The following is testimony delivered by Civic Federation Senior Policy Advisor Paula Worthington to the Regional Transit Authority's Ad Hoc Committee on Transit Funding on October 3, 2025. The original testimony has been edited…
The following memo was sent on Monday, September 29 to members of the Regional Transit Authority Board of Directors.Dear Chair Dillard and Members of the RTA’s Ad Hoc Committee on Transit Funding:We write regarding the urgency of avoiding…
By Lily PadulaA comparative analysis of state expenditures finds that Illinois allocates a larger portion of its operational expenditures to pension obligations than most peer states. Illinois’ annual expenditures on state-level public…
Click here to read the full report.Click here to read the executive summary.…
The Chicago Community Trust and the Civic Federation in partnership welcomed a dynamic moderated panel of regional transit experts at the Federation’s…
The Civic Federation today released a position paper calling on the Illinois General Assembly to pursue foundational structural reform of Northeastern Illinois’ mass transit systems—…
With Northeastern Illinois’ transit agencies facing an estimated $730 million fiscal cliff in FY2026, the Civic Federation calls on the Illinois General Assembly to consolidate the Regional Transportation Authority, Chicago Transit…
This blog post presents an overview of the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) FY2024 operating budget. The CTA’s fiscal year is January 1…
How should Illinois pay for public transit? This was one of the key questions posed at a recent policy forum on the topic of public transportation in the…
