CONGRESSMAN JACKSON SECURES MILLIONS OF DOLLARS FOR THE STATE OF ILLINOIS

Congressman Jesse L. Jackson, Jr., a member of the House Appropriations Committee, announced today that the House of Representatives passed the Fiscal Year 2005 omnibus appropriations bill (H.R. 4818). The bill includes 9 of the 13 appropriation spending bills needed to fund the operations of the federal government. The other 4 appropriation bills passed earlier this year. The omnibus measure, which totals $388 billion in discretionary spending, passed the House by a vote of 344 to 51 with 1 voting present. The Senate will vote on the bill later today. If the measure passes the Senate, it will then be sent to the President for his signature.

Jackson said, "The projects I fought to include in the bill will greatly improve and enhance the quality of life for the residents of Chicago's South Side and the south suburbs. These projects will provide vital resources in areas ranging from job training, healthcare and education to transportation, infrastructure and homeland security. This bill is not perfect and contains many extraneous provisions unrelated to the activities of the federal government, but I supported it because it will provide much needed resources and services to our community."

As a result of Congressman Jackson's efforts, the following items were included in the bill:

JOB TRAINING & EMPLOYMENT

• $200,000 for the Safer Foundation to provide for the development and implementation of a transitional employment program.

 
• $100,000 for Southland Health Care Forum to recruit and provide financial assistance to area residents for allied health career programs.

 
• $100,000 for Women's Resource Assistance Program to provide funding for employment training and job placement services for homeless women.

 
• $100,000 to the Village of Riverdale to provide a summer employment program for youth.

 

HEALTHCARE AND HUMAN SERVICES

• $500,000 for Access Community Health Network to address health disparities, particularly with regard to comprehensive care management in certain chronic disease conditions.

 
• $500,000 for Illinois Primary Health Care Association to create an institutional home for learning and teaching health center administration and expansion.

 
• $275,000 for Aunt Martha's Youth Service Center in Chicago Heights, IL to convert an aging warehouse into a Women's Health Center.

 
• $175,000 for Advocate Health and Hospitals Corporation for the development of a pilot program to ensure ongoing access to quality asthma care.

 
• $150,000 for La Rabida Children's Hospital to expand programming and patients served at its Children's Diabetes Center.

 
• $150,000 for Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago to integrate the Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities (NORC) pilot program concept into the community.

 
• $150,000 for Ulich Children's Home to provide programs at the proposed Family Resource Center in Riverdale.

 
• $125,000 for Eastside Healthcare of Chicago Heights Foundation to provide comprehensive prevention education and treatment reduce health disparities in economically disadvantaged areas.

 
• $100,000 for Metropolitan Family Services Young Fathers Initiative to provide for the continued evaluation of the program and the expansion of services to the south suburb of Calumet Park.

 

EDUCATION

• $250,000 for The Museum of Science and Industry Science's In Your World program.

 
• $225,000 for Chicago Public Schools to support After School Programs.

 
• $225,000 for Chicago State University to develop a School of Pharmacy.

 
• $125,000 for Children's Home & Aid Society of Illinois to provide academic, recreational and social activities for at-risk students.

 
• $150,000 for Governors State University to provide equipment and programming for the Family Development Center.

 
• $100,000 for Anita M. Stone JCC to enable the Center to implement an after school technologyprogram.

 
• $100,000 for the Calumet Public School District 132 to increase academic performance, and provide supplementary programming, including summer school and a bilingual education.

 
• $100,000 for Community Consolidated School District 168 to provide an alternative school program for at-risk students and summer programming for assistance with reading or math.

 
• $100,000 for Flossmoor School District 161 to implement a "Supporting Students with Appropriate Interventions" program providing services to students requiring academic, social and behavioral assistance.

 
• $100,000 for Homewood School District 153 to provide staff diversity training, and tutoring and mentoring for low-performing students.

 
• $100,000 for Matteson School District 162 to implement the Matteson Fellowship Program.

 
• $100,000 for N'Digo Foundation to provide student scholarships and staff funding.

 
• $100,000 for Village of Richton Park to enable the Parks and Recreation Department to provide after-school education and recreational programs.

 
• $100,000 for Thornton Fractional Township District 215 to develop an alternative school within a school for its truant population.

