HJ0082 93RD GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HJ0082 LRB093 22058 HSS 50511 r

HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The growing distance and time many Illinois employees must travel between home and work is detrimental to their community and family life, increases traffic congestion, helps place Illinois fifth in the nation in the longest commute times, and harms the State's environment; and

WHEREAS, Many Illinois employers are having increasing difficulty attracting and retaining qualified workers because of the commute time required and the inadequate supply of nearby affordable housing; and

WHEREAS, In a time of tight budgets, Illinois must continue to create and grow jobs while maximizing its investment of limited State economic development funds; and

WHEREAS, One way to maximize the State's investments is by encouraging companies, whenever feasible, to locate or expand in location efficient areas to which their employees can easily commute, where their employees can afford to live, or which do not require costly new publicly funded roads or other infrastructure and expenses for the primary purpose of supporting a company's location choice; and

WHEREAS, Some Illinois employers have recognized the impact of housing and transit options on their employee recruitment and retention, and in response, have implemented low-cost programs that expand their employees' adequate affordable housing and/or mass transit options, and the State could promote these corporate models to encourage similar efforts by other companies; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-THIRD GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that there is created the Corporate Location Efficiency Task Force that shall hear testimony from State agencies and private entities and shall be appointed as follows: 4 voting members appointed from the House of Representatives, with 2 members appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives and 2 members appointed by the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives, with the majority caucus members serving at the pleasure of the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the minority caucus members serving at the pleasure of the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives; 4 voting members appointed from the Senate, with 2 members appointed by the President of the Senate and 2 members appointed by the Minority Leader of the Senate, with majority caucus members serving at the pleasure of the President of the Senate and the minority caucus members serving at the pleasure of the Minority Leader of the Senate; and up to 12 non-voting members appointed from pertinent fields or disciplines by the legislative members of the Task Force by majority vote from the following categories: housing advocates, transportation advocates, public interest groups, labor, local municipalities, and businesses; a majority of the legislative appointees shall select a legislative member of the Task Force to serve as chairperson; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Task Force shall study ways to maximize the use of State economic development funds by encouraging employers to locate or expand in areas that are or can be made location efficient, and this study shall include the following:

(1) a series of hearings during which the Task Force takes testimony from experts in areas such as economic development, housing, transportation, and workforce development, as well as key government agencies, labor, business, and other stakeholders;

(2) a review of some of the Illinois employers, government agencies and other institutions that have implemented cost-effective, innovative policies and programs to expand employees' options for affordable housing near work and convenient, efficient transportation to work;

(3) a proposal for how the State can highlight these corporate models and encourage others to replicate successful employee programs;

(4) an analysis of existing sources of data and information such as the Census Data that can inform an employer about the affordable housing and transportation options available to its employees in a certain municipality or area; and

(5) a legislative proposal for using incentives to encourage employers to locate or expand in location efficient areas which shall include an analysis of characteristics such as maximizing the use of existing public investments infrastructure, minimizing additional government expenditures, and locating near places offering affordable housing to that employer's workforce or requiring short commutes; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Task Force shall receive the assistance of legislative staff, legislative agencies, and upon request, private and public organizations; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Corporate Location Efficiency Task Force shall be appointed by June 1, 2004, and shall meet as soon as possible after the legislative members have been appointed, shall hold public hearings, and shall report its findings and recommendations to the General Assembly by filing a copy of its report with the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of Representatives no later than January 1, 2005; upon filing its report, the Task Force is dissolved; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be presented to the Governor's office, the Director of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, the President of the Senate, the Minority Leader of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the Minority Leader of the House of Representatives.