Senate Advances "Minibus" Spending Bills with Illinois Priorities Secured by Durbin, Duckworth

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) announced that the United States Senate passed six funding bills known as a “minibus” for Agriculture, Rural Development, FDA, and Related Agencies; Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies; Energy and Water Development; Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies; Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies; and Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development, and Related Agencies for Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24). Durbin and Duckworth worked to secure various priorities for Illinois in these appropriations bills, both through Congressionally Directed Spending requests—also known as earmarks—and through the programmatic appropriations process.

“Bipartisanship is necessary to get anything accomplished in Washington. And right now, the most pressing item requiring a bipartisan effort is passing government funding bills for this fiscal year,” said Durbin. “I’m glad the Senate was able to come together to advance these bills, which will benefit families, communities, and the economy in Illinois. Now, we must roll-up our sleeves and pass the additional six government funding bills by the March 22 deadline.”

“Our state and our nation are stronger when we invest in our communities and families—and that’s what these bipartisan funding bills do,” Duckworth said. “I’m relieved we passed this bipartisan legislation to not only prevent a partial government shutdown that would have hurt working families across our nation, but also help secure critical support forprojects all throughout our state, providing much-needed improvements to infrastructure, cleaning up our drinking water and helping keep our communities safe.”

These funding bills include the following Illinois priorities secured by Congressionally Directed Spending requests:

Agriculture, Rural Development, FDA, and Related Agencies

Capital Improvements, Peoria: $1.269 million to the National Center forAgricultural Utilization Research—a federal lab that has been responsible for countless agriculture, food safety, environmental, and health care discoveries since its inception—for necessary modernizations to the federal buildings that house laboratories of the Agricultural Research Service.

Capital Improvements, Urbana: $1.22 million to the Agricultural Research Service for necessary repairs and modernizations to their facilities.

Event Center, Simpson: $900,000 to the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois for an event center at the Dixon Springs Agricultural Center, an existing 5,000-acre livestock, forestry, and agricultural demonstration facility in Southern Illinois.

Fire Station, Carrier Mills: $375,000 to the Village of Carrier Mills to construct a new fire station large enough to allow all emergency and fire equipment to be housed together.

Medical Clinic, Louisville: $800,000 to the Clay County Hospital and Medical Clinics to construct a new medical office building that is more than three times larger than the current facility, which was designed to be a one-provider office but currently houses three primary care providers.

Rural Telemedicine Expansion, Eastern Illinois: $750,000 to OSF HealthCare to expand a rural telemedicine program to underserved rural areas in Champaign, Vermillion, and Douglas Counties.

Community Center, Fairbury: $500,000 to the Boys & Girls Club of Livingston County to help construct a 17,700-square-foot intergenerational community center.
Early Childhood Program, Dixon: $1 million to Dixon Family YMCA to support the expansion of its early childhood program.

Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies

Electrical Power Initiative, Peoria: $950,000 to Bradley University to acquire equipment to conduct research to develop electrification standards for reliable power production.

Equipment and Technology Upgrades, Matteson: $1 million to the SouthCom Combined Dispatch Center for equipment and technology upgrades including police body cameras, squad car enhancements, police protective equipment, and the installation of emergency dispatch consoles. The SouthCom Combined Dispatch Center provides fire, police, and emergency medical dispatching services for constituents within the south suburbs of Chicago and serves approximately 65,000 citizens.

First Responders Mental Health Initiative, Rosemont: $910,000 to the McDermott Center to develop and implement trauma-informed training for first responders to address the PTSD derived from law enforcement situations as a means to combat burnout, promote workforce retention, and enhance the well-being of law enforcement professionals.

Offshore Seismic Mapping, Chicago: $550,000 to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign to produce detailed geologic maps of the bottom of Lake Michigan in the Chicago offshore area. These maps will contribute to a better understanding of the distribution and movement of nearshore sand, which is critical for evaluating the sustainability of public beaches, as well as provide insight into lakebed ecology and habitat.

Semiconductor Research Equipment, Romeoville: $950,000 to Lewis University to purchase equipment to promote the modernization of semiconductor manufacturing processes through research into the development of new production methods and technologies.

Regional Police Training Center Technology Upgrades, Rockford:$847,000 to Winnebago County to purchase equipment for the Winnebago County Regional Police Training Center to provide a real-world, educational experience to law enforcement officers in a controlled, convenient location.

