Indiana House committee changes, approves Illiana Expressway legislation

INDIANAPOLIS | Legislation authorizing the Illiana Expressway was approved by a House committee Monday after several changes were made to the Senate-version of the proposal.

The changes require an economic impact study be conducted before the state begins to solicit bids for the proposed toll road connecting Interstate 65 in Lake County with Interstate 55 in Illinois. Public hearings would also have to be held before and after an operator is selected.

State Rep. Scott Pelath, D-Michigan City, also persuaded the committee to add a requirement that the department of transportation negotiate in good faith with the selected bidder to protect the economic interests of local governments. Local government approval of the project would not be required.

"It was my goal to have any changes be very narrow, to be very modest. I think there are a few things we need to address that are common-sense," Pelath said. "There's no hidden agenda here."

Republican lawmakers said they were concerned the wording of the amendments was too broad and not defined in law. As a result, there could be lawsuits, which would slow down the Illiana project, said state Rep. Ed Soliday, R-Valparaiso.

"What I don't want to see us do is open venues for litigation," Soliday said. "Then we create jobs in a profession that we may not be as interested in having as others."

The 10-mile stretch of the Illiana that would be in Indiana is expected to create thousands of construction jobs when work begins. Senate Bill 382 authorizes the Indiana Department of Transportation to begin the process of finding a private builder/operator for the proposed expressway that's intended to relieve congestion on the Borman Expressway.

The Illiana authorizing legislation became controversial when state Rep. Terri Austin, D-Anderson, chairwoman of the House Roads and Transportation Committee, tried to use the measure to do a complete re-write of Indiana law governing public-private partnerships. A key vote by state Rep. Chet Dobis, D-Merrillville, stopped her first attempt.

On Monday, she presided quietly while Pelath discussed his proposed changes. Austin offered no amendments of her own.

However, Austin did present to committee members a 63-page printout of pending Illinois legislation pertaining to public-private partnerships. She pointed to several sections of the Illinois legislation that she said she wished were in the Indiana version.

"We've heard over and over again from day one, both from our friends in the Republican caucus and our friends in the Democrat caucus as a whole, that we are about taxpayer protection. I'm really thrilled to see our friends in Illinois have taken that seriously," Austin said.

However, state Sen. Ed Charbonneau, R-Valparaiso, said he didn't think Indiana should be taking lessons on how to run state government from Illinois.

"I don't think Indiana should be taking a look at very many other states to decide how they should be dealing with these kinds of issues -- dealing with business, dealing with infrastructure -- because Indiana's track record is outstanding," Charbonneau said. "I think the reverse should be the case."

The House Roads and Transportation Committee voted 10-2 to send the amended legislation on to the full House.

Representatives will still be able to offer additional changes before a final vote is taken.