Colorado 2023 Regular Session

Colorado House Bill HJR1015 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		First Regular Session
2	2		Seventy-fourth General Assembly
3	3		STATE OF COLORADO
4		-	~~REVISED~~
	4	+	ENGROSSED
5	5
6	6
7	7		LLS NO. R23-0828.01 Katelyn Guderian x3205
8	8		HJR23-1015
9	9		House Committees Senate Committees
10	10		HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION 23-1015
11	11		C
12	12		ONCERNING REAFFIRMING COLORADO TO BE THE PERMANENT101
13	13		LOCATION FOR THE UNITED STATES SPACE COMMAND, AND, IN102
14	14		CONNECTION THEREWITH , URGING THE DEPARTMENT OF103
15	15		D
16	16		EFENSE TO KEEP THE UNITED STATES SPACE COMMAND IN104
17	17		C
18	18		OLORADO.105
19	19		WHEREAS, Our nation and the world have significantly1
20	20		benefitted from technological and scientific advances resulting from2
21	21		space exploration and aerospace activities, and Colorado is paving the3
22	22		way for new discoveries in the frontiers of space by having a rich history4
23	23		in aerospace development and being at the forefront of space travel,5
24	24		exploration, and aerospace research; and6
25	25		WHEREAS, Colorado is the acting provisional Space Command7
26		-	SENATE
27		-	Final Reading
28		-	February 13, 2023
29	26		HOUSE
30	27		Final Reading
31	28		February 10, 2023
32	29		HOUSE SPONSORSHIP
33	30		Bradfield and Snyder, Amabile, Armagost, Bacon, Bird, Bockenfeld, Boesenecker,
34	31		Bottoms, Bradley, Brown, Catlin, Daugherty, DeGraaf, deGruy Kennedy, Dickson, Duran,
35	32		English, Evans, Frizell, Froelich, Garcia, Hamrick, Hartsook, Holtorf, Jodeh, Joseph, Kipp,
36	33		Lieder, Lindsay, Lindstedt, Luck, Lukens, Lynch, Mabrey, Marshall, Martinez, Mauro,
37	34		McCluskie, McCormick, McLachlan, Michaelson Jenet, Ortiz, Parenti, Pugliese, Ricks,
38	35		Sharbini, Sirota, Soper, Story, Taggart, Titone, Valdez, Vigil, Weinberg, Weissman, Willford,
39	36		Wilson, Woodrow, Young
40	37		SENATE SPONSORSHIP
41		-	Exum and Gardner, Baisley, Bridges, Buckner, Coleman, Cutter, Danielson, Fenberg,
42		-	Fields, Ginal, Gonzales, Hansen, Hinrichsen, Jaquez Lewis, Kirkmeyer, Kolker, Lundeen,
43		-	Marchman, Moreno, Mullica, Pelton B., Pelton R., Priola, Rich, Roberts, Rodriguez,
44		-	Simpson, Smallwood, Van Winkle, Will, Winter F., Zenzinger
	38	+	Exum and Gardner,
45	39		Shading denotes HOUSE amendment. Double underlining denotes SENATE amendment.
46	40		Capital letters or bold & italic numbers indicate new material to be added to existing law.
