Gov. Bruce Rauner quietly has signed a measure to spend another $5.5 million on the proposed Illiana expressway, raising questions about whether he's seeking to keep the project on financial life support.
Several weeks ago, Rauner shelved the controversial south suburban toll road with a flourish:
"In light of the state's current fiscal crisis and a lack of sufficient capital resources, the Illiana will not move forward at this time," his office said then in a statement. "It is the determination of the Illinois Department of Transportation that the project costs exceed currently available resources. The department will begin the process of suspending all existing project contracts and procurements." Rauner also ordered the highway removed from the state's five-year road program.
But on June 30, Rauner signed a bill that includes $5.5 million for the Illiana, even as he knocked out money for other projects, such as land acquisition for the proposed south suburban airport at Peotone. The bill said the money would "enable the Illiana Expressway to be developed, financed, constructed or operated."
So what's up?
The governor's office says the money will be used to pay consultants to wind down the project and to handle any costs from continuing litigation. Most of the latter is coming from foes who want to drive a legal stake through the road's heart.
A Rauner aide adds that the money is only being reappropriated from last year, and just because the state is allowed to spend the money doesn't mean it will.
But authorizing $5.5 million in expenditures sure doesn't look like "suspension of all existing project contracts and procurements" to longtime Illiana foe Howard Learner, whose Environmental Law & Policy Center has long battled the road in court and in various public bodies.
"Gov. Rauner clearly said on June 2 that no more state funds would be spent on Illiana contracts and procurements," Learner told me. "It's time to bring the wasteful Illiana tollway gravy train for consultants to an end. These public funds should instead be used to meet our state's high-priority needs."
Most interesting. With talk persisting in Springfield that Rauner wants to keep the project alive as trade bait with south suburban officials, this subject is worth keeping a close eye on.
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Rauner approves more spending on Illiana tollway - Blogs On Politics - Crain's Chicago Business
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