Illinois Senate and House pass harvest transportation issues bill

Legislation recently passed by the Illinois Senate and House gives the governor the ability to increase gross ­vehicle weight limits during harvest ­emergencies. Senate Bill 1576 was sponsored by Sen. Neil Anderson, R-Moline and the House ­version HB 2580, sponsored by Rep. Brandon Phelps, D-Harrisburg, gives the governor the authority to increase the vehicle weight limits by 10 percent for divisible loads of agriculture commodities. Both Iowa and Indiana have similar provisions.

The action would occur during a declared harvest emergency when farmers are pressured to move ­harvested crops from the fields.