Rep. Kam Buckner, a member of the House leadership team, says he shares Villivalam’s optimism.
Legislators have been working for more than a year to come up with a fix that not only includes funding but also changes in oversight between Metra, Chicago Transit Authority and Pace.
Villivalam, a Chicago Democrat who chairs the Senate transportation committee, provided few details during a briefing this morning about what the governance structure might look like, nor what funding mechanisms might be used, but he dropped some hints.
The General Assembly already is facing a difficult budget session, made more challenging by signs of a weakening economy, which would reduce income and sales-tax revenue.
Even before the state reduced its revenue forecast by $536 million, Gov. JB Pritzker and legislators such as Buckner have been adamant that the various transit agencies need to reform an unwieldy, inefficient governance structure, and make changes to improve the quality of service and safety.
“There will be no funding without reform,” Villivalam says. “We’re centralizing responsibilities to a main authority, and we are ensuring local voices will continue to be heard.
“We’re in the process of finalizing conversations on reforms so when we put funding options on the table we can tell residents these are the reforms that will be in place. … We’re getting close to complete consensus on that. As long as we get those reforms, we’re going to be in a place to make the case for funding.”
That sounds a lot like a bill Villivalam introduced, which has the support of labor groups, and calls for giving the Regional Transportation Authority more power over setting fares, procurement and other functions. A key sticking point will be the RTA board and who appoints its members.
“We’re centralizing responsibilities to a main authority, and we are ensuring local voices will continue to be heard,” Villivalam said.
He also said the proposal under consideration will call for creation of a police force for CTA. It’s among the reforms that Rep. Marty Moylan, D-DesPlaines, who chairs the House transportation committee, has been pushing for.
“We are making some substantial progress on overtime, policing, homeless, staffing. We’re close,” Moylan said. “Reform can get done. We’ve got to see about proposals for funding.”
He says that adding a dedicated police force could be paid for largely by reducing overtime spending.
Transit advocates have said the funding shortfall—including deferred maintenance and needed service expansions—puts the price tag at $1.5 billion, which will be a tougher sell as budget pressures increase elsewhere.
“That’s our North Star. We are going to continue to strive for it,” VillivaIam said but acknowledged: “I wouldn’t be surprised if we don’t get all the way. Those are conversations that will continue to occur over the next few weeks.”