95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2007 and 2008
SB2311

 

Introduced 2/14/2008, by Sen. Susan Garrett

 

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
 
New Act

    Creates the Transportation Enhancements and Safe Routes to School Transparency Act. Establishes grants review committees, appointed by the Secretary of Transportation, to evaluate, score, and rank all applications for funding under the federal Transportation Enhancements Program and the Safe Routes to School Program. Sets forth the grants review process. Provides that application evaluation, scoring, and ranking decisions of the committees are binding upon the Department. Contains other provisions. Effective immediately.


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FISCAL NOTE ACT MAY APPLY

 

 

A BILL FOR

 

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1     AN ACT concerning transportation.
 
2     Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
3 represented in the General Assembly:
 
4     Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5 Transportation Enhancements and Safe Routes to School
6 Transparency Act.
 
7     Section 5. Intent. This Act is intended to increase the
8 selection transparency, objectiveness, and predictability of
9 the Transportation Enhancements and Safe Routes to School
10 programs.
 
11     Section 10. Definitions. In this Act:
12     "Committees" means the grants review committees created in
13 this Act.
14     "Department" means the Illinois Department of
15 Transportation.
16     "Grant programs" means the Transportation Enhancements
17 Program and the Safe Routes to School Program as defined in the
18 Safe Accountable Flexible Efficient Transportation Equity Act:
19 A Legacy for Users (Public Law 109-59) or successor programs
20 for transportation enhancements or safe routes to schools
21 activities administered by the United States Department of
22 Transportation.

 

 

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1     "Secretary" means the Illinois Secretary of
2 Transportation.
 
3     Section 15. Grants review committees. For each of the grant
4 programs, the Secretary shall appoint a committee to evaluate,
5 score, and rank all applications for funding submitted. The
6 committees shall each include 2 representatives from the
7 Department, 2 representatives from metropolitan planning
8 organizations, counties, or municipalities, 4 representatives
9 from other relevant state agencies, and 3 representatives from
10 relevant public interest organizations. The Secretary shall
11 make appointments to the committees no later than 90 days
12 following the effective date of this Act. The Secretary shall
13 fill vacancies on the committees within 90 days.
 
14     Section 20. Grants review process.
15     (a) Each committee shall establish criteria for
16 evaluating, scoring, and ranking all funding applications for
17 the grant programs. Notwithstanding any other provision of law,
18 these criteria are public records under the Freedom of
19 Information Act. The criteria shall also be made available on
20 the Department's website upon their acceptance by the
21 committee.
22     (b) The committees shall evaluate, score, and rank all
23 funding applications for the grant programs using the
24 established criteria. All available funding from these

 

 

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1 programs are subject to this application, evaluation, scoring,
2 and ranking process. Notwithstanding any other provision of
3 law, the scores and rankings of applications are public records
4 under the Freedom of Information Act. The scores and rankings
5 shall also be made available on the Department's website
6 promptly upon their acceptance by the committee.
7     (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the
8 meetings of the committees are meetings of a public body open
9 to the public under the Open Meetings Act. Any meetings of the
10 committees including evaluating, scoring, and ranking of
11 applications for funding shall include a public comment period.
12 The committees shall establish reasonable criteria for the
13 submission of public comments.
14     (d) The application evaluation, scoring, and ranking
15 decisions of the committees are binding upon the Department.
16 Applications shall be funded in order of ranking by the
17 committees. The Department shall promptly announce these
18 decisions.
 
19     Section 25. Grant programs frequencies and deadlines.
20     (a) No later than 120 days after the effective date of this
21 Act, the Department, in consultation with the committees, shall
22 select either an annual or biennial application cycle frequency
23 for each grant program. Subject to the availability of federal
24 funds, the grant programs shall follow these frequencies.
25     (b) The Department and committees shall establish

 

 

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1 reasonable deadlines, occurring at the same time of each
2 appropriate year, for the submission of any funding
3 applications for the grant programs. The committees shall
4 finalize funding decisions no later than 150 days after the
5 deadlines for the submission of any funding applications for
6 the grant programs.
 
7     Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
8 becoming law.