HR0320LRB101 12117 ALS 59685 r

1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Illinois has long been the hub of freight rail in
3the United States; and
 
4    WHEREAS, The seven private railroads bring 12,000 jobs with
5an average wage and benefits package of $125,000 a year per
6railroad employee to Illinois; and
 
7    WHEREAS, Rail in Illinois moves the crops that farmers
8grow, the fuel required for electricity, and the goods
9consumers demand every day; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Without freight rail in Illinois, 26.8 million
11more trucks would have been on the road in 2017; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Freight railroads are the most environmentally
13friendly way to move large amounts of freight, as a single
14gallon of fuel is able to transport a ton of freight nearly 500
15miles; and
 
16    WHEREAS, Freight railroads in Illinois pay for their own
17infrastructure and do not rely on support from the State to
18maintain the 5,700 plus miles of track they own and operate;
19and
 

 

 

HR0320- 2 -LRB101 12117 ALS 59685 r

1    WHEREAS, In 2019, freight railroads will spend over $600
2million on their infrastructure in Illinois and $25 billion
3across the entire country; and
 
4    WHEREAS, Freight railroads pay a number of taxes to State
5and local governments in Illinois, including property tax,
6income tax, sales/use tax, fuel tax, franchise tax, fuel excise
7tax, and other regulatory fees, collectively contributing over
8a quarter of a billion dollars to State and local government
9each year; and
 
10    WHEREAS, Recently, the freight railroads partnered with
11public agencies to pursue a successful $132 million INFRA grant
12from the United States Department of Transportation for CREATE,
13a model for public private partnerships in the United States,
14which was matched by $111 million from the State of Illinois
15and $116 million from the freight railroads collectively;
16therefore, be it
 
17    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
18HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
19we recognize Illinois railroads on the 150th anniversary of the
20connection of the east and west railroads, represented by the
21"golden spike" planted in Promontory, Utah on May 10, 1869.