Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HCR85 Compare Versions

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1		-	By: Wray (Senate Sponsor - Birdwell) H.C.R. No. 85
2		-	(In the Senate - Received from the House May 13, 2015;
3		-	May 14, 2015, read first time and referred to Committee on Veteran
4		-	Affairs and Military Installations; May 21, 2015, reported
5		-	favorably by the following vote: Yeas 6, Nays 0; May 21, 2015, sent
6		-	to printer.)
	1	+	H.C.R. No. 85
7	2
8	3
9	4		HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
10	5		WHEREAS, The Texas Legislative Medal of Honor was established
11	6		to recognize gallant and intrepid service by a member of the state
12	7		or federal military forces, and U.S. Navy Chief Petty Officer Chris
13	8		Kyle, the most successful sniper in U.S. military history, proved
14	9		himself a deserving recipient of this prestigious award; and
15	10		WHEREAS, Born in Odessa on April 8, 1974, Christopher Scott
16	11		Kyle learned patience and marksmanship at an early age; his father
17	12		bought him a rifle when he was eight, and he hunted on the family
18	13		ranch for pheasant and deer; after high school, he worked as a ranch
19	14		hand and a professional rodeo rider until he was injured; despite
20	15		the pins in his arm from his rodeo injuries, he actively sought to
21	16		serve his nation, and thanks to his grit and determination, he was
22	17		accepted into the elite Navy SEALs unit in 1999; and
23	18		WHEREAS, Chief Petty Officer Kyle served four tours of duty
24	19		in Iraq as a member of SEAL Team 3, and he fought in every major
25	20		battle of Operation Iraqi Freedom, including engagements in Ramadi,
26	21		Fallujah, and Baghdad; working in hot, dirty, and dangerous
27	22		conditions, Chief Kyle put himself in harm's way on a daily basis,
28	23		setting up his sniper's post in abandoned buildings, sometimes for
29	24		as long as five weeks at a time, watching tirelessly through his
30	25		scope for enemy combatants and, through his efforts, saving
31	26		countless American lives; and
32	27		WHEREAS, Known by his peers as "the Legend" for his uncanny
33	28		skill, Chief Kyle often successfully took long-range shots, and in
34	29		Sadr City in 2008, after he spotted an insurgent approaching an army
35	30		convoy with a rocket launcher, he shot the man from a distance of
36	31		2,100 yards, or 1.2 miles; as feared by the enemy as he was
37	32		celebrated by his fellow Americans, Chief Kyle was nicknamed
38	33		Al-Shaitan Ramadi, or "The Devil of Ramadi," by the insurgents, who
39	34		put an $80,000 price on his head; and
40	35		WHEREAS, Chief Kyle regularly demonstrated conspicuous
41	36		gallantry in the thick of combat; during the second battle for
42	37		Fallujah in November 2004, two Marines and two journalists were
43	38		trapped near a heavily fortified enemy position, and as the Marines
44	39		around him provided covering fire, Chief Kyle dashed through enemy
45	40		fire, joined the trapped men, and provided suppressing fire to
46	41		enable them to escape; then, as he made his own escape, he
47	42		discovered one of the Marines wounded in the road, and, with enemy
48	43		rounds thudding all around him, he grabbed his wounded comrade by
49	44		his body armor and dragged him 50 yards to safety; he then returned
50	45		to the battle until the last enemy insurgent was killed; and
51	46		WHEREAS, Chief Kyle's bravery that day earned him one of his
52	47		five Bronze Stars with Valor, and he also received two Silver Stars
53	48		along with many other decorations; he was shot twice and survived
54	49		six IED explosions, and by the time he left the navy to return to his
55	50		family in Texas in 2009, he was credited with the highest number of
56	51		confirmed kills in U.S. military history; and
57	52		WHEREAS, Chief Kyle continued to distinguish himself in
58	53		civilian life, running a security training company and publishing a
59	54		best-selling combat memoir, which inspired an award-winning motion
60	55		picture; he worked with the FITCO Cares Foundation to provide
61	56		support to disabled veterans, and, tragically, he died while trying
62	57		to help another veteran; such was the respect and admiration he had
63	58		earned from his fellow Texans that his funeral procession from
64	59		Midlothian to Austin stretched for more than 200 miles, one of the
65	60		longest memorial processions in American history; and
66	61		WHEREAS, Chris Kyle repeatedly risked his life to save the
67	62		lives of his fellow soldiers and to advance their mission, and for
68	63		his remarkable heroism he is most assuredly deserving of this
69	64		state's supreme military award; now, therefore, be it
70	65		RESOLVED, That the 84th Legislature of the State of Texas
71	66		hereby direct the governor of the State of Texas to posthumously
72	67		award the Texas Legislative Medal of Honor to Christopher Scott
73	68		Kyle in recognition of his valiant service during Operation Iraqi
74	69		Freedom.
75		-	* * * * *
	70	+	Wray Geren Wray Geren
	71	+	Wray Geren
	72	+	Flynn Blanco Flynn Blanco
	73	+	Flynn Blanco
	74	+	Miller of Fort Bend Crownover Miller of Fort Bend Crownover
	75	+	Miller of Fort Bend Crownover
	76	+	Kacal Minjarez Kacal Minjarez
	77	+	Kacal Minjarez
	78	+	Paul Price Paul Price
	79	+	Paul Price
	80	+	Shaheen Spitzer Shaheen Spitzer
	81	+	Shaheen Spitzer
	82	+	Thompson of Brazoria White of Tyler Thompson of Brazoria White of Tyler
	83	+	Thompson of Brazoria White of Tyler
	84	+	Zerwas Zerwas
	85	+	Zerwas
	86	+	______________________________ ______________________________
	87	+	President of the Senate Speaker of the House
	88	+	I certify that H.C.R. No. 85 was adopted by the House on May
	89	+	12, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 147, Nays 0, 1 present, not
	90	+	voting.
	91	+	______________________________
	92	+	Chief Clerk of the House
	93	+	I certify that H.C.R. No. 85 was adopted by the Senate on May
	94	+	26, 2015, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.
	95	+	______________________________
	96	+	Secretary of the Senate
	97	+	APPROVED: __________________
	98	+	Date
	99	+	__________________
	100	+	Governor
	101	+
	102	+	Wray Geren
	103	+
	104	+	Flynn Blanco
	105	+
	106	+	Miller of Fort Bend Crownover
	107	+
	108	+	Kacal Minjarez
	109	+
	110	+	Paul Price
	111	+
	112	+	Shaheen Spitzer
	113	+
	114	+	Thompson of Brazoria White of Tyler
	115	+
	116	+	Zerwas