Technology Upgrades, Springfield: $300,000 to the City of Springfield Police Department for software upgrades that would allow cross communication between body cameras, dispatch, shot spotter, computers, and other technologies in order to provide faster response times by officers.

Advanced Manufacturing Research, Carbondale: $3.5 million to Southern Illinois University to help fund the construction of a new Advanced Manufacturing Research Facility at Rend Lake College, in coordination with the SIU School of Mechanical, Aerospace Materials Engineering.

Gun Violence Reduction, Peoria: $564,000 to Peoria County to help fund the deployment of the Cure Violence model, an evidence-based strategy for gun violence reduction among individuals most at risk forviolence.

Illegal Dumping Reduction, East St. Louis: $1,446,000 to the City of East St. Louis to help fund the installation of Q-Star Technology FlashCams and Smart LED lights on Summit Avenue between 52^nd and 59^th streets, an illegal dumping hotspot area in East St. Louis.

STEM Program Expansion, Mattoon: $142,000 to Lake Land College to hep fund the expansion of a STEM program for the surrounding community.

Energy and Water Development

Chicago Area Waterways System Restoration, Chicago: $200,000 to the Army Corps of Engineers to begin a feasibility study on a comprehensive restoration plan for the Chicago River system in coordination with the City of Chicago, Cook County, and the Chicago Metropolitan Water Reclamation District.

Cook County Projects, Cook County: $4 million to the Army Corps of Engineers for environmental infrastructure projects in Cook and Lake Counties. Durbin supported this request of Representatives Robin Kelly (D-IL-02) and Jan Schakowsky (D-IL-09).

Cook County Projects, Cook County: $2 million to the Army Corps of Engineers for environmental infrastructure projects in Cook and Lake Counties. Durbin supported this request of Representative Jesús “Chuy” García (D-IL-04).

Flint Lake Dam Removal, Cook and Lake Counties: $200,000 to the Army Corps of Engineers for a feasibility study to identify solutions forecosystem restoration of Flint Creek.

McCook and Thornton Reservoirs, Harvey, Blue Island, and South Holland: $20 million to the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago to alleviate flooding in Harvey, Blue Island, and South Holland.

Rock Island Small Boat Harbor, Rock Island: $1 million to the Army Corps of Engineers to dredge Sunset Marina in Rock Island.

Upper Mississippi River - Illinois Waterway System: $120 million to the Army Corps of Engineers to continue progress on the Navigation and Ecosystem Sustainability Program, which will expand and modernize seven locks at the most congested lock locations along the Upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers as well as fund ecosystem restoration.

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies

Advanced Metering Infrastructure, New Burnside: $250,000 to the Burnside Water District to help fund the replacement of old obsolete meters with new AMI (Advanced Metering Infrastructure) to reduce unaccounted water loss, increase revenue and identify customer leaks in real-time.
Grand Prairie Water Commission Development, Joliet:

Lead Service Line Replacement, Aurora: $959,752 to the City of Aurora to accelerate the replacement of Aurora’s 20,000 lead service lines to provide safe, potable drinking water and comply with state law. Aurora has the second highest number of lead service lines in the state. Durbin supported this request of Representative Bill Foster (D-IL-11).

Research on Rapid In-Home Lead Tests, Greater Chicago Area:$500,000 to Northwestern University’s Center for Synthetic Biology to test widespread use of a rapid at-home lead test for water it has developed.

Route 29 Water Main Replacement, Peoria Heights: $959,752 to the Village of Peoria Heights to replace aging water mains along Illinois Route 29. Durbin supported this request of Representative Eric Sorensen (D-IL-17).

Sanitary Sewer Lift Station Rehabilitation, Hanover Park: $800,000 to the Village of Hanover Park to rehabilitate sanitary sewer lift stations. Durbin supported this request of Representative Raja Krishnamoothi (D-IL-08).

Sewer Separation, Bloomington: $2 million to the City of Bloomington to separate currently combined stormwater and sanitary sewer systems in Bloomington, to prevent overflows, sewer backups, and flooding of homes and area waterways.

Water Plant Upgrades, East Alton: $5 million to the Village of East Alton to increase its water plant capacity and ensure a sustainable water supply for the village's residential and industrial customers in the area.

Lead Service Line Removal, Amboy: $1 million to the City of Amboy to help fund the removal of lead water service lines.

Lead Service Line Removal, Polo: $400,000 to the City of Polo to help fund the removal of lead water service lines.

