State lawmakers passed a bill Friday morning that will provide $1.5 billion in funding for Illinois public transportation.
The Regional Transportation Authority faced a budget gap of over $200 million for the 2026 fiscal year, which threatened service cuts and mass layoffs within the agency. The General Assembly’s fall veto session, which took place in October, was the final window for lawmakers to pass funding legislation for the RTA’s 2026 budget.
Earlier versions of the bill included plans to impose statewide taxes on delivery, streaming and entertainment ticketing services. However, Gov. JB Pritzker refused to sign on with the taxes, and the final version of Senate Bill 2111 did not include any of them.
Instead, $478 million in funding will come from expected increases to the existing RTA sales taxes in Chicago area counties. This 0.25% hike will increase the transit sales tax to 1% in Lake, McHenry, Kane, DuPage and Will Counties, and to 1.25% in Cook County. Another $860 million will be redirected from the state’s sales tax revenue from motor fuel, and $200 million from accumulated interest in the Road Fund, a fund typically used for road construction purposes.
The bill will also create a new entity, the Northern Illinois Transit Authority, as the new parent organization of the Chicago Transit Authority, Pace Suburban Bus and Metra.
The funding bill saves the RTA from a 25% cut in service, according to the RTA’s website. Up to 39 bus routes, one CTA line, and many mid-day, late-night and overnight routes will not need to be eliminated.
The bill states that 25% of the RTA’s annual operating costs will be paid for by rider fares. This is a substantial reduction from pre-COVID levels, when half of the organization’s revenue was generated from riders.
SB 2111 also includes the People Over Parking Act, which prevents local governments from enforcing parking space minimums for new developments within half a mile of a public transportation hub or one-eighth mile from a public transportation corridor.
“This bill provides the stable funding and governance reforms needed to protect transit service for the millions who ride CTA, Metra, and Pace — and the thousands of frontline workers who keep our region moving,” the RTA wrote in an Oct. 31 news release.
The bill will go into effect June 1.
Email: [email protected]
Related Stories:
—CTA’s uncertain future raises concerns for ETHS students
—RTA fiscal cliff threatens Evanston public transportation expansion
— As transit faces uncertain future, Evanston advocates question fixes
