093_HB1532

 
                                     LRB093 07878 LCB 08068 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 finds
 7    that  safe,  reliable,  and  convenient transportation to and
 8    from work and related destinations such  as  child  care  and
 9    education  is an extremely important factor in the ability to
10    find and retain employment, particularly in the lower  income
11    sectors of the economy. For many people, these transportation
12    needs  are  not  met by existing mass transit. This creates a
13    need for innovative transportation to  work  strategies  that
14    fit   within  local  circumstances.  Many  localities  around
15    Illinois do not  have  the  resources  or  the  expertise  to
16    develop   and   support  innovative  transportation  options.
17    Localities  need  access  to  technical  assistance  both  in
18    designing programs and in accessing various sources of  State
19    and  federal  funds. Illinois also leaves substantial federal
20    transportation funds unclaimed because of the failure to  put
21    forward  projects  to  use  the  funds.  Thus, Illinois would
22    benefit from an Interagency  Coordinating  Committee  to  set
23    priorities  and  define  a  vision  for  improving  access to
24    transportation   for   the   transportation    disadvantaged.
25    Illinois  would  also benefit from a unified State process to
26    apply for federal transportation  assistance  for  innovative
27    transportation  to  work  projects  and  strategies  and  for
28    supplying the matching funds necessary to access that federal
29    assistance.  The  purpose  of  this  Act  is to establish the
30    Interagency Coordinating Committee on Transportation.
 
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 1        Section 10.  Definitions. As used in this Act:
 2             (1)  "Agency"   means   an   official,   commission,
 3        authority,  council,  department,  committee,   division,
 4        bureau,  board, or any other unit or entity of the State,
 5        a municipality, a county, or other local  governing  body
 6        or   a   private  not-for-profit  transportation  service
 7        providing agency.
 8             (2)  "Committee"  means  the  Illinois  Coordinating
 9        Committee on Transportation.
10             (3)  "Coordination" means the  arrangement  for  the
11        provision    of    transportation    services    to   the
12        transportation  disadvantaged  in  a   manner   that   is
13        cost-effective,  efficient, and reduces fragmentation and
14        duplication of services.
15             (4)  "Transportation   disadvantaged"  means   those
16        persons  who,  because  of physical or mental disability,
17        income status,  age,  location  of  residence,  or  other
18        reasons are unable to transport themselves or to purchase
19        affordable  transportation  and are, therefore, dependent
20        upon others to obtain access to health care,  employment,
21        education,   shopping,   social   activities,   or  other
22        life-sustaining activities.

23        Section  15.  Committee.    The   Illinois   Coordinating
24    Committee  on  Transportation is created and shall consist of
25    the following members:
26             (1)  The Governor or his or her designee.
27             (2)  The Secretary of Transportation or his  or  her
28        designee.
29             (3)  The  Secretary of Human Services (or his or her
30        designee).
31             (4)  The Director of Aging or his or her designee.
32             (5)  The Director  of  Public  Aid  or  his  or  her
33        designee.
 
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 1             (6)  The  Director of Commerce and Community Affairs
 2        or his or her designee.
 3             (7)  A representative of the Illinois Rural  Transit
 4        Assistance Center.
 5             (8)  A  person  who  is  a  member  of  a recognized
 6        statewide organization representing  older  residents  of
 7        Illinois.
 8             (9)  A  representative  of  centers  for independent
 9        living.
10             (10)  A  representative  of  the   Illinois   Public
11        Transportation Association.
12             (11)  A representative of an existing transportation
13        system  that coordinates and provides transit services in
14        a multi-county area for the Department of Transportation,
15        Department of Human Services, Department of Commerce  and
16        Community Affairs, or Department on Aging.
17             (12)  A  representative  of a statewide organization
18        of  rehabilitation  facilities  or  other  providers   of
19        services for persons with one or more disabilities.
20             (13)  A   representative   of   a   community  based
21        organization.
22             (14)  A representative of the Department  of  Public
23        Health.
24             (15)  A representative of the Rural Partners.
25             (16)  The  Director of Employment Security or his or
26        her designee.
27        The Governor shall appoint the members of  the  Committee
28    other  than  those  named  in  paragraphs (1) through (6) and
29    paragraph (16) of this Section. The Governor or  his  or  her
30    designee  shall  serve  as  chairperson  of the Committee and
31    shall convene the meetings of the Committee. The Secretary of
32    Transportation and a  representative  of  a  community  based
33    organization  involved  in transportation or their designees,
34    shall serve as co-vice-chairpersons and shall be  responsible
 
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 1    for staff support for the committee.

 2        Section  20.  Duties  of  Committee.  The Committee shall
 3    encourage   the   coordination   of   public   and    private
 4    transportation  services,  with  priority  given  to services
 5    directed toward  those  populations  who  are  currently  not
 6    served  or  who  are  underserved by existing public transit.
 7    The Committee shall seek innovative approaches  to  providing
 8    and  funding  local  transportation  services and offer their
 9    expertise  to  communities  statewide.    Specifically,   the
10    Committee shall:
11             (1)  Coordinate   a  State  process  within  federal
12        guidelines to facilitate coordination of  community-based
13        transportation  programs.   This  process should include:
14        developing    objectives    for    providing    essential
15        transportation    services    to    the    transportation
16        disadvantaged;   providing   technical   assistance    to
17        communities  that are addressing transportation gaps that
18        affect low-income populations; developing a  process  for
19        requesting  federal  funds  such  as  the  Job Access and
20        Reverse Commute (JARC) Grant program  that  is  based  on
21        input  from  communities statewide; assisting communities
22        in identifying funds from  other  available  sources  for
23        projects  that are not an eligible use of JARC funds; and
24        developing a  plan  to  identify  and  recruit  potential
25        stakeholders    in    future   community   transportation
26        initiatives to the committee.
27             (2)  Develop  goals   and   objectives   to   reduce
28        duplication  of  services and achieve coverage that is as
29        complete as possible.
30             (3)  Serve as a clearinghouse for information  about
31        funding   sources   and   innovations   in   serving  the
32        transportation disadvantaged.
33             (4)  Submit a report, not  later  than  February  1,
 
                            -5-      LRB093 07878 LCB 08068 b
 1        2006,  to  the  Governor  and  the  General Assembly that
 2        outlines the progress made by the Committee in performing
 3        its duties set forth in paragraphs  (1)  through  (4)  of
 4        this  Section and makes recommendations for statutory and
 5        regulatory changes to promote coordination.

 6        Section 99.  Effective date. This Act takes  effect  upon
 7    becoming law.