New Pump Station, Bloomington: $1.26 million to Bloomington-Normal Water Reclamation District to help fund the construction of a new pump station and force main to allow the eater reclamation district to absorb Clearview Sanitary District and decommission its aging and non-compliant sewage treatment lagoons.

Sewer Improvements, Cahokia Heights: $500,000 to the City of Cahokia Heights to help fund the construction to new interceptor sewers, pump stations and force mains to increase the reliability of sewer service and reduce backups and overflows.

Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies

General Richard L. Jones National Guard Readiness Center Alteration, Chicago: $5 million for planning and design for major alterations to the General Richard L. Jones National Guard Readiness Center.

National Guard Vehicle Maintenance Shop, Bloomington: $5.25 million to complete construction of a vehicle maintenance shop to support operations for the Illinois Army National Guard in Bloomington.

North Riverside Access Control Building, North Riverside: $3.4 million for construction of a new access control building at the North Riverside Armory, which supports a large Chicagoland installation of multiple Illinois Army Guard Brigades.

Peoria Readiness Center, Peoria: $2.4 million for planning and design for a new readiness center facility for the Illinois Army Guard in Peoria.

Transportation, Housing, Urban Development, and Related Agencies

74th Street Garage EV Bus Implementation Project, Chicago: $1.5 million to the Chicago Transit Authority to redesign its 74^th Street Bus Garage in Englewood for the electrical upgrades needed for expansion of its EV bus fleet.

Bike/Ped Connector, Pontoon Beach: $1 million to the Madison County Mass Transit District to construct a bike/pedestrian trail in the historically-disadvantaged community of Venice, to improve multimodal access to public transit and address long-standing pedestrian access issues.

Bus Safety Improvements, McLean County: $800,000 to Connect Transit to install collision avoidance technologies on its buses that will increase pedestrian and cyclist safety.

Community Center, Galesburg: $1 million to the City of Galesburg to renovate a former school into a new community center for Galesburg residents. The community lost its last remaining community center to a fire in 2016.

Early Childhood Center Renovation, North Chicago: $2 million to North Chicago Community Unit School District 187 for infrastructure renovations at Green Bay Early Childhood Center, which is North Chicago Community Unit School District 187’s only preschool.

Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Masterplan, Chicago: $1 million to the City of Chicago for an EV infrastructure master plan for EV deployment at O’Hare Airport, including identification of necessary charging infrastructure for airport fleet vehicles, passenger vehicles, tenant vehicles, and service providers.

EV Bus Procurement, Champaign County: $2 million to the Champaign-Urbana Mass Transit District to purchase three new hybrid electric buses to replace existing diesel buses.

Lincoln Library Youth Services Renovation, Springfield: $1 million to the City of Springfield to renovate the Youth Services space at the Lincoln Library’s downtown location.

Marjorie Kovler Center ADA Upgrades, Chicago: $1 million to the Heartland Alliance for Human Needs & Human Rights to make the 80-year-old Marjorie Kovler Center fully ADA-accessible, which will increase the reach of its services to the growing number of refugees, immigrants, and asylum seekers arriving each year.

Microtransit Pilot, Decatur: $2.5 million to the City of Decatur to implement a Microtransit pilot program, using EVs to provide cost-efficient transit services to disadvantaged residents and fill geographical and schedule gaps in current transit service.

Safety and Security Upgrades, Chicago: $1.67 million to Navy Pier Inc. to upgrade critical safety systems in Navy Pier’s parking garages, including surveillance cameras, fire suppression sprinklers, and emergency intercoms. Durbin supported this request of Representative Danny Davis (D-IL-07).

Southwest Connector, Murphysboro: $3 million to the City of Murphysboro to advance the Southwest Connector Project, which will build a 60-mile, four-lane rural expressway providing access from Southern Illinois to St. Louis, connecting Columbia, Waterloo, Red Bud, Sparta, Pinckneyville, Murphysboro, and Carbondale.

Stepping Stones Expansion, Bloomington: $850,000 to YWCA McLean County for capital improvements, including the renovation and the necessary expansion of its space for the Stepping Stones program, McLean County’s sexual assault crisis center.

Stormwater Containment Project, Chicago: $500,000 to the North Austin Community Center to transform its remaining vacant outdoor space into a useable children’s play space through the construction of an underground stormwater retention system. Durbin supported this request of Representative Danny Davis (D-IL-07).

Terminal Apron Expansion, Mascoutah: $2.5 million to the MidAmerica St. Louis Airport to expand the airport’s apron to accommodate three new aircraft parking positions associated with the newly expanded passenger terminal.

