[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 48 (Wednesday, April 7, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3918-S3919]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        PETITIONS AND MEMORIALS

       POM-378. A resolution from the Wisconsin Commercial Ports 
     Association relative to funding for lock and dam 
     infrastructure on the Mississippi and Illinois Rivers; to the 
     Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
       POM-379. A resolution adopted by the Board of Commissioners 
     of Ferry County of the State of Washington relative to 
     federal lands in Ferry County, Washington; to the Committee 
     on Energy and Natural Resources.
       POM-380. A resolution adopted by the Council of the City of 
     Warrensville Heights of the State of Ohio relative to the 
     Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act of 2003 and The 
     Retirement Income Security Act of 1974; to the Committee on 
     Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
       POM-381. A resolution adopted by the Council of the City of 
     Mayfield Heights of the State of Ohio relative to the Breast 
     Cancer Protection Act of 2003; to the Committee on Health, 
     Education, Labor, and Pensions.
       POM-382. A resolution adopted by the Council of the City of 
     Brook Park of the State of Ohio relative to the Breast Cancer 
     Patient Protection Act of 2003; to the Committee on Health, 
     Education, Labor, and Pensions.
       POM-383. A resolution adopted by the Council of the City of 
     Mayfield Village of the State of Ohio relative to the Breast 
     Cancer Patient Protection Act of 2003; to the Committee on 
     Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
       POM-384. A resolution adopted by the Board of Trustees of 
     the Village of Oak Park of the County of Cook of the State of 
     Illinois relative to the Patriot Act; to the Committee on the 
     Judiciary.
       POM-385. A resolution adopted by the Senate of the 
     Legislature of the State of Michigan relative to the Healthy 
     Marriage Initiative; to the Committee on the Judiciary.

                       Senate Resolution No. 215

       Whereas, marriage, one of our most fundamental 
     institutions, strengthens our society when two people enter a 
     mutual, lifelong agreement to support each other in sickness, 
     difficult financial times, and old age; and
       Whereas, marriage enriches the couple, their children, and 
     the community around them by providing opportunities to 
     extend love, support, understanding, and mutual cooperation; 
     and
       Whereas, couples and children blessed with healthy 
     marriages tend to engage in less risky behavior, enjoy better 
     physical and mental health, be more financially secure, and 
     attain higher levels of education and employment; and
       Whereas, President George W. Bush has announced a Healthy 
     Marriage Initiative to highlight programs teaching marriage 
     skills and education, promote marriage mentoring and 
     enrichment programs, reduce disincentives to marriage, and 
     promote the value of marriage to our culture; and
       Whereas, because the President launched the Health Marriage 
     Initiative, the Michigan House of Representatives and the 
     Michigan Senate appropriated $750,000 to fund a marriage 
     initiative in Michigan; and
       Whereas, marriage is both a personal, private relationship 
     and a public commitment licensed by the state of Michigan; 
     and
       Whereas, many of the expenditures by the state are closely 
     tied to people harmed by failed or never formed marriages, 
     and any long-term strategy for reducing dependency on state 
     social services and ensuring economic growth must include a 
     strategy for encouraging healthy marriages; and
       Whereas, February 7-14, 2004, is being celebrated 
     throughout the nation as Marriage Week USA; now, therefore, 
     be it
       Resolved by the Senate, That we hereby call on the 
     President of the United States, elected officials at every 
     level, and citizens of all walks of life to determine during 
     Marriage Week USA, and particularly on Valentine's Day, to 
     consider ways they can strengthen their own marriages and 
     support the marriages of others throughout the state of

[[Page S3919]]

     Michigan and across the country; and be it further
       Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to 
     the President of the United States, the President of the 
     United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House 
     of Representatives, and the members of the Michigan 
     congressional delegation.
                                  ____

       POM-386. A resolution adopted by the House of 
     Representatives of the Legislature of the State of Michigan 
     relative to the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act; to 
     the Committee on the Judiciary.

                        House Resolution No. 184

       Whereas, citizens have a right, protected by the Second 
     Amendment to the United States Constitution, to keep and bear 
     arms; and
       Whereas, lawsuits have been commenced against 
     manufacturers, distributors, dealers, and importers of 
     firearms that operate as designed and intended. These 
     lawsuits seek monetary damages and other relief for the harm 
     caused by the misuse of firearms by third parties; including 
     criminals; and
       Whereas, the manufacture, importation, possession, sale, 
     and use of firearms and ammunition in the United States are 
     heavily regulated by federal, state and local laws. Such 
     federal laws include the Gun Control Act of 1968, the 
     National Firearms Act, and the Arms Export Control Act; and
       Whereas, businesses in the United States that are engaged 
     in interstate and foreign commerce through the lawful design, 
     manufacture, marketing, distribution, importation, or sale to 
     the public of firearms or ammunition that has been shipped or 
     transported in interstate or foreign commerce are not, and 
     should not, be liable for the harm caused by those who 
     criminally or unlawfully misuse firearm products or 
     ammunition products that function as designed and intended; 
     and
       Whereas, the possibility of imposing liability on an entire 
     industry for harm that is solely caused by others in an abuse 
     of the legal system, erodes public confidence in our nation's 
     laws, threatens the diminution of a basic constitutional 
     right and civil liberty, invites the disassembly and 
     destabilization of other industries and economic sectors 
     lawfully competing in the free enterprise system of the 
     United States, and constitutes a reasonable burden on 
     interstate and foreign commerce of the United States; and
       Whereas, the purpose of S. 659, the Protection of Lawful 
     Commerce in Arms Act, is to prohibit causes of action against 
     manufacturers, distributors, dealers, and importers of 
     firearms or ammunition products for the harm caused by the 
     criminal or unlawful misuse of firearm products or ammunition 
     products by others when the product functioned as designed 
     and intended; and
       Whereas, S. 659 will also preserve a citizen's access to a 
     supply of firearms and ammunition for all lawful purposes, 
     including hunting, self-defense, collecting, and competitive 
     or recreational shooting. It will also guarantee a citizen's 
     rights, privileges, and immunities, as applied to the states, 
     under the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States 
     Constitution, pursuant to section 5 of that Amendment. The 
     Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act will prevent the 
     use of such lawsuits to impose unreasonable burdens on 
     interstate and foreign commerce; and
       Whereas, this legislation is intended to protect the right, 
     under the First Amendment to the Constitution, of 
     manufacturers, distributors, dealers, and importers of 
     firearms or ammunition products, and trade associations, to 
     speak freely, to assemble peaceably, and to petition the 
     government for a redress of their grievances; now, therefore, 
     be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives, That we 
     memorialize the Congress of the United States to enact S. 
     659, the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act; and be it 
     further
       Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to 
     the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the 
     United States House of Representatives, and the members of 
     the Michigan congressional delegation.

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