Full Text of SR0144 101st General Assembly
SR0144 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, Proposals have been made to sell or lease all or | 3 | | part of the property of the State toll highway system to | 4 | | private parties and also to assign all or part of the revenue | 5 | | received by the State toll highway system from tolls paid by | 6 | | the public to private parties, in order to raise money for | 7 | | Illinois' pension funds; and
| 8 | | WHEREAS, The Toll Highway Act provides that the purpose of | 9 | | the State Toll Highway Authority is "to promote the public | 10 | | welfare, and to facilitate vehicular traffic by providing | 11 | | convenient, safe, modern and limited access highways designed | 12 | | for the accommodation of the needs of the traveling public | 13 | | through and within the State of Illinois," not to enrich | 14 | | private parties through the use of its public powers; and | 15 | | WHEREAS, The Toll Highway Act provides that the tolls | 16 | | collected by the State Toll Highway Authority are to be used | 17 | | "to provide for the construction, operation, regulation and | 18 | | maintenance of a toll highway or a system of toll highways, | 19 | | incorporating therein the benefits of advanced engineering | 20 | | skill, design, experience and safety factors, to eliminate | 21 | | existing traffic hazards, and to prevent automotive injuries | 22 | | and fatalities", not for the enrichment of private parties; and |
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| 1 | | WHEREAS, Proposals to divert the public funds and property | 2 | | of the State Toll Highway Authority for the enrichment of | 3 | | private parties violate the spirit, if not the letter, of | 4 | | Section 1 of Article VIII of the Illinois Constitution, which | 5 | | provides that "public funds, property or credit shall only be | 6 | | used for public purposes"; and | 7 | | WHEREAS, Proposals to divert the public funds and property | 8 | | of the State Toll Highway Authority rightly call to mind the | 9 | | City of Chicago's failed experiment with privatizing its | 10 | | parking meters, parking garages, and the Chicago Skyway, where | 11 | | ever-increasing fees continue to be paid to enrich private | 12 | | parties while providing no continuing benefit to the public; | 13 | | and | 14 | | WHEREAS, In 2016, the citizens of Illinois expressed their | 15 | | opposition to such diversions of public funds by amending their | 16 | | Constitution to add Section 11 to Article IX, which provides | 17 | | that "moneys, including bond proceeds, derived from taxes,
| 18 | | fees, excises, or license taxes relating to registration,
| 19 | | title, or operation or use of vehicles, or related to the use
| 20 | | of highways, roads, streets, bridges, mass transit, intercity
| 21 | | passenger rail, ports, airports, or to fuels used for
| 22 | | propelling vehicles, or derived from taxes, fees, excises, or
| 23 | | license taxes relating to any other transportation
| 24 | | infrastructure or transportation operation, shall be expended" |
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| 1 | | only for "the following:
the costs of administering laws | 2 | | related to vehicles and
transportation, including statutory | 3 | | refunds and adjustments
provided in those laws; payment of | 4 | | highway obligations; costs
for construction, reconstruction, | 5 | | maintenance, repair, and
betterment of highways, roads, | 6 | | streets, bridges, mass transit,
intercity passenger rail, | 7 | | ports, airports, or other forms of
transportation; and other | 8 | | statutory highway purposes."; and | 9 | | WHEREAS, Using the tolls paid by the citizens of Illinois | 10 | | for the operation and maintenance of the State toll highway | 11 | | system to raise money for Illinois' pension funds blatantly | 12 | | violates the plain meaning of Section 11 of Article IX of the | 13 | | Illinois Constitution; therefore, be it
| 14 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL | 15 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, That we state our firm | 16 | | opposition to the unconstitutional diversion of the tolls | 17 | | collected by the State Toll Highway Authority; and be it | 18 | | further | 19 | | RESOLVED, That we fully support the right of every Illinois | 20 | | citizen to enjoy the full benefit of the tolls paid to the | 21 | | State Toll Highway Authority in the form of improved roads and | 22 | | safer driving, without having any portion of those funds | 23 | | diverted for the enrichment of private parties; and be it |
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| 1 | | further
| 2 | | RESOLVED, That we state our firm opposition to any sale or | 3 | | lease of the properties of the State toll highway system and to | 4 | | any redirection of any portion of the tolls paid for the | 5 | | operation and maintenance of the State toll highway system for | 6 | | the enrichment of private parties.
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