(35 ILCS 505/8b)

Sec. 8b. Transportation Renewal Fund; creation; distribution of proceeds.

(a) The Transportation Renewal Fund is hereby created as a special fund in the State treasury. Moneys in the Fund shall be used as provided in this Section:

(1) 80% of the moneys in the Fund shall be used for highway maintenance, highway construction, bridge repair, congestion relief, and construction of aviation facilities; of that 80%:

(A) the State Comptroller shall order transferred and the State Treasurer shall transfer 60% to the State Construction Account Fund; those moneys shall be used solely for construction, reconstruction, improvement, repair, maintenance, operation, and administration of highways and are limited to payments made pursuant to design and construction contracts awarded by the Department of Transportation;

(B) 40% shall be distributed by the Department of Transportation to municipalities, counties, and road districts of the State using the percentages set forth in subdivisions (A), (B), (C), and (D) of paragraph (2) of subsection (e) of Section 8; distributions to particular municipalities, counties, and road districts under this subdivision (B) shall be made according to the allocation procedures described for municipalities, counties, and road districts in subsection (e) of Section 8 and shall be subject to the same requirements and limitations described in that subsection; and

(2) 20% of the moneys in the Fund shall be used for projects related to rail facilities and mass transit facilities, as defined in Section 2705-305 of the Department of Transportation Law of the Civil Administrative Code of Illinois, including rapid transit, rail, high-speed rail, bus and other equipment in connection with the State or a unit of local government, special district, municipal corporation, or other public agency authorized to provide and promote public transportation within the State; of that 20%:

(A) 90% shall be deposited into the Regional Transportation Authority Capital Improvement Fund, a special fund created in the State Treasury; moneys in the Regional Transportation Authority Capital Improvement Fund shall be used by the Regional Transportation Authority for construction, improvements, and deferred maintenance on mass transit facilities and acquisition of buses and other equipment; and

(B) 10% shall be deposited into the Downstate Mass Transportation Capital Improvement Fund, a special fund created in the State Treasury; moneys in the Downstate Mass Transportation Capital Improvement Fund shall be used by local mass transit districts other than the Regional Transportation Authority for construction, improvements, and deferred maintenance on mass transit facilities and acquisition of buses and other equipment.

(b) Beginning on July 1, 2020, the Auditor General shall conduct an annual financial audit of the obligations, expenditures, receipt, and use of the funds deposited into the Transportation Renewal Fund and provide specific recommendations to help ensure compliance with State and federal statutes, rules, and regulations.

(Source: P.A. 101-32, eff. 6-28-19; 101-604, eff. 12-13-19.)