SR0856 98TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

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SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Certain communities on the Northwest side of the City of Chicago (including Edison Park, Norwood Park, Jefferson Park, Gladstone Park, and Big Oaks) and surrounding suburbs (including Park Ridge, Des Plaines, Harwood Heights, Norridge, Rosemont, Niles, and Schiller Park) lay underneath the key nighttime air routes that converge over the community; this includes 5 glide paths, 2 major take-off plates, and many air routes, all of which are used after 9 p.m.; and

WHEREAS, These communities of the City of Chicago and surrounding suburbs seek a solution to the nighttime sleep interruptions that occur during the hours of 9 p.m. and 7 a.m., including the shoulder hours as well; and

WHEREAS, The Nextgen Program is currently being applied at O'Hare International Airport, where flights that used to be 5 miles apart will soon have only a 3-mile separation, times 6 east-to-west approach patterns for all inbound flights; and

WHEREAS, These communities of the City of Chicago and surrounding suburbs are experiencing higher levels of jet noise, especially during the phase 1 nighttime flight operations; and

WHEREAS, The Chicago Department of Aviation and the O'Hare Noise Compatibility Commission are tasked with implementing the Residential Sound Insulation Program, a federally-funded program to sound-insulate qualifying residential homes and schools; and

WHEREAS, H.R. 3650 (Silent Skies Act), a bill recently introduced in the United States House of Representatives, would further limit the impact of the O'Hare Modernization Plan on the affected communities by amending Title 49 of the United States Code to prohibit the operation of certain aircraft not complying with the Stage 4 Aircraft Noise Standard, an internationally-recognized certification aimed at reducing aircraft noise; and

WHEREAS, The ongoing modernization of Chicago-O'Hare International Airport, its impact on nearby residents, and the anticipated growth in airport usage all indicate the need to enact more stringent regulations and review long existing standards for the measurement, reduction, and abatement of airport noise; and

WHEREAS, The current fly quiet program needs to be re-evaluated for the purposes of instilling and sharing the primary purpose of flight and community partnership at O'Hare International Airport with all of the collar communities; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-EIGHTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge the Federal Aeronautics Administration and O'Hare International Airport authorities to decrease jet noise over the communities of Northwest Chicago and surrounding suburban areas; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we urge O'Hare International Airport authorities to consider the option of spreading flights around the various runways of O'Hare International Airport in order to equally distribute the burden of air traffic around the airport and to put more resources towards the re-testing of noise levels around the airport and the sound proofing of affected homes and schools; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we urge Congress to pass H.R. 3650 in order to combat this growing problem; and be it further

RESOLVED, That suitable copies of this resolution be delivered to the Commissioner of O'Hare International Airport, the Acting Administrator of the Federal Aeronautics Administration, and to each member of the Illinois congressional delegation.