The long line of cars that sit idling on the side of the busy roadways leading to O’Hare Airport is threatening the safety of thousands of motorists who travel to O’Hare each day.

Instead of using the cell phone lot created for drivers so they can remain in their vehicles while they await incoming flights at O’Hare International Airport, some motorists are lining up in the emergency lanes alongside the highly trafficked road leading to the airport.

State Representative Brad Stephens (R-Rosemont) and Senate President Don Harmon (D-Oak Park) are one step closer to improving traffic safety around O’Hare Airport.

In response to reports of dangerous conditions around the airport, Harmon and Stephens passed legislation prohibiting drivers from stopping their vehicles on the shoulder of the road anywhere within a half-mile radius of O’Hare.

By the late 1970s, technology was making everything bigger and faster. Skyscrapers were reaching farther into the sky than ever before. The space shuttle was preparing for its maiden voyage. The joint British-French Concorde was transporting passengers across the Atlantic at supersonic speeds. Jumbo jets like the Boeing 747 and the McDonnell-Douglas DC-10 were carrying more passengers farther and faster than was dreamed possible a generation before.

Budget – Ratings Cut

Moody’s, Standard & Poor’s cut Illinois credit rating one notch. The Moody’s Investors Service ratings cut, from Baa3 to Baa2, together with the Standard & Poor’s ratings downgrade to BBB-plus, brings Illinois one notch closer to “junk bond” status. As Illinois’ credit rating declines, Illinois taxpayers must pay higher interest rates. In addition, the State faces the prospect of substantial supplemental penalties should credit ratings further decline, with borrowing covenant clauses in effect in which the State promised to lenders who have already lent the State money that it would maintain the value of its debt at investment-grade levels.

Rep. Christine Winger continues to stand with residents adversely impacted by O'Hare Airport. In April, Winger sent a letter to Attorney General Lisa Madigan asking her to take action to protect the health of those affected by noise and pollution generated by operations at O’Hare.

According to the Attorney General's website, "One of the primary responsibilities of the Attorney General's office is safeguarding the public by protecting the environment. Attorney General Madigan plays a significant role in protecting the health and welfare of all Illinois residents and strives to provide a future that will include a safe environment." Read more.

O’Hare area legislators announced bi-partisan efforts to bring noise relief to the communities around the airport, at a press conference yesterday (Tuesday) in Chicago.

State Rep. Christine Winger (R-45th) of Wood Dale, whose constituents are in the suburbs immediately west of the airport, was joined at the James Thompson Center by State Rep. Michael McAuliffe (R-20th), State Sen. John Mulroe (D-10th), both of Chicago’s Northwest Side, and State Sen. Laura Murphy (D-28) of Des Plaines.

“We are committed to working together to find solutions,” said Winger. “Our constituents deserve no less.”  Read more in Journal-Topics.

State Representative Christine Winger (R-Wood Dale) has introduced new legislation that would provide an income tax credit for taxpayers who purchase sound-mitigating windows, doors, insulation and other items to alleviate excessive noise from O’Hare’s new runway patterns.

In October of this year, thousands of new households will be blasted with house-rattling, conversation-halting, sleep-depriving jet engine noise they will endure when aircraft begin flying less than a mile over their rooftops. In spite of the new flight patterns for takeoffs and landings at O’Hare, these residents do not qualify for federal grants to assist with soundproofing projects. Officials from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), who set the parameters for access to the grant money, excluded this new group of property owners, saying that as long as the airport expansion progresses as planned, their exposure to excessive noise would only last six years. According to the FAA, that is when another new runway is scheduled to be operational. Read more.

Governor Bruce Rauner on Thursday signed into law a bill that will help bring relief to thousands of Illinoisans who are enduring excessive noise pollution generated by low-flying planes near O’Hare Airport.

SB636, now Public Act 99-0202, permits O’Hare Airport to increase the number of operational runways from eight to ten, which will provide for the use of four diagonal runways that produce less noise over surrounding communities. “When O’Hare realigned their runways in 2013, homeowners who were previously only minimally affected suddenly had to deal with rattling windows and extremely excessive noise any time a plane flew overhead,” said State Representative Michael McAuliffe (R-Chicago), a Chief Co-Sponsor of the bill in the House of Representatives. “This new law allows for the use of six parallel and four diagonal runways at the same time. The use of the diagonal runways produces significantly less noise pollution over nearby neighborhoods.” Read more.

Reps. Christine Winger and Michael McAuliffe introduced HR500 this week, a measure that would reward airlines for utilizing voluntary federal Fly Quiet protocols when landing at and departing from O’Hare International Airport.

The Fly Quiet Program was adopted by the City of Chicago in 1997 to reduce the noise impact on residents living around O’Hare airport. Currently, pilots and air traffic controllers are encouraged, but not mandated, to use Fly Quiet designated runways and flight tracks during nighttime hours. These routes direct aircraft over less-populated areas, such as forest preserves and highways, as well as commercial and industrial areas to reduce the impact of noise on residential neighborhoods.

Budget – Medicaid
House Republicans again push to impose limits on the rate of Medicaid growth.  Medicaid patient headcounts and expenditures are shooting up nationwide. This pattern is partly due to the federal Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare”), which encourages the states to expand and enlarge their individual Medicaid programs.  In 2012, 72.2 million American residents – more than one-fifth of the nation’s population – were covered by Medicaid for at least one month.  In their story this week, “Reversing the Medicaid Tidal Wave in Illinois”, The Caucus Blog describes the national numbers.  

Spearheading efforts to bring relief to homeowners affected by O’Hare noise, State Representative Michael P. McAuliffe has unveiled a comprehensive, three-point O’Hare Noise Initiative and petition drive aimed at sending a strong and unified message from residents of the 20th District and surrounding communities to hold the Federal Aviation Administration accountable.

Read the entire story.

As noise complaints have continued to fly in after O'Hare International Airport opened a new runway in 2013, two state lawmakers want to look into it.

Republican state Reps. Dennis Reboletti of Elmhurst and Michael McAuliffe of Chicago will file legislation to study the environmental and health impacts brought on by the new runway.

Reboletti said he has received complaints from all over his district about problems other than noise.

"(People have complained about) not only new noise pollution but also environmental pollution. Fuel from airplanes, and dust and silt, and people are extremely concerned about their health and well-being," he said.  Zachary White at the Daily Herald has the rest of the story.