SPRINGFIELD – Twenty-four Illinois Senate Democrats signed on to State Senator Ram Villivalam’s (D-Chicago) legislation to block the illegal ownership of firearms on Thursday following a series of shootings across the country. 

“We must take bold action now to protect our communities,” Villivalam said. “Reasonable gun safety measures that a majority of Americans support, like background checks, must be a part of the process to keep firearms out of the hands of dangerous individuals.”

CHICAGO – After a deadly, racially motivated shooting spree in Atlanta, Georgia, and an arrest outside of the U.S. Naval Conservatory, current home of the first Asian American Vice President, State Senator Ram Villivalam (D-Chicago) is calling on his colleagues to pass public safety measures to help prevent another tragedy.

“We can’t wait for the next tragedy to act on gun violence,” Villivalam said. “Our communities are under attack. We need to enact common sense gun violence prevention policy to improve public safety for every community, especially those communities that are being specifically targeted.”

Co-authored by State Senator Ram Villivalam (Chair, Senate Transportation Committee) and Kevin Artl, President and CEO of the American Council of Engineering Companies. Also published in Chicago Tribune on March 16, 2021.

Illinois is the crossroads of the nation in the most literal sense. Our 15,969 state highway miles, 9,982 miles of railroad, five international airports and international ports serve as the hub for coast-to-coast logistics and delivery. The nation’s supply chains rely on the capacity of our transportation network so rail operators, cargo shippers and truckers can deliver goods where they are needed most.

Each of these systems rely on the Department of Transportation and its essential role in working in conjunction with industry in planning, designing and construction of Illinois’ surface transportation network.

SPRINGFIELD, ILL. (Feb. 23, 2021) -- Ill. Rep. Kam Buckner (D-Chicago) and Ill. Sen. Ram Villivalam (D-Chicago) are co-sponsoring a bill to establish more transparent and equitable investment practices for state infrastructure expenditures. Transparency “will help ensure the most beneficial projects are selected every year, and taxpayers can easily understand the reasoning behind them,” according to a new report by the Illinois Economic Policy Institute.

Illinois’ historic capital bill passage in 2019 infused billions into state coffers, but taxpayers don’t currently have visibility into which transportation projects are funded and why. This opaque process erodes trust in government and misses an opportunity to garner the greatest public good from each infrastructure dollar. Meanwhile, our transportation outcomes show troubling trends: an increase in traffic crashes, particularly involving pedestrians, and people struggling to access jobs and services.

There is a better way to achieve greater transportation outcomes and public accountability; it’s performance-based planning, a commitment to using data to compare proposed infrastructure projects. Buckner and Villivalam’s bill would require the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) to use performance metrics in evaluating projects.

“Whether we want to improve a highway or update a train station, there are equity- and data-driven methods to guide our decision making,” said Ill. Sen. Ram Villivalam (D-Chicago), Chair of the Senate Transportation Committee.