West Side Urban Agriculture Initiative, Chicago: $1 million to the Puerto Rican Cultural Center to construct two greenhouses in Humboldt Park to increase food security and urban agriculture skills in a community impacted by poverty and disinvestment.

Renewable Energy Education, Chicago: $2,367,000 to Green Era Educational NFP to fund the establishment of the Green Era Renewable Energy and Urban Farm Campus, transforming 9-acres of brownfields in the Auburn Gresham neighborhood into a center for organics recycling, green energy and jobs, fresh produce and small business incubation.

Airport Improvements, Murphysboro: $2.1 million to Southern Illinois Airport Authority to help fund the construction of addition parking forairline-size aircraft for maintenance, repair and overhaul work.

Airport Improvements, Springfield: $1.8 million to Springfield Airport Authority to help fund the extension of the terminal aircraft parking ramp, allowing for addition aircraft parking areas while providing safe distances from taxiing aircraft on adjacent pavements.

Suburban Public Housing Improvements, Cook County: $1,544,000 to the Housing Authority of Cook County to hep fund critically needed capital improvements at the Housing Authority of Cook County’s south suburban affordable housing properties.

O’Hare Multimodal Facility Improvements, Chicago: $8.8 million to the City of Chicago to help fund the development of a covered and lit ADA-compliant walkway from Metra’s O’Hare Transfer Station and the entrance of the O’Hare Multimodal Facility and Airport Transit System station.

Aircraft Staging Expansion, Romeoville: $1,552,500 to the Joliet Regional Port District to help fund the expansion of the aircraft staging and operating apron pavement area available for the growing pilot flight training schools at the airport.
Weatherized Bus Shelters, Marion: $265,000 to the Illinois Department of Transportation to fund the developments to weatherize and protect bus shelters and utilize solar power to provide interior lighting at eight new bus shelters.

These funding bills include additional Illinois priorities secured through the programmatic appropriations process:

Agriculture, Rural Development, FDA, and Related Agencies

Bee Research: Continued funding for the Agricultural Research Service to continue efforts to map the bee genome through research at the National Center for Agriculture Utilization Research and the University of Illinois, an initiative Durbin established in 2020.

Agricultural Research Activities: $455 million to provide competitive grant funding to support critical research priorities addressing issues of national, regional, and multi-state importance to the safety, sustainability, and quality of American agriculture.

Agricultural Research Service: $1.792 billion to fill research vacancies and advance critical research priorities in food safety, crop production, and crop protection programs within the Agriculture Research Service.

Animal Welfare: $37.5 million for USDA to, among other activities, follow through with the recommended improvements identified in an audit performed by USDA’s Inspector General in May 2010, detailing serious shortcomings in the ability of Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s Animal Care Unit to effectively address problematic dog dealers and ensure their compliance with minimum humane care standards.

USDA Food Safety Activities: $1.205 billion to carry out food safety inspection, surveillance, and data collection activities conducted within USDA.

Food Safety Outreach Program: $10 million to provide food safety training and technical assistance, education, and extension to owners and operators of small farms, small food processors, and small fruit and vegetable vendors affected by the Food Safety Modernization Act.

Plant Health, Tree and Wood Pests: $62.6 million to help identify and contain wood-boring pests threatening tree health across the country, including the Emerald Ash Borer.

ReConnect Program: $98 million to support loans and grants that facilitate broadband deployment in rural areas without sufficient broadband access at minimum speeds of 25 Mbps/3 Mbps.

McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program: $248 million to support education, child development, and food security among the world’s most vulnerable children, particularly among girls.

Food for Peace: $1.8 billion to meet emergency food needs around the world.

Local and Regional Procurement: $24.8 million to provide food aid commodities more quickly and at a lower cost by procuring them locally or regionally instead of shipping overseas.

Farm Service Agency: $1.209 billion to support farm safety-net programs.

Natural Resources Conservation Service: $914.9 billion for farm conservation programs.

The Animal Plant Health Inspection Service: $1.162 billion to guard against disease and pests.

SNAP: $119 billion, which allows full participation for the 42 million people receiving SNAP benefits per month to ensure they can put food on the table.

Child Nutrition Programs: fully funds child nutrition programs, which includes free- and reduced-price school breakfasts, lunches, and the summer meal program—which together serve more than seven billion meals to children annually.

Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC): Fully funds WIC—which serves nearly seven million women and kids nationwide, including half of all infants born in the U.S.—by providing $7.03 billion for the program, a $1.03 billion increase over Fiscal Year 2023 that meets the Administration’s updated request and avoids projected shortfalls in the program that could have jeopardized access to food for eligible families.

Overall FDA Funding Level: Direct appropriations of $6.72 billion, split between discretionary appropriations and FDA user fees collected from prescription drug companies, generic drugs, medical devices, animal drugs, and tobacco products.

ALS: An additional $2.5 million for FDA to further implement ACT forALS, which requires FDA to publish and implement a five-year action plan to foster drug development and facilitate access to investigational drugs for ALS and other rare neurodegenerative diseases.

FDA Food Safety Activities: $1.185 billion for food safety oversight.

Tobacco Report Language: The bill includes tobacco report language, including language directing FDA to “immediately remove” all unauthorized synthetic nicotine e-cigarettes from the market.

Drug Promotion/Advertising: The bill includes report language directing FDA to improve its oversight of promotional activities by pharmaceutical companies, including the practice of sales representatives marketing directly to physicians.

Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies

Convention Funding: $150 million for convention security funding forthe Presidential Nominating Convention cities including $75 million/city, in line with Chicago’s request.

Prosecutor and Public Defender Student Loan Repayment: $3 million to provide student loan repayment assistance for state and local prosecutors and public defenders pursuant to Durbin’s John R. Justice Prosecutors and Defenders Incentive Act.

Bureau of Prisons: $8.392 billion for the administration, operation, and maintenance of federal correctional institutions and $179 million forbuildings and facilities, including for maintenance and repairs.

First Step Act: $409.5 million for the Department of Justice and Bureau of Prisons to implement the First Step Act, including increasing residential reentry center capacity; increasing availability of medication-assisted drug treatment; creating and maintaining programming within BOP facilities; improving, implementing, validating, and maintaining the risk and needs assessment system; and evaluating and providing evidence-based recidivism reduction programs and productive activities.

Violence Against Women: $713 million for grants provided by the Office on Violence Against Women to support training for police officers and prosecutors, state domestic violence and sexual assault coalitions, rape prevention programs, lethality assessment and homicide reduction initiatives, domestic violence hotlines, women’s shelters, transitional housing, and rural support services. Additionally, the bill provides $51.5 million to support the Sexual Assault Kit Initiative to support community response teams tasked with developing and implementing comprehensive reform regarding sexual assault, including reducing the backlog of rape kits at law enforcement agencies.

Community Violence Intervention Initiative: $50 million to provide grants to support evidence-based community violence intervention programs.

Children Exposed to Violence: $9 million for a DOJ program to develop training, resources, and awareness efforts; support communities in developing strategic plans and policies to address children’s exposure to violence; and provide trauma-informed services—which is currently funding efforts in Rockford and Chicago.

Funding for State and Local Law Enforcement: $664.5 million for the Community Oriented Policing Services grant program, which awards grants to state and local law enforcement agencies to hire new officers and provide training, technology, and equipment.

Civil Rights Investigations: $3 million for grants to State and local law enforcement agencies for investigation and prosecution of criminal offenses involving civil rights.

Combating Hate Crimes: $17 million for grants to State, local, and Tribal law enforcement to conduct outreach and training on hate crimes and to investigate and prosecute hate crimes; $9 million for grants to prevent hate crimes through conflict resolution and community empowerment and education.

Community Relations Service: $24 million to address community conflicts and tensions arising from differences of race, color, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, and disability.

Crime Victims Fund (CVF): Releases $1.35 billion from the CVF.

Missing & Exploited Children Programs: $103 million to support law enforcement agencies and other national organizations that report and investigate missing children cases and also investigate those who sexually exploit children online and in person.

· Legal Orientation Program (LOP): $28 million to provide basic legal information for individuals in immigration detention.

· Human Rights Crimes/Violations: Report language was continued from previous years supporting continued funding for DOJ and FBI to investigate and prosecute human rights violations. Includes report language regarding the need to increase investigation and prosecution efforts to respond to war crimes and other atrocities committed during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel, and the added responsibilities of the Criminal Division to prosecute war criminals under the Grassley-Durbin Justice for Victims of War Crimes Act of 2022.

· Environment and Natural Resources Division: Includes report language requested supporting the Environment and Natural Resources Division’s authority to negotiate Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEPs) as part of its civil enforcement authority.

· National Institute of Standards and Technology: $1.08 billion toScientific and Technical Research Services, a key scientific research agency supported by the American Innovation Act.

