Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas House Bill HR1591 Compare Versions

The same version is selected twice. Please select two different versions to compare.

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	H.R. No. 1591
2	2
3	3
4	4	R E S O L U T I O N
5	5	WHEREAS, Between the surrender of Japan on September 2, 1945,
6	6	and the dissolution of the Soviet Union on December 25-26, 1991, the
7	7	world witnessed a period of military, economic, and ideological
8	8	confrontation known as the Cold War; and
9	9	WHEREAS, Although the Cold War never erupted into a
10	10	full-scale armed conflict between the world's superpowers, it gave
11	11	impetus to a number of localized hot wars, as well as to a massive
12	12	military buildup on the part of both the United States and the
13	13	Soviet Union; the consequent demands on U.S. military personnel
14	14	were often arduous and dangerous; and
15	15	WHEREAS, In the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal
16	16	Year 2002, Congress authorized the U.S. Department of Defense to
17	17	issue a Cold War Service Medal, to be given to each member of the
18	18	U.S. military who served satisfactorily on active duty during the
19	19	Cold War era; the DOD has refused, however, to create such an award;
20	20	instead, since 1999, the department has made available a Cold War
21	21	Recognition Certificate, to be given to those who served during the
22	22	Cold War either as a member of the armed forces or as a federal
23	23	employee; and
24	24	WHEREAS, Cold War veterans believe that this certificate
25	25	scarcely suffices to recognize the sacrifices they bore or the
26	26	service they rendered; since the certificate was first offered, the
27	27	American Legion, VFW, Reserve Officers Association, Combat
28	28	Infantrymen's Association, Cold War Veterans Association, and
29	29	AMVETS have all expressed the desire that service in the Cold War be
30	30	honored with an official medal; and
31	31	WHEREAS, A medal that honors service similar to that of Cold
32	32	War veterans already exists and, if made available to those
33	33	veterans, would both pay them the tribute they are owed and resolve
34	34	the Pentagon's concern about the cost of issuing a new award; the
35	35	American Defense Service Medal, created by Executive Order 8808, is
36	36	given to service personnel who served between September 8, 1939,
37	37	following the outbreak of war in Europe, and December 7, 1941, when
38	38	Japan bombed Pearl Harbor; as during the Cold War, the U.S. military
39	39	spent this period bracing for armed hostilities; and
40	40	WHEREAS, A precedent for expanding the dates of eligibility
41	41	for the American Defense Service Medal exists with the National
42	42	Defense Service Medal; initially awarded for service during the
43	43	period of the Korean War, the NDSM was subsequently awarded for
44	44	service during the period of the Vietnam War, Desert Shield/Desert
45	45	Storm, and the Global War on Terror; and
46	46	WHEREAS, The heraldry, order of precedence, and related
47	47	issues pertaining to the American Defense Service Medal have
48	48	already been settled; the only change in the medal that would be
49	49	required would be the removal of the original dates of eligibility,
50	50	which are presently engraved on the reverse; removing these dates
51	51	will also facilitate the reopening of this award for service during
52	52	a similar period of emergency in the future; and
53	53	WHEREAS, There is little doubt that Cold War veterans will
54	54	prefer to purchase the American Defense Service Medal as opposed to
55	55	unofficial commemorative medals, which are not authorized to be
56	56	worn on uniforms, thus significantly reducing the cost to the
57	57	defense department for providing this award; and
58	58	WHEREAS, Those who served in the United States Army, Navy,
59	59	Marines, Air Force, and Coast Guard during the years of the Cold War
60	60	made an immeasurable contribution to the safety of this country and
61	61	its allies, and they are indeed deserving of appropriate
62	62	recognition; now, therefore, be it
63	63	RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 81st Texas
64	64	Legislature hereby respectfully urge the president of the United
65	65	States to modify Executive Order 8808 so as to award the American
66	66	Defense Service Medal to United States armed forces personnel who
67	67	served on active duty in the period after September 1, 1945, and
68	68	before December 27, 1991; and, be it further
69	69	RESOLVED, That the chief clerk of the house forward an
70	70	official copy of this resolution to the president of the United
71	71	States.
72	72	Vaught
73	73	______________________________
74	74	Speaker of the House
75	75	I certify that H.R. No. 1591 was adopted by the House on May
76	76	30, 2009, by the following vote: Yeas 136, Nays 0, 2 present, not
77	77	voting.
78	78	______________________________
79	79	Chief Clerk of the House