‘A political time bomb’? RTA predicts service cuts as local leaders say state transit plan is ‘pickpocketing’ the suburbs

Legislation proposing a menu of fees and taxes to fill a gaping budget hole facing Metra, Pace and the CTA falls short, a Regional Transportation Authority analysis indicated Friday.

“We are grateful for the Senate focusing on the fiscal cliff, however, as proposed, the new revenue included in (Thursday’s) Senate bill fails to address the region’s $771 million transit operating budget gap and would result in significant service cuts in 2026,” RTA Chairman Kirk Dillard said.

The critique came as Kane County leaders lambasted the plan at a news conference for “pickpocketing” the suburbs. Senate Transportation Committee Chairman Ram Villivalam, however, stressed that the whole region has to share the burden.

“This is a political time bomb in your hand,” Batavia Mayor Jeff Schielke said at the news conference, directing his comments at Kane County lawmakers. “You better be very cautious about what you vote for.“

Legislators have insisted any transit bailout must come with reforms to create an efficient regional system. House Bill 3438 introduced Thursday seeks to replace the RTA with a new Northern Illinois Transit Authority with greater powers over budgets and fares.

The RTA concluded the fees and taxes proposed in the bill would only generate $372 million for operations.

Dillard asked why a chunk of revenue is dedicated to capital projects and transit supportive development, which typically means mixed-use residential and retail sites near train stations.

That leaves “less than half of the new funding available for operations. While the bill also requires the regional entity to take on additional costs for new initiatives like a police force without dedicated funding, which could further limit available funding,” Dillard said.

Kane officials skewered proposals in Bill 3438, including clawing back a portion of the RTA sales tax allocated to counties. The county share was originally intended to be used for transportation, but public safety was added in 2008 legislation raising the RTA sales tax to avert a previous transit Armageddon.

Kane gets about $27 million from the tax, using most for road projects and the Ride in Kane program.

But $7 million is targeted for judicial and public safety, Kane County State's Attorney Jamie Mosser said.

“You are going to make it more difficult for us to be able to support and help those in our community who have been targeted as victims of violence,” Mosser said.

If approved, the legislation would empower NITA to impose transit support fees of 50 cents on toll transactions throughout the metro region.

Bill 3438 also proposes a public charging station fee for EVs at 6 cents per kilowatt-hour, and extending Chicago’s real estate transfer tax and 10% fee on rideshares into the Cook County suburbs and the Collar Counties.

“The funding mechanism as being proposed is nothing more than statutory pickpocketing of counties throughout the collar counties, and communities within the counties,” Geneva Mayor Kevin Burns said.

Kane County Chair Corinne Pierog said “our success depends on working together and making sure every voice is heard.”

Villivalam, who is sponsoring Bill 3438, countered Thursday at a hearing that “if we’re going to demand reforms be done to governance for these public transit agencies — I believe we need to provide them with the funding necessary to enact these reforms and make the world-class transit system we all want to see.

“When we talk about shared sacrifice, I can say that the city of Chicago and Cook County make up 76% of the sales tax revenue that goes into funding the entire system.”

Regarding the RTA sales tax, Villavalam said legislators made it known to Collar County chairs at a series of forums in 2024 they supported giving those funds back to public transit.

“This is the way the Collar Counties can contribute to this effort,” he said.