47	41		Dashes through the words or numbers indicate deletions from existing law. Base, and it will remain the provisional base until 2026. Colorado is also1
48	42		the center for United States military space operations and strategy.2
49	43		According to the Colorado Space Coalition, the state's military commands3
50	44		are the primary customers for space-based research, development,4
51	45		acquisitions, and operations, representing nearly 90 percent of5
52	46		space-related expenditure by the military. Moving the United States Space6
53	47		Command (USSPACECOM) to Huntsville, Alabama, would be7
54	48		incredibly disruptive to the National Defense Strategy. In addition, it8
55	49		would cause a major upheaval in existing infrastructure and jobs in the9
56	50		state, which would result in higher costs and less efficient outcomes for10
57	51		the United States military; and11
58	52		WHEREAS, Colorado is strategically located at the center of our12
59	53		national and space defense. We are the home to five key strategic military13
60	54		commands: North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD),14
61	55		United States Northern Command (USNORTHCOM), United States15
62	56		Strategic Command's Joint Functional Component Command for Space16
63	57		(JFCC Space) Missile Warning Center, the United States Space Force,17
64	58		and the United States Army Space and Missile Defense Command/Army18
65	59		Forces Strategic Command; and five military installations, including19
66	60		United States Space Force bases Buckley, Peterson, and Schriever;20
67	61		Cheyenne Mountain Space Force Station; as well as Fort Carson Army21
68	62		Base; and22
69	63		WHEREAS, The 460th Space Wing at Buckley Space Force Base23
70	64		provides operational command and control of three constellations to24
71	65		space-based infrared missile warning systems, has been defending25
72	66		America continuously since 1970, and is a critical part of global defense26
73	67		and national security; and27
74	68		WHEREAS, Colorado leads the charge in bringing current and28
75	69		future global positioning system (GPS) assets to life, a service provided29
76	70		free to the world by United States Space Force in Colorado Springs.30
77	71		Lockheed Martin designs and builds GPS III, the most powerful GPS31
78	72		satellite to date, which United Launch Alliance launches, with Raytheon32
79	73		Technologies developing the command and control capabilities. Boeing,33
80	74		L3Harris Technologies, Braxton Technologies, and Infinity Systems34
81	75		Engineering also support GPS development and operations from locations35
82	76		in Colorado. These GPS technologies enable an integral part of our global36
83	77		economy and have an incalculable impact that has improved the everyday37
84	78		lives of billions of people around the world; and38
85	79		1015
86	80		-2- WHEREAS, Colorado's aerospace industry is home to a broad1
87	81		range of companies that create products and systems for commercial,2
88	82		military, and civil space applications, such as spacecraft, launch vehicles,3
89	83		satellites, command and control software, sensors, and navigation4
90	84		operations. These companies include Ball Aerospace, Boeing,5
91	85		DigitalGlobe, L3Harris Technologies, Lockheed Martin Space Systems,6
92	86		Northrop Grumman, Raytheon Technologies, Sierra Nevada Corporation,7
93	87		Teledyne Brown Engineering, and United Launch Alliance, which make8
94	88		up a large portion of the aerospace sector; and9
95	89		WHEREAS, Colorado has an existing educated workforce, ranked10
96	90		second in the nation for residents with a bachelor's degree or higher, and11
97	91		a pipeline of higher education institutions to sustain future growth. We12
98	92		are home to the United States Air Force Academy and many colleges and13
99	93		universities, including the University of Colorado Boulder and the14
100	94		University of Colorado Colorado Springs, Colorado School of Mines,15
101	95		Colorado State University, Metropolitan State University of Denver,16
102	96		University of Denver, Colorado Mesa University, and Fort Lewis17
103	97		College. Altogether, they provide access to world-class aerospace-related18
104	98		degrees and offer aerospace companies one of the country's most19
105	99		educated workforces; and20
106	100		WHEREAS, Colorado is home to some amazing research21
107	101		institutions. These institutions include the prestigious Laboratory for22
108	102		Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado Boulder.23
109	103		It began in 1948, a decade before NASA, and is the world's only research24
110	104		institute to have sent instruments to all eight planets and to Pluto,25
111	105		combining all aspects of space exploration through science, engineering,26
112	106		mission operations, and scientific data analysis; and27
113	107		WHEREAS, Colorado is also home to the National Oceanic and28
114	108		Atmospheric Administration's Space Weather Prediction Center, a29
115	109		world-leading center of predictions for the solar and near-Earth space30
116	110		environment and the nation's official source of watches, warnings, and31
117	111		alerts of incoming solar storms, using satellite observations to protect and32
118	112		save lives and property; and33
119	113		WHEREAS, Various organizations are key to Colorado's34
120	114		prominence in aerospace, such as the Colorado Space Coalition, a group35
121	115		of industry stakeholders working to make Colorado a center of excellence36