 
• $100,000 for Wyatt Community and Family Life Center to conduct a program entitled "Historic Perspectives of Living Legends in the African American Community: 1912 - Present."

 
• $100,000 for Center for Community Transformation to provide support for student fellowships and educational activities in community leadership and transformation.

 

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

• $175,000 for the Calumet Area Redevelopment Initiative to provide for land acquisition, clean up and restoration of the Lake Calumet area.

 
• $125,000 for the Inner Voice. This agency operates and subcontracts 30 homeless programs throughout the City of Chicago. Funding will enable this agency to provide additional homeless assistance services on the South Side of Chicago.

 

TRANSPORTATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE

• $400,000 for 171st Street Improvements to complete reconstruction of 171st Street and other improvements necessitated by relocation of Interstate 294.

 
• $400,000 for the 67th Street Pedestrian Underpass to construct pedestrian underpass at 67th Street and South Lake Shore Drive, providing access to lakefront park and other amenities. $300,000 for the Village of East Hazel Crest to enable the village to make water and sewer repairs, and to improve its water system as the village undergoes major street reconstruction.

 
• $300,000 for Markham Street Repairs and Maintenance for streetlights and construction of the salt dome for the public works department.

 
• $200,000 for the Ford Heights Sidewalk Construction to construct a sidewalk along Cottage Grove Avenue north of U.S. 30 to improve safety for school children attending Cottage Grove Middle School.

 
• $200,000 for the Cicero Avenue Lighting and Lanscaping to complete the streetlighting and landscaping along Cicero Avenue in the new business district between Steger Road and University Parkway.

 
• $150,000 for Lynwood Street Improvements for streetlight installation in older sections of village.

 
• $29.15 million to continue work on the "Deep Tunnel" project, including construction of the McCook and Thornton reservoirs located in Chicago's south suburbs.

 
• $2.124 million for the Calumet Harbor and River project which consists of two miles of breakwater, 12 miles of channel improvements, three turning basins, a confined disposal facility, boat shed facility, and a stone dock.

 
• $500,000 toward the construction of a 238 acre-foot reservoir, channel clearing, channel modifications, and ecosystem restoration along Deer Creek which experiences frequent over-bank flooding. This will eliminate frequent flooding that occurs throughout Ford Heights.

 
• $325,000 toward the environmental infrastructure needs in Cook County including development and protection of water supply systems, combined sewer overflows, and remediation of adverse water quality impacts to waste water systems.

 
• $21.5 million for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to continue work on the Chicago Shoreline Protection Program, which will provide storm damage protection to the Lake Michigan shoreline in Chicago.

 

FIRST RESPONDERS, LAW ENFORCEMENT AND HOMELAND SECURITY

• $450,000 for the South Suburban Mayors and Managers Association (SSMMA) Joint Dispatch Centers/Integrated First Responder Systems to provide for the expansion of the original pilot dispatch center located in Lynwood to serve additional communities.

 
• $300,000 for the SouthCom Combined Dispatch Center to enable the center to expand its services and service area to neighboring communities providing economies of scale and services that they otherwise could not afford.

 

INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE

• The omnibus bill also contains $311 million in funds for non-governmental organizations (NGGs) performing humanitarian relief in Sudan. There is also an additional $93 million in emergency funding for Sudan, $75 of which will be used for African Union peacekeepers in the Darfur region.

 

In addition, Rep. Jackson helped to secure funding for other projects in Chicago and the state of Illinois, including:

• $1,600,000 for Northwestern Memorial Hospital to begin construction of a new Prentice Women's Hospital to replace the current facility and provide comprehensive care for women of all ages.

 
• $550,000 for the University of Chicago Hospital to assist in the construction of a new pediatric emergency room facility.

 
• $500,000 for Rush Presbyterian Hospital for the construction of the Regional Center for Advanced Medical Response located in Chicago, Illinois. This Center will be a state of the art emergency department, with surge capacity, that will also provide specialized care to 1st responders and patients-in-need suffering from biological, chemical, and/or radiological injuries.

 
• $400,000 for the Thurgood Marshall Scholarship Fund for capacity building at Historically Black Colleges.

 
• $350,000 for the Healthy Start Association to gather and disseminate information on best practices and provide technical assistance to Health Start grantees.