7/24/06-Unions and watchdog groups met recently in Illinois to ask state lawmakers to reconsider leasing out the state tollway system to a private company. Meanwhile, some supporters said it would be irresponsible to spend some of any future lease windfall on state pension debt as proposed.
The sentiments were shared Thursday, July 20, in Grayslake, IL, during the third hearing on leasing the 274-mile system.
The Illinois Legislature isn’t expected to seriously consider the proposal until they gather for the regular session that begins in January 2007. However, among the many concerns that opponents have are how the money will be distributed.
Despite the concerns, lawmakers in support of the plan remain undeterred. They said they are confident that a state-funded study of the deal will relieve anxieties that include higher tolls and lost public control, the Daily Herald reported.
Later this summer, a financial firm is expected to wrap up a state-funded analysis of various ways to lease parts or all of the tollway system and how much money the deal could generate.
Illinois lawmakers led by Sen. Jeff Schoenberg, D-Evanston, started to look into the possibility of leasing the tollway shortly after Indiana netted $3.85 billion to lease its 152-mile stretch of Interstate 90 for 75 years. The city of Chicago brought in $1.83 billion in a similar 99-year deal for its East Side Skyway.
Some experts project that Illinois could rake in as much as $20 billion for the tollway system, the Daily Herald reported.

6/23/06-Gov. Rod Blagojevich says that he won’t allow the Illinois Tollway to be sold or leased, the Chicago Tribune reported.
The governor’s Republican challenger in the November election, state Treasurer Judy Baar Topinka, has said that she would make sure the tollway isn’t handed over to a private group. She called on Blagojevich to make the same commitment.
Concerns about a possible hand over of the 274-mile tollway system have been widespread since Sen. Jeff Schoenberg, D-Evanston, announced this spring that he is looking into the possibility of leasing it.
Schoenberg pointed out that the 75-year lease of the Indiana Toll Road netted the Hoosier State $3.85 billion and the 99-year lease of the Chicago Skyway brought in $1.83 billion. He said those figures could translate into a $14.6 billion price tag for the Illinois Tollway.

4/26/06-Gov. Rod Blagojevich appears to be singing a slightly different tune about putting the state’s pay-as-you-go roads up for bid to private groups. The revelation is in contrast to what Deputy Gov. Bradley Tusk told the Chicago Tribune early this year.
At the time, Tusk said the governor has other priorities to privatizing the toll highway authority. He said Blagojevich has his sights set on providing open-road tolling and the extension of Interstate 335.
Blagojevich said Monday, April 24, that the proposed leasing of the 274-mile Illinois Tollway system is a better idea for bringing in revenue than raising taxes.
While the governor isn’t ready to formally endorse the plan yet, Blagojevich said he’s been considering the idea of leasing the toll highway, and bringing in possibly billions in revenue, for years, WBBM Newsradio 780 reported.
The governor’s turnabout follows the recent action by an Illinois legislative panel to open up a process that could lead to the Tollway being put up for bid.
The General Assembly’s Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability voted April 4 to seek proposals from financial experts to determine how much a lease of the Tollway might earn the state.
The idea was first unveiled in January when state Sen. Jeff Schoenberg, D-Evanston, said he would call on the bipartisan forecasting arm to see how much the state could gain by leasing or selling all or part of the tollway system.
Schoenberg pointed out that the 75-year lease of the Indiana Toll Road netted the Hoosier State $3.85 billion and the 99-year lease of the Chicago Skyway brought in $1.83 billion. He said those figures could translate into a $14.6 billion price tag for the Illinois Tollway.
“The Illinois Tollway is now more attractive than ever to investors,” Schoenberg, co-chairman of the commission, recently told chicagobusiness.com. The road system is “well-positioned to bring Illinois to address some of its most critical needs,” including paying pensions and pulling in federal road dollars.
The legislative panel set a May 5 deadline for revenue projection bids, Reuters reported. But the governor says the idea needs more study, and won’t be decided until next year at the earliest.

4/6/06-An Illinois legislative panel this week opened up a process that could lead to the state’s pay-as-you-go roads being put up for bid to private groups.
The General Assembly’s Commission on Government Forecasting and Accountability voted Tuesday, April 4, to seek proposals from financial experts to determine how much a lease of the 274-mile Illinois Tollway might earn the state.
The idea was first unveiled in January when state Sen. Jeff Schoenberg, D-Evanston, said he would call on the bipartisan forecasting arm to see how much the state could gain by leasing all or part of the tollway system.
Schoenberg pointed out that the 75-year lease of the Indiana Toll Road netted the state $3.85 billion and the 99-year lease of the Chicago Skyway brought in $1.83 billion. He said those dollar figures could translate into a $14.6 billion price tag for the tollway.
“The Illinois Tollway is now more attractive than ever to investors,” Schoenberg, co-chairman of the commission, told chicagobusiness.com. The road system is “well-positioned to bring Illinois to address some of its most critical needs,” including paying pensions and pulling in federal road dollars.
Deputy Gov. Bradley Tusk recently said the governor has other priorities at the toll highway authority, the Chicago Tribune reported. Instead, Blagojevich has his sights set on providing open-road tolling and the extension of Interstate 335.
The legislative panel set a May 5 deadline for revenue projection bids, Reuters reported. Tentative plans call for a winning bidder to be determined on May 15.

1/26/06- An Illinois legislator wants the state to consider putting the Illinois Tollway up for bid.
Sen. Jeff Schoenberg, D-Evanston, told The Times in Northwest Indiana Wednesday, Jan. 25, he would ask the Illinois General Assembly’s bipartisan forecasting arm next week to crunch the numbers to see how much money could be fetched to lease the 274-mile Illinois Tollway. He is the Senate co-chairman of the group.
Deputy Gov. Bradley Tusk said the governor’s office hadn’t spoken with Schoenberg about his plan, but Tusk said the governor has other priorities at the toll highway authority, the Chicago Tribune reported. Instead, Blagojevich has his sights set on providing open-road tolling and the extension of Interstate 335.