Lightfoot announces program to give away free gas cards, transit cards to provide relief from high gas prices
CHICAGO (CBS) -- With gas prices in Chicago hovering near $5 per gallon, Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Thursday announced the city will be distributing thousands of free gas and transit cards to help provide some relief for commuters.
"As we've all seen and experienced, there has been a shocking rise in gas prices across our city, and really across the region and the country," Lightfoot said.
Under the $12.5 million "Chicago Moves" program Lightfoot announced Thursday morning, up to 50,000 prepaid $150 gas cards that can be used at any filling station will be given out through a lottery system, starting in May; with 10,000 cards distributed each month for the next five months.
Lightfoot said the gas cards will be issued on "a rolling basis" rather than sending out all 50,000 gas cards all at once, so that some cards will go out this summer, when city officials expect gas prices will remain high, but applicants will only be able to get one card per household.
The cards will be good for one year, and can only be used for gas at stations in city limits.
The program comes as the gas prices in Chicago have climbed to an average of $4.84 for a gallon of regular gas, up from $3.33 per gallon one year ago. Lightfoot said the average American is now spending $70 to fill up their tank.
"I know from talking to many residents that they are feeling the strain. There's no ifs, ands, or buts about it; and many are unable to fill their tank as much as they normally would, because their dollars just don't stretch that far," Lightfoot said.
Applications for the gas card lottery will open on April 27, pending City Council approval of the mayor's plan. To be eligible for a gas card, applicants must be at least 18 years old, be residents of Chicago, have a valid Chicago city sticker with their current mailing address, and have a household income at or below 140% of the area median income for Chicago. For a chart of the city's area median income, click here.
While that would mean a single person would be eligible for one of the gas cards with an income as high as $91.420 a year, Lightfoot said the income limit is not too high.
"The reality is, regardless of what your income point is, when you're paying $6 a gallon for gas, as many people are across the city, that hits you," Lightfoot said. "Obviously, we want to make sure that we are focusing on lower-income and middle-income Chicagoans who, really, I think, are feeling the weight and the brunt of this surge in gas prices, and we're hoping that people that are of means and don't need the relief are not going to be the ones that apply."
In addition to the gas card lottery, the city also will be giving out 100,000 transit cards with $50 in value that can be used to add value to existing Ventra cards or to purchase new Ventra cards. Of those 100,000 transit cards, Lightfoot said 75,000 will be earmarked for frequent commuters who live in low-income neighborhoods, with the rest distributed citywide through aldermanic offices.
To be eligible for the transit cards, applicants must be residents of Chicago, and meet the same income requirements as the gas card program.
"Coupled together, we will work to ease residents' pain at the pump, and reduce household expenses as much as we possibly can," Lightfoot said.
According to published reports, before settling on the gas card and transit card program, Lightfoot had considered temporarily rolling back a 3-cents-per-gallon gas tax increase that went into effect last year, but she said Thursday she ultimately decided providing gas cards to commuters was a more effective way of relieving the pain at the pump.
However, she said she hasn't shut down the idea of rolling back the city's gas tax.
"We haven't rejected it, and obviously that's still available to us, but in thinking about what we could do to actually provide maximum impact, we thought that this would be a better way to go to literally put a gas card in the hands of Chicago residents, and then obviously we want to continue to emphasize the importance of lowering our carbon emissions by partnering up with the CTA to give those transit riders some relief at the same time," she said.
While Lightfoot denied that the plan to distribute gas cards to Chicago drivers was inspired by the recent gas giveaways organized by millionaire and potential mayoral challenger Dr. Willie Wilson, she did say her program would avoid the long lines at gas stations that his giveaways created.
"We're going to try to make it as painless as possible. You're not going to have to get up at 4 o'clock in the morning. You're not going to have to sit in a long line. We want to bring these cards directly to you," she said.
Funding for the $12.5 million program will come from the city's corporate budget, as well as unused federal COVID-19 relief funds.