Rep. Foster Stands Up for Local Communities Against EJ&E Expansion

Press Release

Rep. Foster Stands Up for Local Communities Against EJ&E Expansion

Today, Rep. Bill Foster (IL-14) stood up for his constituents by joining with a bipartisan group of Illinois representatives who spoke out against CN buying EJ&E, in a debate on the House floor and later voted for the Taking Responsible Action for Community Safety (TRACS) Act, which would protect communities in his district and others impacted by railroad acquisitions.

While the bill had a strong bipartisan majority with 243 members supporting it, the legislation ultimately failed since it had to require a two-thirds majority in the House to pass under the fast-track procedures used to bring it to the floor for a vote.

"While I am disappointed with today's results, I will continue working on a bipartisan solution to stopping the merger between CN and EJ&E," Foster said. "We are determined to find a solution to ensure that our communities and neighborhoods are protected."

Earlier in the day, Rep. Foster spoke on the floor of the House advocating the passage of the legislation.

"Transactions like the EJ&E acquisition should only proceed when there is an overall commercial and economic benefit. That is not the case here," Rep. Foster said. "There is something seriously wrong with a process that leaves out the public interest and deflects the costs of these acquisitions and traffic increases onto local communities. The TRACS Act will help change this."

Rep. Foster joined a bipartisan group of representatives from the Illinois delegation in voting for the legislation. Rep. Melissa Bean, Rep. Judy Biggert, Rep. Don Manzullo, and Rep. Peter Roskam joined Rep. Foster in supporting the TRACS Act.

Mayor Tom Weisner also supported the TRACS Act.

"While we at the TRAC Coalition are disappointed the legislation did not received the necessary two-thirds of the vote, we are heartened that it received a clear majority of support," Mayor Weisner said. "This sends a message to the STB, and they should take note that the House of Representatives want them to consider the public interest more fully. I want to thank Representatives Foster, Biggert, and Bean for their bipartisan efforts. We will be looking at our options both legislatively and otherwise. We will persist with our efforts to protect the public good."

Foster concluded, "By working together in a bipartisan way, in a few short months we started from scratch, first, meeting with constituents, then drafting legislation, holding a hearing and bringing the TRACS Act all the way to the floor of the House, but we still have more work to do when we return."

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