Congresswoman Cheri Bustos (IL-17), a member of the powerful House Appropriations Committee, helped advance out of Committee a comprehensive transportation, housing and urban development funding bill that will bring significant federal resources to projects in Northwest and Central Illinois.

“Listening to folks in all of our communities and delivering results to improve lives is at the very core of my role as a Member of Congress,” said Congresswoman Bustos. “This week, I helped advance a funding bill that includes millions in federal funding to enhance quality of life for residents, improve educational opportunities and transform spaces for our community to gather and connect. I look forward to passing this bill in the House and bringing these resources home.”

Cheri Bustos

Congresswoman Bustos secured the following priorities in the package:

• $4 million for Skip-A-Long’s Rock Island Campus: Congresswoman Bustos secured $4 million in Community Project Funding to expand early childhood education in one of the most under-developed areas of Rock Island, IL. The funding would be used to build a new, unique, state-of-the-art intergenerational Skip-a-Long campus to serve more students and provide them with the highest-quality early learning experience.

• $2 million for Peoria sidewalk upgrades: Congresswoman Bustos secured $2 million in Community Project Funding to add sidewalks along residential and commercial streets in Peoria’s 61605 ZIP code, one of the most distressed communities in America.

• $1.1 million for Martin Park upgrades in East Galesburg: Congresswoman Bustos secured $1.1 million in Community Project Funding to upgrade East Galesburg’s Martin Park. Upgrades would include adding a splash pad for youth, a patio for families, a building for fundraisers, adding benches for additional seating and fences and sidewalks to improve safety.

• $1 million for the Excel Center in Rockford: Congresswoman Bustos secured $1 million in Community Project Funding to open The Excel Center, an innovative school that provides adults with a rigorous high school experience, the opportunity to access postsecondary credentials and skill-building experiences, and support services. In the Rockford region, approximately 32,000 adults do not have a high school diploma or GED, and this school will be the first of its kind in Illinois.

• $500,000 for downtown building demolitions in Astoria: Congresswoman Bustos secured $500,000 in Community Project Funding to acquire and demolish adjoining buildings that are rapidly deteriorating in the center of Astoria’s downtown business district.

• $438,000 for Mt. Carroll STEA²M Hub: Congresswoman Bustos secured $438,000 in Community Project Funding for a partnership with West Carroll School District and the University of Illinois Extension to develop a STEA²M (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Agriculture and Math) hub in Mt. Carroll, Illinois.

• $350,000 for community center improvements in East Bluff: Congresswoman Bustos secured $350,000 in Community Project Funding for roof replacement, parking lot resurfacing and window replacement at the East Bluff Community Center.

• $25 million for neighborhood revitalization grants: Congresswoman Bustos secured $25 million in funding for the Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation to create a new grant program specifically aimed at neighborhood revitalization and rehabilitation activities in areas with high concentrations of abandoned or distressed properties, such as Peoria’s 61605 ZIP code.

Other Bustos priorities included were: 

• Continued investment in rebuilding our nation’s crumbling infrastructure with funding for airport, highway, transit, passenger rail, and port system projects.
• Increased homeownership and rental assistance opportunities, including more than 140,000 new housing vouchers targeted to individuals and families experiencing or at risk of homelessness and approximately 5,600 new units for seniors and persons with disabilities.

• Public housing safety, maintenance, and improvement investments, such as the remediation of lead paint and radon and installation of energy and water efficient systems.
• More than $2.6 billion to reduce emissions, increase resiliency and address historical inequities in transportation and housing programs.

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Sean Leary Director of Digital Media

Sean Leary is an author, director, artist, musician, producer and entrepreneur who has been writing professionally since debuting at age 11 in the pages of the Comics Buyers Guide. An honors graduate of the University of Southern California masters program, he has written over 50 books including the best-sellers The Arimathean, Every Number is Lucky to Someone and We Are All Characters.