SB1938 creates the Illinois Road Usage Charge Act and directs the Illinois Department of Transportation, working with the Secretary of State and a new Road Usage Charge Advisory Committee, to develop and run a statewide pilot program for a mileage-based user fee on motor vehicles. The pilot would be voluntary, include at least 1,000 vehicles, last at least one year, and test different ways of measuring miles traveled, collecting payments, and protecting privacy and data security. The committee would hold public hearings, make recommendations on rules and evaluation criteria, and help the Department report back to the General Assembly on whether a permanent vehicle mileage charge is feasible.
The bill also makes extensive changes to the Metropolitan Transit Authority Act and the Regional Transportation Authority Act. It restructures governance of the Chicago Transit Board, the Regional Transportation Authority Board, the Suburban Bus Board, and the Commuter Rail Board by changing board sizes, appointing authorities, terms, quorum and voting thresholds, and related approval requirements. It also changes financial rules for transit agencies, including fare-recovery targets, budgeting, fare collection oversight, bond issuance, labor agreement approvals, and reporting obligations. Several new accountability and planning requirements are added, including a comprehensive metropolitan transit plan, a transit ambassador program, and regular progress reports to the Governor and General Assembly.
The bill’s impact on state law would be broad, affecting both transportation funding policy and transit governance in northeastern Illinois. It would create a new statutory framework for a road usage charge pilot and amend multiple sections of the Illinois transit statutes to shift authority toward the Regional Transportation Authority, standardize fare collection, and tighten oversight of budgets, service planning, and capital programs. It would also repeal one section of the Metropolitan Transit Authority Act and add new reporting and coordination duties for the Authority and its service boards.
Because no committee transcripts or votes were provided, there is no recorded legislative sentiment in the supplied materials. Based on the bill text alone, the measure appears to be framed as a long-term transportation finance and governance reform proposal, with an emphasis on replacing declining motor fuel tax revenue, improving regional transit coordination, and increasing accountability. The bill’s findings stress infrastructure funding needs, privacy protections, and the need to modernize transit finance.
The main points of contention likely concern the road usage charge itself and the large-scale restructuring of transit governance. A mileage-based fee may raise concerns about privacy, data collection, equity, and how drivers would be charged and compensated for fuel taxes already paid. The transit provisions may also be controversial because they increase RTA control over fares, budgeting, and fare collection, change board composition and voting rules, and impose new performance and reporting requirements on the Chicago Transit Authority, Metra, and Pace.
SB1938 would create a new Illinois Road Usage Charge Act and authorize IDOT to run a statewide mileage-based user fee pilot, while also amending the Metropolitan Transit Authority Act and Regional Transportation Authority Act to change board membership, voting thresholds, fare policy, budget approval, fare collection oversight, labor approval rules, bond authority, and reporting requirements. It would affect the legal authority of the RTA, CTA, Metra, and Pace, and would add new statutory duties related to transit planning, safety, and accountability.
No committee discussion or vote history was provided, so there is no recorded legislative sentiment in the supplied materials. From the bill text, the proposal is presented positively as a modernization of transportation finance and governance, with findings emphasizing infrastructure funding shortfalls, declining gas-tax revenue, and the need for privacy-protected mileage charging. The bill also signals a strong policy preference for greater regional coordination and oversight of transit operations.
Likely points of contention are the mileage-based road usage charge, especially privacy, data security, equity, and implementation concerns, and the bill’s extensive changes to transit governance. The bill increases the Regional Transportation Authority’s control over fare collection and budgeting, changes board composition and voting requirements, and imposes new performance and reporting mandates on the service boards, which could draw resistance from transit agencies, labor groups, local officials, and privacy advocates.