· National Science Foundation: $9.06 billion to support critical scientific research happening across the country, but especially at Illinois’ array of world-class research universities.

· Economic Development Administration (EDA): $400 million, including $41 million for the Regional Technology and Innovation Hub Program.

· Extension of Undetectable Firearms: The Undetectable Firearms Act of 1988 (18 U.S.C. 922) is extended through March 8, 2031.

Energy and Water Development

Department of Energy Office of Science: $8.24 billion.

Utilities Upgrade Project at Argonne: $8 million to reduce the deferred maintenance backlog at Argonne and upgrade key infrastructure like water systems and roads.

Long-Baseline Neutrino Facility (LBNF)/ Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE): $251 million to support the continued development of LBNF/DUNE, the world-leading particle physics experiment exploring neutrinos—the most abundant and least understood particles in the universe.

Proton Improvement Plan (PIP-II): $125 million to support necessary upgrades to Fermilab’s accelerator complex that will enable the operation of LBNF/DUNE.

Argonne’s Leadership Computing Facility: $219 million to support the continued development and operation of Argonne’s supercomputing programs, include the Aurora Exascale Computing System. The bill includes report language request directing DOE to brief Congress within 30 days on the Office of Science’s plans for the future of advanced computing beyond exascale, including on the future of zettascale, quantum, and Artificial Intelligence.

Light Source Operations: $704.1 million to support the operation of Argonne’s Advanced Photon Source, which is in the process of receiving upgrades.

Fermilab Utilities Infrastructure Project: $35 million to support the renovation of Fermilab’s central utilities building, substation replacement, and acquisition of long-lead time equipment critical for Fermilab’s major projects.

Advanced Computing: Includes report language request directing DOE to brief Congress within 30 days on the Office of Science’s plans for the future of advanced computing beyond exascale, quantum, and AI.

Department of Energy Vehicle Technologies Office: $450 million to support the Department of Energy’s continued research into cleaner, safer, and more efficient vehicles. Illinois’ Argonne National Lab—which conducts research into advanced battery technologies, battery recycling, and other vehicle innovations—is among the top recipients of funding from the Vehicle Technologies Office.

Methane Mitigation Technologies: The bill includes report language encouraging more public/private partnerships when developing and integrating low-cost, advanced methane monitoring technologies on natural gas facilities.

Army Corps of Engineers: $8.7 billion.

Great Lakes Resiliency Study: $3 million. The bill includes report language requiring the Chicago Shoreline to be a focus area of the Great Lakes Resiliency Study. This study is a first-of-its-kind effort to develop a coordinated strategy to manage and protect the Great Lakes’ and their 5,200-mile coastline from threats associated with lake level fluctuations, erosion, flooding, nutrient runoff, and aging infrastructure.

Upper Mississippi River Restoration (UMRR) Program, Quincy Bay:$55 million. The bill includes report language directing the Corps to expedite the feasibility study for the environmental restoration project in Quincy Bay. This project promotes projects that improve the vitality of the Upper Mississippi River System’s diverse and significant fish and wildlife resources. UMRR is currently funding the restoration of Quincy Bay.

Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal Electric Dispersal Barrier: $13.7 million. These electric barriers located on the Chicago Area Waterway System prevent the migration of aquatic invasive species between the Mississippi River and Great Lakes basins.

Great Lakes and Mississippi River Interbasin Study (GLMRIS): $200 million. This U.S. Army Corps of Engineers study plays a critical role in reviewing technologies aimed at preventing the spread of aquatic nuisance species between the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basins.

Brandon Road: Includes language requests to help move the Brandon Road project forward. The language requires the Corps to follow Illinois state laws for permitting, and directs the Corps to work with Illinois to address real estate and remediation issues on the project. The project will construct a new engineered channel at Joliet’s Brandon Road Lock, which will be used to test and deploy new technologies preventing the spread of Asian Carp into the Great Lakes.

Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund: Includes report language requesting 13 percent of the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund be available for Great Lakes projects, ensuring dredging for navigation channels and harbors within the Great Lakes system.

Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies

Plant Conservation Activities Bureau of Land Management (BLM):$20.6 million. Includes report language to accelerate the research agenda in the seed strategy.

Signage for Wilderness Area: Includes report language directing BLM to adequately inform the public on usage associated with the Emery County, Utah, wilderness area.

