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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3 Representatives are pleased to congratulate Joseph C. Szabo on
4 the occasion of being selected to serve as Federal Railroad
5 Administrator by President Barack Obama; and
 
6     WHEREAS, Joseph Szabo is a fifth-generation railroader
7 whose ancestors worked for the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy,
8 Wabash, and Illinois Central (IC) Railroads; while still in
9 high school, he assisted his father, a 40-year IC switchman and
10 14-year union officer, with his bookkeeping work as
11 secretary/treasurer of UTU Local 1299; he was hired to work for
12 the Illinois Central in 1976, where he was employed as a yard
13 switchman, road trainman, and commuter passenger conductor; he
14 became an employee of Metra when IC sold its Commuter Division
15 in 1987; and
 
16     WHEREAS, By 1984, Joseph Szabo was following in his
17 father's footsteps, winning the election to serve as
18 secretary/treasurer of UTU Local 1290; he later progressed to
19 become Local 1290's Delegate and Legislative Representative,
20 eventually winning the election to serve as Vice Chairman of
21 the UTU Illinois Legislative Board in 1991; in February of
22 1996, he was elected to serve as State Director of the UTU
23 Illinois Legislative Board; since then, he has been re-elected

 

 

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1 by acclamation three times in 2000, 2004, and 2008; in October
2 of 2006, he was appointed to the position of vice president of
3 the Illinois AFL-CIO and, in October 2008, was elected to a
4 full four-year term; and
 
5     WHEREAS, Joseph Szabo was also active in local government
6 in the Chicago suburb of Riverdale for more than twenty years,
7 eventually serving as mayor; and
 
8     WHEREAS, Joseph Szabo served as a member of the South
9 Suburban Mayors Transportation Committee and Vice Chairman of
10 the Chicago Area Transportation Study's Executive Committee;
11 following the 2002 gubernatorial election, he co-chaired the
12 Freight Rail Sub-Committee of Governor Rod Blagojevich's
13 Transition Team; since 2005, he has been assigned by the UTU
14 International to the Federal Railroad Administration's Rail
15 Safety Advisory Committee, where he participates in the
16 drafting of rail-safety regulations; and
 
17     WHEREAS, Joseph Szabo has served in a variety of positions
18 to help decision makers in State government shape a
19 transportation and economic development vision for Illinois;
20 he held an advisory position on the State of Illinois Growth
21 Task Force and previously served on the Executive Council of
22 Metropolis 2020; he is also a former member of Business Leaders
23 for Transportation and the legislative advisory committee for

 

 

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1 the Metropolitan Planning Council; and
 
2     WHEREAS, Joseph Szabo earned his bachelor's degree in labor
3 relations from Governors State University in 1990; and
 
4     WHEREAS, Joseph Szabo served as the Alternate National
5 Legislative Director of the UTU's National Legislative Office
6 in Washington from January 15, 2009 until his resignation on
7 May 4, 2009; on May 5, 2009, he was sworn in to serve as the
8 Federal Railroad Administrator; and
 
9     WHEREAS, Joseph Szabo serves as a model of hard work,
10 integrity, and dedication for the people of the State of
11 Illinois; therefore, be it
 
12     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
13 NINETY-SIXTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we
14 congratulate Joseph C. Szabo on the occasion of being selected
15 to serve as Federal Railroad Administrator and wish him
16 continued success and happiness in the future; and be it
17 further
 
18     RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be
19 presented to Joseph Szabo as a symbol of our esteem and
20 respect.