In the News

Pioneer Press, July 1, 2007

Area state lawmakers are eyeing a sales tax increase of between 1/4 to 1/2 percent for suburban counties as a way to provide needed funding for mass transit services and other transportation projects.

Mass transit agencies Metra, Pace and the CTA have threatened major service cuts or fare hikes unless the state produces additional dollars for transit services.

Pace suburban bus service has proposed eliminating its popular Shuttle Bug program, which provides free bus service for commuters from area train stations to major employers in Lake and northern Cook counties.

"Nobody likes the idea of tax increases, but our quality of life is being impacted by traffic congestion and the lack of opportunities for mass transit," said State Rep. Kathy Ryg, D-59th, of Vernon Hills.

Ryg is a House co-sponsor of Senate Bill 572, which would increase sales taxes in six suburban counties, including Cook, Lake and McHenry, to provide additional funding for transit and other transportation services.

The plan would generate an estimated $450 million in additional operating funds for transit agencies including the CTA, Pace and Metra, said State Rep. Sid Mathias, R-53rd, of Buffalo Grove, another co-sponsor of the legislation. That would include approximately $100 million in funding for paratransit services, he said.

For Cook County and Chicago, the plan proposes a 1/4 percent sales tax increase, plus a $3 per $1,000 real estate transfer tax in the city of Chicago only.

For suburban Lake, McHenry and other collar counties, there would be a 1/2 percent sales tax increase on goods and services. Half of that money would support the mass transit agencies. The other half could be used by local county boards for needed road and transportation projects.

State Rep. Julie Hamos, D-18th, of Evanston, said transit has not had an increase in its operating funds for 24 years. Many of the agencies can no longer keep up with the demand for services on existing funds.

"I'm stressing the urgency of it," said Hamos. "There is no Plan B. It's never pleasant to increase taxes, but it's a small investment in the future of our transit system."

Bill Baltutis, executive director of the Deerfield-based Transportation Management Association of Lake Cook, said Metra, Pace and the CTA face a combined $226 million budget shortfall for fiscal 2007, which means the region's transit system would be hurt without additional funding.

Baltutis said Pace has indicated it would be forced to eliminate all 18 routes of its popular Shuttle Bug program, which includes routes in Lincolnshire, Vernon Hills, Buffalo Grove, Deerfield, Northbrook, Riverwoods and Glenview.

He added that Metra and the CTA also have discussed the possibility of fare hikes and service reductions.

"We want everyone to know these cuts are coming down the road, unless there's additional funding for transit services," Baltutis said.

On Monday, U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk, R-10th, of Highland Park, and U.S. Rep. Melissa Bean, D-8th, of Barrington, along with state legislators and local officials, attended a hearing of the bi-partisan Suburban Transportation Commission to discuss mass transit funding in the region and the proposed tax increases.

Kirk expressed concerns that the plan increases taxes on suburban residents, but that most of money would be spent to bail out the CTA from its current budget and pension crisis. He said the legislation earmarks no money for capital projects such as construction of Metra's proposed Star line.

"The current proposal would triple (sales) taxes on suburban families, but provide no funding to match the $600 million federal commitment for Metra's Star Line. We believe that no federal dollar should be left unclaimed by Illinois," he said after the meeting.

Supporters of the bill said the plan would include changes to the RTA board to increase suburban representation, and reforms to address the CTA's financial problems.

They acknowledge, however, that funding for large scale capital projects like the Star Line would have to come from other sources.

State Sen. Susan Garrett, D-29th, of Lake Forest, said while the "gloom and doom" scenarios regarding the potential negative impacts on transit services may be overstated, she believes that additional money is needed to support transit operations.

"There is some evidence that if we don't do a better job of funding public transportation that we may go backward. I think the transit agencies needs are credible and we should pay close attention to what they're saying," Garrett said.

"For example, the Shuttle Bug program has proven to be a very effective way of getting employees the short distance from the trains to their place of employment," she added.

Garrett said it's her understanding that 50 percent of the proposed sales tax hike would go to fund transit services such as Metra, PACE and the CTA, while the other 50 percent could be used for state and county road projects, such as the widening of U.S. Route 45 and future improvements to state Route 120 in Lake County.

"That funding would definitely benefit Lake County and fill the gap of many long standing projects that need to be undertaken," she said.