Full Text of HR1278 95th General Assembly
HR1278 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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HR1278 |
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| HOUSE RESOLUTION
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| WHEREAS, Illinois has 140,287 miles of State and local | 3 |
| roads, making it the third largest network in the nation; and
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| WHEREAS, Due to a lack of construction funding, the State | 5 |
| is unable to adequately maintain its highways and bridges and | 6 |
| Illinois is now on track for reaching a record high 3,450 bad | 7 |
| miles of roads by FY2013; since FY 2003, the number of | 8 |
| structurally deficient bridges in Illinois has increased by 30% | 9 |
| and the miles of bad roads in need of maintenance have | 10 |
| increased by over 40%; and
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| WHEREAS, Road and bridge maintenance is essential in | 12 |
| preserving the safety of Illinois motorists; yet, according to | 13 |
| the latest National Bridge Inventory from the Federal Highway | 14 |
| Administration, 2,449 of Illinois' 29,903 bridges are rated | 15 |
| "structurally deficient"; and
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| WHEREAS, Chicago drivers are ranked second in the nation | 17 |
| for the longest daily commuting travel time, and each Chicago | 18 |
| motorist spends about 46 hours in traffic delays annually, | 19 |
| wasting 32 gallons of fuel; and
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| WHEREAS, Congestion relief projects are necessary in | 21 |
| cutting back on commute times and increasing safety; yet 59 of |
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| the 106 miles for congestion relief projects have been deferred | 2 |
| for more than 5 years; and | 3 |
| WHEREAS, The Regional Transportation Authority is | 4 |
| considered the second largest public transportation system in | 5 |
| North America and provides more than 2 million rides daily; and | 6 |
| WHEREAS, Mass transit is seen as an alternative to | 7 |
| gridlocked roadways and long drives to work; however, about | 8 |
| one-fifth of Metra's rail network are "slow zones" which | 9 |
| require trains to travel slower than usual so as not to disrupt | 10 |
| the crumbling infrastructure along the track; and | 11 |
| WHEREAS, Bus breakdowns and maintenance result in missed | 12 |
| routes and delays; industry standards suggest buses should be | 13 |
| renovated after 6 years and replaced after 12 years of service, | 14 |
| yet the CTA operates over 500 buses that have been in operation | 15 |
| for more than 16 years and log an average of 580,000 miles; and | 16 |
| WHEREAS, It has been more than 5 years since the State last | 17 |
| awarded school construction grants, and 23 schools from the | 18 |
| FY02 Entitlement List continue to wait for $150 million in | 19 |
| construction grants; and
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| WHEREAS, The school construction program has proven to be | 21 |
| successful in providing Illinois students with a safe learning |
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| environment while providing communities with property tax | 2 |
| relief; therefore, be it
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| RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 4 |
| NINETY-FIFTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that | 5 |
| the House of Representatives supports adoption of a capital | 6 |
| program in the 2008 session of the 95th General Assembly; and | 7 |
| be it further
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| RESOLVED, That in order to maintain faith with taxpayers | 9 |
| and user-fee payers, the 2009 capital program shall include | 10 |
| restoration of the integrity of the Road Fund and Highway | 11 |
| Construction Fund by assuring that revenues generated from the | 12 |
| State's motor fuel taxes and vehicle license fees shall be | 13 |
| dedicated to road and bridge construction funds; and be it | 14 |
| further | 15 |
| RESOLVED, That revenue produced to fund the capital program | 16 |
| shall be deposited directly into a capital infrastructure fund | 17 |
| and will not be diverted to finance any other governmental | 18 |
| expenditures; and be it further | 19 |
| RESOLVED, That a Statewide capital program will ensure that | 20 |
| no less than $3 billion is allocated each year for the next 5 | 21 |
| years to the construction, repair, replacement and maintenance | 22 |
| of roads and bridges; and be it further |
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| RESOLVED, That a new Public Transportation Construction | 2 |
| Fund will be established, that such Fund shall ensure that no | 3 |
| less than $2 billion is allocated over 3 years to the | 4 |
| construction, repair, replacement and maintenance of the | 5 |
| public transportation networks, facilities and equipment, and | 6 |
| that moneys in the Fund shall not be diverted to finance other | 7 |
| governmental expenses; and be it further | 8 |
| RESOLVED, That an annual audit of the Road, Highway | 9 |
| Construction and Public Transportation Funds be conducted by | 10 |
| the Auditor General and a report of findings be filed with the | 11 |
| General Assembly each year; and be it further | 12 |
| RESOLVED, That in order to meet the facilities needs of the | 13 |
| education systems of Illinois for new or rehabilitated | 14 |
| facilities, no less than $500 million will be allocated for | 15 |
| school construction grants in each of the next 3 years so that, | 16 |
| in combination with the 50% local match, a total of $3 billion | 17 |
| will be made available to provide construction and repair of | 18 |
| buildings located on the campuses of public schools, community | 19 |
| colleges, and universities.
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