093_SB1408enr SB1408 Enrolled LRB093 07879 LCB 08069 b 1 AN ACT concerning transportation. 2 Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, 3 represented in the General Assembly: 4 Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the 5 Interagency Coordinating Committee on Transportation Act. 6 Section 5. Findings; purpose. The General Assembly 7 finds that safe, reliable, and convenient transportation to 8 and from (i) work and related destinations such as child care 9 and education, (ii) medical appointments and related 10 destinations such as a pharmacy, and (iii) ancillary services 11 necessary to the health, well-being, and independence of the 12 family such as grocery shopping, adult day services, and 13 pharmacy related services are extremely important in the 14 ability to find and retain employment and insure the 15 continued independence and well-being of all citizens of 16 Illinois, particularly in the lower income sectors of the 17 economy. For many people, these transportation needs are not 18 met by existing mass transit. In a national survey by the 19 University of Illinois at Chicago of over 500 riders of 23 20 federally funded community transportation projects under the 21 Job Access and Reverse Commute (JARC) program across the 22 nation, 68% of riders indicated that they would not be able 23 to reach their employment without this service. Furthermore, 24 the national evaluation of the JARC program by the General 25 Accounting Office illustrates that 65% of all projects have 26 extended existing fixed routes by schedule or location as 27 well as created connections to existing services. This 28 creates a need for innovative transportation to work 29 strategies that fit within local circumstances in Illinois. 30 Many localities around Illinois do not have the resources or 31 the expertise to develop and support innovative SB1408 Enrolled -2- LRB093 07879 LCB 08069 b 1 transportation options. Localities need access to technical 2 assistance both in designing programs and in accessing 3 various sources of State and federal funds. Illinois also 4 leaves substantial federal transportation funds unclaimed 5 because of the failure to put forward projects to use the 6 funds. Thus, Illinois would benefit from an Interagency 7 Coordinating Committee to set priorities for improving access 8 to transportation for the transportation disadvantaged. The 9 General Accounting Office has found in its evaluation that 10 interagency collaboration has informed transit agencies of 11 how to better serve low-income communities by knowing where 12 jobs are located and a system of supports are found. Illinois 13 would also benefit from a unified State process to apply for 14 federal transportation assistance for innovative 15 transportation to work projects and strategies and for 16 identifying the matching funds necessary to access that 17 federal assistance. The purpose of this Act is to establish 18 the Interagency Coordinating Committee on Transportation. 19 Section 10. Definitions. As used in this Act: 20 (1) "Agency" means an official, commission, authority, 21 council, department, committee, division, bureau, board, or 22 any other unit or entity of the State, a municipality, a 23 county, or other local governing body or a private 24 not-for-profit transportation service providing agency. 25 (2) "Committee" means the Illinois Coordinating 26 Committee on Transportation. 27 (3) "Coordination" means the arrangement for the 28 provision of transportation services to the transportation 29 disadvantaged in a manner that is cost-effective, efficient, 30 and reduces fragmentation and duplication of services. 31 (4) "Transportation disadvantaged" means those persons 32 who, because of physical or mental disability, income status, 33 age, location of residence, or other reasons are unable to SB1408 Enrolled -3- LRB093 07879 LCB 08069 b 1 transport themselves or to purchase affordable transportation 2 and are, therefore, dependent upon others to obtain access to 3 health care, employment, education, shopping, social 4 activities, or other life-sustaining activities. 5 Section 15. Committee. The Illinois Coordinating 6 Committee on Transportation is created and shall consist of 7 the following members: 8 (1) The Governor or his or her designee. 9 (2) The Secretary of Transportation or his or her 10 designee. 11 (3) The Secretary of Human Services or his or her 12 designee. 13 (4) The Director of Aging or his or her designee. 14 (5) The Director of Public Aid or his or her designee. 15 (6) The Director of Commerce and Community Affairs or 16 his or her designee. 17 (7) A representative of the Illinois Rural Transit 18 Assistance Center. 19 (8) A person who is a member of a recognized statewide 20 organization representing older residents of Illinois. 21 (9) A representative of centers for independent living. 22 (10) A representative of the Illinois Public 23 Transportation Association. 24 (11) A representative of an existing transportation 25 system that coordinates and provides transit services in a 26 multi-county area for the Department of Transportation, 27 Department of Human Services, Department of Commerce and 28 Community Affairs, or Department on Aging. 29 (12) A representative of a statewide organization of 30 rehabilitation facilities or other providers of services for 31 persons with one or more disabilities. 32 (13) A representative of a community-based organization. 33 (14) A representative of the Department of Public SB1408 Enrolled -4- LRB093 07879 LCB 08069 b 1 Health. 2 (15) A representative of the Rural Partners. 3 (16) The Director of Employment Security or his or her 4 designee. 5 (17) A representative of a statewide business 6 association. 7 (18) A representative of the Illinois Council on 8 Developmental Disabilities. 9 The Governor shall appoint the members of the Committee 10 other than those named in paragraphs (1) through (6) and 11 paragraph (16) of this Section. The Governor or his or her 12 designee shall serve as chairperson of the Committee and 13 shall convene the meetings of the Committee. The Secretary of 14 Transportation and a representative of a community-based 15 organization involved in transportation or their designees, 16 shall serve as co-vice-chairpersons and shall be responsible 17 for staff support for the committee. 18 Section 20. Duties of Committee. The Committee shall 19 encourage the coordination of public and private 20 transportation services, with priority given to services 21 directed toward those populations who are currently not 22 served or who are underserved by existing public transit. 23 The Committee shall seek innovative approaches to 24 providing and funding local transportation services and offer 25 their expertise to communities statewide. Specifically, the 26 Committee shall: 27 (1) Coordinate a State process within federal guidelines 28 to facilitate coordination of community-based transportation 29 programs. This process should include: developing objectives 30 for providing essential transportation services to the 31 transportation disadvantaged; providing technical assistance 32 to communities that are addressing transportation gaps that 33 affect low-income populations; developing a process for SB1408 Enrolled -5- LRB093 07879 LCB 08069 b 1 requesting federal funds such as the Job Access and Reverse 2 Commute (JARC) Grant program that is based on input from 3 communities statewide; assisting communities in identifying 4 funds from other available sources for projects that are not 5 an eligible use of JARC funds; and developing a plan to 6 identify and recruit potential stakeholders in future 7 community transportation initiatives to the Committee. 8 (2) Develop goals and objectives to reduce duplication 9 of services and achieve coverage that is as complete as 10 possible. 11 (3) Serve as a clearinghouse for information about 12 funding sources and innovations in serving the transportation 13 disadvantaged. 14 (4) Submit a report, not later than February 1, 2006, to 15 the Governor and the General Assembly that outlines the 16 progress made by the Committee in performing its duties set 17 forth in paragraphs (1) through (4) of this Section and makes 18 recommendations for statutory and regulatory changes to 19 promote coordination. 20 Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon 21 becoming law.