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Last week, the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) drafted a contingency plan to balance its 2007 budget in case it doesn’t receive additional public funds. The plan calls for eliminating jobs, raising fares and cutting service. But authority officials are pursuing other options to drum up more public funds.

Yesterday, the CTA board approved a resolution seeking support from Illinois lawmakers for additional operating and capital funds for the region’s public transit agencies. The resolution urges state legislators to provide increased operating revenue, and sufficient capital funding to enable CTA and other transit agencies to bring their infrastructure to a state of good repair and expand their systems.

The authority also is asking lawmakers to “raise revenues in a manner that protects CTA customers and ensures the business community pays its share for the benefits it receives from transit,” according to a prepared statement.