State matching
15    funds; and
16        (5) funds to be allocated to urban areas based on
17    population under federal law.
18    (g) A summary of the project evaluation process, measures,
19program, and scores for all candidate projects shall be
20published on the website of the Department in a timely manner.
 
21    Section 10. The Regional Transportation Authority Act is
22amended by adding Section 2.39 as follows:
 
23    (70 ILCS 3615/2.39 new)
24    Sec. 2.39. Prioritization process for Northeastern

 

 

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1Illinois transit projects.
2    (a) The Authority shall develop a transparent
3prioritization process for Northeastern Illinois transit
4projects receiving State capital funding. The prioritization
5process shall consider, at a minimum: (1) access to key
6destinations (for example, jobs, retail, healthcare,
7recreation); (2) reliability improvement; (3) capacity needs;
8(4) safety; (5) state of good repair; (6) racial equity and
9mobility justice; and (7) economic development. All State
10capital funding awards shall be made by the Regional
11Transportation Authority in accordance with the prioritization
12process. An appropriate public input process shall be
13established. The Authority shall make a report to the General
14Assembly each year describing its prioritization process and
15its use in funding awards.
16    (b) A summary of the project evaluation process, measures,
17program, and scores for all candidate projects shall be
18published on the website of the Authority in a timely manner.
19    (c) Starting April 1, 2022, no project shall be included
20in the 5-year capital program, amendments to that program, or
21any other capital program without being evaluated under the
22selection process described in this Section.
 
23    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
24becoming law.