| 1 | 1 | | 82R7443 BPG-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Legler H.R. No. 784 |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | R E S O L U T I O N |
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| 6 | 6 | | WHEREAS, Ellington Field plays an important role in the |
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| 7 | 7 | | Houston-area economy while contributing to the defense of our |
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| 8 | 8 | | nation; and |
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| 9 | 9 | | WHEREAS, Ellington Field was constructed in 1917 and served |
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| 10 | 10 | | as a training base for military air personnel during World War I and |
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| 11 | 11 | | World War II and as a navigator training school in the 1950s; NASA |
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| 12 | 12 | | became a tenant there in 1962, and in 1984, Ellington Field was |
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| 13 | 13 | | taken over by the City of Houston; today, it continues to provide |
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| 14 | 14 | | support for military reserve and guard units even as it serves as a |
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| 15 | 15 | | base for a variety of commercial operations; and |
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| 16 | 16 | | WHEREAS, Featuring commands from all five Department of |
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| 17 | 17 | | Defense and Department of Homeland Security military services, |
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| 18 | 18 | | Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base has grown to include more than |
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| 19 | 19 | | 6,000 active, reserve, and guard members; it is home to the 147th |
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| 20 | 20 | | Reconnaissance Wing, which is at the forefront of the trend toward |
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| 21 | 21 | | unmanned aircraft that is transforming the Air Force and Air Guard; |
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| 22 | 22 | | and |
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| 23 | 23 | | WHEREAS, The region served by the Ellington Field JRB is |
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| 24 | 24 | | vital to national security and the only one in the country |
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| 25 | 25 | | containing all 17 national asset categories identified by the |
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| 26 | 26 | | Department of Homeland Security as prime potential targets for |
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| 27 | 27 | | global terrorism; a $100 million expansion now in progress is |
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| 28 | 28 | | vastly increasing the defense capabilities of the base and will |
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| 29 | 29 | | have an enormous economic impact on surrounding communities, with |
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| 30 | 30 | | estimates ranging to nearly $700 million; and |
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| 31 | 31 | | WHEREAS, Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base provides a strong |
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| 32 | 32 | | stimulus to the Houston-area economy and is poised to take on an |
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| 33 | 33 | | ever-greater role in the defense of the Lone Star State, the Gulf |
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| 34 | 34 | | Coast region, and the nation; now, therefore, be it |
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| 35 | 35 | | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 82nd Texas |
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| 36 | 36 | | Legislature hereby respectfully urge the Congress of the United |
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| 37 | 37 | | States to fully support the vital operations and joint force |
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| 38 | 38 | | structure at Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base; and, be it further |
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| 39 | 39 | | RESOLVED, That the chief clerk forward official copies of |
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| 40 | 40 | | this resolution to the president of the United States, to the |
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| 41 | 41 | | president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of |
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| 42 | 42 | | Representatives of the United States Congress, to the secretary of |
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| 43 | 43 | | defense, to the secretary of homeland security, to the secretary of |
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| 44 | 44 | | veterans affairs, and to all the members of the Texas delegation to |
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| 45 | 45 | | Congress with the request that this resolution be entered in the |
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| 46 | 46 | | Congressional Record as a memorial to the Congress of the United |
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| 47 | 47 | | States of America. |
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