| 1 | 1 | | 86R8965 BK-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Oliverson H.C.R. No. 75 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | CONCURRENT RESOLUTION |
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| 6 | 6 | | WHEREAS, Investing in emergency preparedness is critical to |
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| 7 | 7 | | lessening the economic and human impact of disasters, and the first |
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| 8 | 8 | | week of September is being set aside as Resiliency Week to |
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| 9 | 9 | | highlight the importance of advance planning in coping with such |
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| 10 | 10 | | events; and |
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| 11 | 11 | | WHEREAS, Since 1908, natural disasters in the United States |
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| 12 | 12 | | have inflicted a total of more than $1 trillion in damage; they have |
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| 13 | 13 | | affected local and state economies in lost payrolls, lost sales and |
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| 14 | 14 | | income tax, and delayed economic recovery; of all the small |
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| 15 | 15 | | businesses impacted by natural disasters, it is estimated that 25 |
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| 16 | 16 | | percent never reopened their doors; and |
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| 17 | 17 | | WHEREAS, Hazard mitigation is the effort to reduce the loss |
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| 18 | 18 | | of life and property from disasters, and it is most effective when |
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| 19 | 19 | | implemented under a comprehensive, long-term mitigation plan; and |
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| 20 | 20 | | WHEREAS, The Pre-Disaster Mitigation Grant Program |
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| 21 | 21 | | administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency is designed |
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| 22 | 22 | | to assist states and local communities in developing such plans; |
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| 23 | 23 | | the Disaster Recovery Reform Act, a piece of federal legislation |
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| 24 | 24 | | recently signed into law, makes available new funding for states |
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| 25 | 25 | | and communities to undertake pre-disaster mitigation measures and |
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| 26 | 26 | | creates new incentives for states to prioritize resiliency; and |
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| 27 | 27 | | WHEREAS, According to a FEMA-commissioned study conducted by |
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| 28 | 28 | | the National Institute of Building Sciences, every dollar spent on |
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| 29 | 29 | | hazard mitigation provides the nation with $6 in future benefits; |
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| 30 | 30 | | effective pre-disaster mitigation reduces the demand for relief |
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| 31 | 31 | | services provided by rescue and recovery teams, food banks and |
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| 32 | 32 | | homeless shelters, and other organizations, and it helps break the |
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| 33 | 33 | | cycle of vulnerability that can leave communities prone to future |
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| 34 | 34 | | hazards; and |
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| 35 | 35 | | WHEREAS, The task of building strong, secure, and resilient |
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| 36 | 36 | | communities is essential to the long-term prosperity of the Lone |
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| 37 | 37 | | Star State, and Resiliency Week in September serves to remind us of |
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| 38 | 38 | | the need to take action now to ensure that the infrastructure of our |
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| 39 | 39 | | state is ready for whatever tomorrow may bring; now, therefore, be |
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| 40 | 40 | | it |
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| 41 | 41 | | RESOLVED, That the 86th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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| 42 | 42 | | hereby designate the first week of September as Resiliency Week; |
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| 43 | 43 | | and, be it further |
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| 44 | 44 | | RESOLVED, That, in accordance with the provisions of Section |
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| 45 | 45 | | 391.004(d), Government Code, this designation remain in effect |
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| 46 | 46 | | until the 10th anniversary of the date that this resolution is |
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| 47 | 47 | | finally passed by the legislature. |
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