Will County Division of Transportation Requests $1 Million Increase to Highway Levy to Combat Inflation

Will County Board Finance Committee Meeting | May 5, 2026

Article Summary
The Will County Division of Transportation is requesting a $1 million increase to the county’s Highway Levy for FY2027, citing skyrocketing construction materials costs, a $250,000 jump in health insurance, and the need for two new specialized staff positions.

DOT Highway Levy Key Points:

• The DOT is requesting a $9.2 million Highway Levy, up from $8.2 million.

• The levy covers operational costs, personnel, and equipment, not actual road construction.

• Personnel costs consume 70% of the operating budget, with over half the staff receiving maximum longevity pay.

• The department plans to hire a Permit Technician for JULIE locates and a Traffic Manager for the county’s new Intelligent Transportation Systems.

The Will County Board Finance Committee on Tuesday, May 5, 2026, reviewed a formal request from the Division of Transportation (DOT) to increase the county’s Highway Levy by $1 million for Fiscal Year 2027 to stabilize the department’s operating budget against severe inflationary pressures.

Director of Transportation Jeff Ronaldson presented the request, distinguishing the Highway Levy—which operates similarly to the county’s corporate fund by covering salaries, vehicles, and equipment repairs—from the Motor Fuel Tax (MFT) and RTA funds used specifically for road construction.

“The reason we’re looking for this increase really boils down to, it’s just been too short for too long,” Ronaldson said. “For 15 years it’s gone pretty much flat as far as the fund amount.”

Ronaldson noted that the Federal Highway Administration recently reported a 67% increase in construction costs over the last four years. While the DOT balances those increases in its multi-year road projects, the daily operational costs hit the Highway Levy directly. The levy currently provides about 67% of the DOT’s operational revenue, with 26% transferred in from the MFT and 7% coming from various fees.

Personnel costs account for 70% of the DOT’s operating expenses. Ronaldson revealed that the department was recently hit with an unexpected $250,000 increase in employee health insurance costs. Furthermore, due to high employee retention, over half of the DOT staff have reached their maximum pay rates and are now incurring longevity pay.

The cost of heavy equipment and truck parts has also surged. While trucks are becoming more available post-pandemic, the retrofitting process still takes up to a year, forcing the county to run older vehicles longer and incur higher repair and emissions replacement costs.

The $9.2 million levy request also includes funding for two new positions. The first is a Permit Technician required to handle the county’s legal mandate to provide JULIE (Joint Utility Locating Information for Excavators) services for its recently mapped storm sewers, fiber optics, and signal detection loops. After failing to secure a private contractor for the work, the county must move the service in-house.

The second position is a Traffic Manager. Over the past three years, the DOT has installed infrastructure for Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) across county traffic signals. The system has reached a complexity that requires dedicated oversight beyond the capacity of the current traffic engineer.

“We’re looking to just get us back to a flat point, the 1 million, and then from then on out, just give us a small bump so we can cover those contractual increases for the salaries,” Ronaldson concluded.