Urban and Community Forestry, Chicago Region Tree Initiative: Includes language that encourages Interior and the Forest Service to prioritize regional collaborations to support conservation efforts to offset climate change. It also recommends the program prioritize tree planting in socially disadvantaged communities. The Chicago Region Trees Initiative (CRTI) is a collaboration of more than 200 Chicago-region partners implementing a strategy to build healthier and more diverse urban forests. Increased collaborations similar to CRTI will have national, regional, and local impacts.

New Philadelphia National Historical Site: Includes language that directs NPS to ensure park operations begin in a reasonable timeframe and to keep the Committee updated on developments. In 2022, President Biden signed the New Philadelphia National Historical Park Act into law, which added the New Philadelphia as a unit of the National Park System. New Philadelphia, now incorporated into Barry, Illinois, in Pike County, was the first town platted and legally registered by an African American.

Clean Water State Revolving Funds: $1.6 billion to provide investments that create jobs, repair crumbling stormwater and wastewater infrastructure, and protect public health and environmental quality.

Drinking Water State Revolving Funds: $1.26 billion to help water systems and states to ensure clean and safe drinking water is reliably delivered to communities and to remediate lead pipes.

EPA Compliance: $107 million to enable EPA and co-regulators to undertake inspections and other monitoring activities to determine if regulated entities are complying with environmental statutes as well as applicable regulations and permit conditions.

EPA Enforcement: $375.4 million. Includes report language supporting EPA’s work to address PFAS contamination and incorporating Supplemental Environmental Projects in settlements.

Bubbly Creek: Includes report language encouraging EPA to advance Bubbly Creek and directing EPA to brief Congress on programs that can advance restoration of contamination in urban rivers and environmental justice areas, but do not qualify as a Superfund.

Lead: $65 million for lead pipe remediation programs.

Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI): $368 million to GLRI. It also includes report language to allow funds from the program to be used for projects in the Chicago River Watershed. The GLRI provides funding to states, tribes, local governments, and federal agencies to protect the Great Lakes.

Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies

National Guard Vehicle Maintenance Shop, North Riverside: $24 million for construction of a new vehicle maintenance shop at the North Riverside Armory, which supports a large Chicagoland installation of multiple Illinois Army Guard Brigades.

Medical and Prosthetic Research: $943 million to advance and promote the health and care of veterans through the development of cutting-edge treatments in a host of areas, including post-traumatic stress, traumatic brain injury, prevision oncology, wounded warrior care, and toxic exposure research.

Caregivers Program: $2.4 billion to expand benefits and services forcaregivers to include health care and mental health services, training adapted to the veterans’ individual care needs, and a direct stipend payment.

Smoke-Free VA: Includes report language that supports the Veterans Health Administration’s smoke-free policies at VA medical facilities.

Predatory Representational Services to Veterans: Includes report language directing VA Office of General Counsel to have greater oversight of claims accreditation to combat predatory representation fordisability compensation claims, appeals, and Camp Lejeune related lawsuits.

Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development, and Related Agencies

Capital Investment Grants (CIG): $2.2 billion in nationwide funding forthe extension and improvements of existing transit systems—sufficient to fund all projects in the pipeline, including the Chicago Transit Authority’s Red Line Extension Project.

Amtrak: $2.4 billion in nationwide funding to support Amtrak operations.

Chicago Union Station: $40 million for improvements at Chicago Union Station.

The Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) Grants: $345 million to fund innovative transportation projects that will create jobs and have a significant impact on the nation, a region, or a metropolitan area.

Passenger Rail Grant Programs: These grant programs include funding for rail infrastructure and safety improvement projects.

Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) Grants: $198.9 million in nationwide funding to improve the safety, efficiency, and reliability of passenger and freight rail systems.

Federal-State Partnership for Intercity Passenger Rail: $75 million in nationwide funding to fund capital projects that reduce the state of good repair backlog, improve performance, or expand or establish new intercity passenger rail service.

Blocked Crossings Causes & Solutions Identification: Includes report language directing the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to include in its annual report solutions and best practices to improve safety, mobility, and emergency response capabilities at highway-rail crossings, including technology’s potential role in detecting the highest risk areas and to explore what role train length plays in blocked crossings, among other measures.

Emergency Response Blocked Crossing Reports: Includes report language urging FRA to require states receiving track inspection funding to require first responders to report verified blocked crossing incidents toFRA’s blocked crossings portal, which Durbin established through Fiscal Year 2020 appropriations legislation. It also directs FRA to continue working with stakeholders to identify root causes of blocked crossings and identify meaningful solutions.