122	116		for aerospace; the Colorado Space Business Roundtable, working to bring37
123	117		together aerospace stakeholders from the industry, government, and38
124	118		1015
125	119		-3- academia for roundtable discussions and business development and to1
126	120		encourage grassroots citizen participation in aerospace issues; the2
127	121		Colorado chapter of Citizens for Space Exploration, whose mission is to3
128	122		promote better understanding of aerospace and its importance to our4
129	123		economy and daily lives, as well as to promote the importance of human5
130	124		space exploration; Manufacturer's Edge, a statewide manufacturing6
131	125		assistance center that encourages the strength and competitiveness of7
132	126		Colorado manufacturers by providing on-site technical assistance through8
133	127		coaching, training, and consulting by providing collaboration-focused9
134	128		industry programs and by leveraging government, university, and10
135	129		economic development partnerships; and the Space Foundation, founded11
136	130		in 1983, with its world headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colorado,12
137	131		which holds an annual Space Symposium, bringing together civil,13
138	132		commercial, and national security space leaders from around the world to14
139	133		discuss, address, and plan for the future of space exploration; and15
140	134		WHEREAS, For the aforementioned reasons, it is in the best16
141	135		interests of the American taxpayer to keep USSPACECOM in the state17
142	136		because Colorado is already fulfilling the mission of the USSPACECOM;18
143	137		because Colorado Springs has in place the community infrastructure19
144	138		capacity and community support to champion an expanding mission;20
145	139		because the move would cost the United States billions of dollars; and21
146	140		because the move would severely disrupt the Colorado aerospace22
147	141		industry, which has grown to support the mission; now, therefore,23
148	142		Be It Resolved by the House of Representatives of the24
149	143		Seventy-fourth General Assembly of the State of Colorado, the Senate25
150	144		concurring herein:26
151	145		That we, the members of the General Assembly:27
152	146		(1) Strongly urge the Department of Defense of the Biden-Harris28
153	147		administration to reevaluate the merits of this irresponsible decision and29
154	148		rightly conclude that it is the correct decision to keep the existing30
155	149		USSPACECOM in Colorado, recognizing Colorado's unique blend of31
156	150		military installations and major commands, private aerospace companies,32
157	151		academic and research institutions, and government entities, and the33
158	152		valuable synergies this ecosystem produces;34
159	153		(2) Strongly urge the Department of Defense of the Biden-Harris35
160	154		administration to permanently base USSPACECOM in Colorado,36
161	155		recognizing that Colorado provides the existing command structure, base37
162	156		1015
163	157		-4- infrastructure, and communications platforms necessary to successfully1
164	158		host additional national security initiatives and ensure coordination of2
165	159		efforts without committing additional funds;3
166	160		(3) Proudly express that Colorado has deep ties with the4
167	161		Department of Defense and immense patriotic commitment to providing5
168	162		for the nation's security and bolstering our defense;6
169	163		(4) Express our most sincere and deepest appreciation to our7
170	164		service members and civilian employees working in and supporting8
171	165		military and civilian aerospace companies, military installations, and civil9
172	166		organizations in Colorado; and10
173	167		(5) Hereby declare Colorado to be the prime location for the11
174	168		permanent headquarters for USSPACECOM.12
175	169		Be It Further Resolved, That copies of this Joint Resolution be sent13
176	170		to President Joseph R. Biden, Jr.; Vice President Kamala Harris;14
177	171		Congressman Kevin McCarthy; Senator Chuck Schumer; Senator Mitch15
178	172		McConnell; Senator Michael Bennet; Senator John Hickenlooper;16
179	173		Congresswoman Diana DeGette; Congresswoman Lauren Boebert;17
180	174		Congressman Jason Crow; Congressman Joe Neguse; Congressman Ken18
181	175		Buck; Congressman Doug Lamborn; Congresswoman Brittany Pettersen;19
182	176		Congresswoman Yadira Caraveo; Bill Nelson, NASA Administrator; Pam20
183	177		Melroy, NASA Deputy Administrator; Phil Washington, Federal Aviation21
184	178		Administration Administrator; Governor Jared Polis; Lieutenant22
185	179		Governor Dianne Primavera; Brig. Gen. Laura Clellan, The Adjutant23
186	180		General, Colorado National Guard; Wayne R. Monteith, Associate24
187	181		Administrator for Commercial Space Transportation at the Federal25
188	182		Aviation Administration; General John W. "Jay" Raymond, U.S. Space26
189	183		Force Chief of Space Operations; Colonel Robert J. Schreiner, USAF,27
190	184		Commander Aerospace Data Facility-Colorado; Dr. Christopher Scolese,28
191	185		Director, National Reconnaissance Office; Ross Garelick Bell, Executive29
192	186		Director, Aerospace States Association; Thomas E. Zelibor, Chief30
193	187		Executive Officer, Space Foundation; Dr. Ronald Sega, Co-chair,31
194	188		Colorado Space Coalition; Michael Gass, Co-chair, Colorado Space32
195	189		Coalition; and Bob Cone, Chair, Colorado Citizens for Space33
196	190		Exploration.34
197	191		1015
198	192		-5-