Lipinski lists funds secured for district

Lipinski Secures Millions of Federal Dollars for Local Communities
FY2008 Appropriations Bill Passes Congress

[Washington D.C.] – Congressman Dan Lipinski (D-IL) announced that with the passage of the FY 2008 Omnibus Appropriations bill today, he has secured millions of dollars that will aid Third District residents.

"These federal funds will help our communities by easing traffic congestion, expanding mass transit, cleaning up the local environment, increasing care for abused children, housing homeless veterans, providing communications equipment for area first responders, protecting food safety, helping local communities improve water infrastructure, and developing environmentally friendly transportation,” said Congressman Lipinski. "These are the issues that affect people every day, and I am proud to be bringing back the funding that will improve the daily lives of Third District residents.”

In addition, thanks to Congressman Lipinski’s efforts, the legislation also includes more than $20 million for the Capital Grants Rail Line Relocation and Improvement Program, a federal grants program that could help create quiet zones, build underpasses, improve safety, and aid economic development in local communities with rail lines.

The FY2008 Omnibus Appropriations bill includes funding for the following projects requested by Rep. Lipinski:

$400,000 for a parking garage in Berwyn that would serve area communities as well as provide economic development and traffic mitigation in the area.
$500,000 for extension of the Chicago Transit Authority's Orange Line from its current terminus at Midway Airport to Ford City Mall. The extension would feature a new station with intermodal connections to nearby neighborhoods and southwest suburban communities.
$250,000 for the construction of a community center at Saint Richard Parish serving the Archer Heights Community. This center will be used by the parish, the local community, and organizations such as the Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts.
$238,000 for the Cook County Environmental Infrastructure Fund, to aid in improving local water and sewer systems and community environmental infrastructure needs.
$500,000 for a feasibility study of the South Fork of the South Branch of the Chicago River, also known as Bubbly Creek, to address problems of odor and water quality issues.
$100,000 for a study to determine alternatives to using the Lucas-Berg Confined Dredged Facility as a disposal site for dredged material from the Calumet-Sag Channel Modification and Illinois Waterway.
$1,000,000 for fuel research and development at Northern Illinois University. Working in partnership with Argonne National Laboratory, Northern Illinois University will continue a joint research program to develop a viable fuel cell vehicle that will provide environmentally-friendly transportation.
$2,228,000 for the National Center for Food Safety & Technology, run by the Illinois Institute of Technology, to continue conducting food safety, security and prevention technology research. With recent events having raised awareness of the importance of food safety, this funding will facilitate research that will help ensure that Americans have a safe food supply.
$316,000 for Advocate Health Care’s Childhood Trauma Treatment Program for specialized and comprehensive psychotherapy and support for abused and neglected children and their families.
$243,000 for Northern Illinois University’s College of Engineering and Engineering Technology for a center developing new technologies and working on interdisciplinary projects ranging from homeland security to noise cancellation.
$487,000 for Catholic Charities for a proposed St. Leo’s Residence to provide all aspects of rehabilitation to homeless veterans with the goal of them self sufficient.
$2,256,000 for Cook County to spend on Interoperable Safety and Emergency Communications Radios to allow local villages and municipalities to communicate in the event of a biological, chemical or terrorist attack and would assist thousands of first responders in the Cook County region.

The funding bill has been approved by both the House of Representatives and the Senate and is expected to be signed into law this week.

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