Automated Track Inspections: Directs no less than $18 million to support FRA’s fleet of advanced inspection vehicles that accompany its field inspectors to validate the railroads’ inspection programs and advance research priorities, with a special emphasis on routes transporting passengers and hazardous materials.

FRA Rail Research & Development Center of Excellence (COE): $2.5 million for the FRA COE, which was established in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA). The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign was selected to host the COE.

Digital Alert Technologies: Includes report language urging the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to deploy digital alert technologies, with local law enforcement, that can provide up-to-date information about dynamic road conditions to drivers.

FAA: $12.7 billion for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). This includes funding that will allow the FAA to hire 1,800 additional air traffic controllers, replace outdated equipment, improve the aircraft certification process, and improve hazardous materials transport oversight, among other efforts.

Airport Improvement Program: $3.9 billion for airport infrastructure grants to reduce emissions at airports, build airport infrastructure necessary to support sustainable aviation fuels, and build resiliency at airports in the face of climate change.

Distracted Driving: Includes report language, building off of Durbin and Duckworth’s Protecting Roadside First Responders Act, enacted as part of IIJA, requiring NHTSA to brief the Committee on its efforts to ensure automatic emergency braking can detect passengers at night and at speeds above 37 miles per hour, the conditions under which 65-75 percent of pedestrian fatalities occur, respectively.

Lead Assessments in Federally Assisted Housing: Includes $65 million to help Public Housing Agencies (PHAs) address lead-based paint and other residential health hazards in public housing units.

Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes: $345 million. During the pandemic, application rates for lead hazard reduction grants, particularly from public health agencies, dropped.

Housing Opportunities for Persons with AIDS (HOPWA): $505 million to help cities and states address the housing crisis facing people living with HIV/AIDS.

Homeless Assistance Grants: $4.051 billion to provide funding to state and local governments for emergency shelters, rapid re-housing, permanent supportive housing, and other crisis response programs.

Housing Counseling: $57.5 million for housing counseling assistance forrenters, homeowners, and those considering homeownership.

Fair Housing Program: $86 million for fair housing initiatives, including housing investigations and enforcement grants.

Community Development Block Grant (CDBG): $3.3 billion to provide states and localities with resources to meet the needs of low-income communities, including housing rehabilitation, supportive services, public improvements, and economic development projects.

Home Investment Partnerships Program (HOME): $1.25 billion to support the construction or rehabilitation of tens of thousands of affordable homes.

Public Housing Capital and Operating Funds: $3.41 billion for the development, financing, and modernization of public housing developments and for management improvements.

Section 8 Tenant-Based Rental Assistance: $32.4 billion. This also includes $337 million for new Tenant Protection Vouchers; $15 million for the HUD-VASH program; and $30 million for the Family Unification Program.

Choice Neighborhoods Program: $75 million to provide funding for the transformation, rehabilitation, and replacement of distressed public and HUD-assisted housing, as well as support for communities working to revitalize neighborhoods of concentrated poverty.

Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation (NeighborWorks): $158 million to create opportunities for Americans to live in affordable and safe homes by providing community development organizations in all fifty states with financial resources and counseling services.

Health Extender Package

National Health Service Corps (NHSC): The package extends mandatory funding for the National Health Service Corps scholarship and loan repayment awards to doctors, dentists, nurses, and behavioral health providers through December 31, at an increased annualized funding level of $364 million.

Community Health Centers: Extends mandatory funding for health centers through December 31, at an increased annualized funding level of $4.4 billion, in support of their essential efforts to provide primary health care, dental, and behavioral health services to one in every nine residents of Illinois.

Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education Funding:Extends funding through December 31, at an increased annualized funding level of $201 million for community-based medical and dental residency programs.

IMD Exclusion: Permanently extends the provision Durbin passed in the 2018 SUPPORT Act opioid law to enable states to lift the arcane barrier that prohibited the use of Medicaid funds for adult residential addiction treatment services in facilities with more than 16 beds.

Medicaid & Jails: Prohibits the termination of Medicaid enrollment due to incarceration ensuring continuity of care for individuals in pre-trial detention or upon release to address the heightened risk of overdose and mental health crises.

Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospitals (DSH) Cuts: Prevents funding cuts to DSHs that treat uninsured and low-income patients until December 31.

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Senator Dick Durbin

Senate Advances "Minibus" Spending Bills with Illinois Priorities Secured by Durbin, Duckworth