By: Marquez (Senate Sponsor - Shapleigh) H.C.R. No. 47
(In the Senate - Received from the House March 2, 2009;
May 21, 2009, read first time and referred to Committee on
International Relations and Trade; May 23, 2009, reported
adversely, with favorable Committee Substitute by the following
vote: Yeas 6, Nays 0; May 23, 2009, sent to printer.)
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.C.R. No. 47 By: Williams
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, The Honorable Paul Cruz Moreno, who joined the Texas
House of Representatives in 1967, retired as the
second-longest-serving member of that body in January 2009; and
WHEREAS, This esteemed Texan was born on April 28, 1931, and
was raised in El Paso; following his high school graduation, he
enlisted in the Marines and, during his six years in uniform, he
served with valor in the Korean War, earning numerous awards and
decorations; he subsequently received a bachelor's degree in
business administration from Texas Western College and a law degree
from The University of Texas; and
WHEREAS, Representative Moreno began his legislative career
in 1967; long regarded as the "conscience" of the Texas House, he
pushed for ethics reforms in the 1970s as a member of the "Dirty
30"; he has also been a tenacious champion of the disadvantaged,
fighting for single-member districts, seeking to expand access to
quality education, and calling for the respectful recognition, both
in rhetoric and in policy, of every individual's human dignity; and
WHEREAS, Believed to be the longest-serving Mexican American
lawmaker in the country, Representative Moreno in 1973 joined in
founding the Mexican American Legislative Caucus, which addresses
issues of particular concern to Latinos in Texas; moreover, he has
endeavored to encourage grassroots participation in the political
process, helping to establish the group Tejano Democrats and giving
substantial support to the creation of the University Democrats at
UTEP; and
WHEREAS, For 40 years, Paul Moreno has devoted his
considerable talents and abilities to representing the interests of
his constituents and to advancing the cause of social justice in the
Lone Star State, and his colleagues have proposed naming a state
office building in his honor as a fitting tribute; and
WHEREAS, By this resolution, the presiding officers and
members of the house and senate express support and consent for
naming a state office building in El Paso in Representative
Moreno's honor, and this resolution serves as the authorization
required by Section 2165.005, Government Code; now, therefore, be
it
RESOLVED, That the 81st Legislature of the State of Texas
hereby pay tribute to the Honorable Paul Cruz Moreno for his four
decades of exemplary legislative service and direct the Texas
Facilities Commission to name the state office building located at
401 East Franklin Avenue in El Paso the Paul C. Moreno State Office
Building; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the secretary of state forward an official
copy of this resolution to the chair and executive director of the
Texas Facilities Commission.
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