[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 63 (Tuesday, May 7, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3157-S3158]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                        PETITIONS AND MEMORIALS

  The following petitions and memorials were laid before the Senate and 
were referred or ordered to lie on the table as indicated:

       POM-9. A concurrent resolution adopted by the General 
     Assembly of the State of Ohio urging Congress to maintain 
     operation of the 179th Airlift Wing at Mansfield-Lahm 
     Regional Airport in Mansfield, Ohio; to the Committee on 
     Armed Services.

                   House Concurrent Resolution No. 4

       Whereas, The United States Air Force 179th Airlift Wing is 
     a military airlift organization assigned to the Ohio Air 
     National Guard and stationed at Mansfield-Lahm Regional 
     Airport; and
       Whereas, Due to its superior record, the 179th Airlift Wing 
     received a mission to operate the C-27J Spartan aircraft, a 
     twin turboprop aircraft with short takeoff and landing 
     capabilities, ideal for the nation's current military needs 
     and for providing rapid response support for homeland 
     emergencies; and
       Whereas, The United States Air Force has published proposed 
     personnel actions associated with plans to retire more than 
     300 aircraft nationwide, including the C-27J; and
       Whereas, The United States Air Force has plans to move 
     personnel positions among states to mitigate the impact of 
     the reductions; and
       Whereas, The United States Air National Guard, including 
     the 179th Airlift Wing, is responsible for homeland defense, 
     and the C-27J is an important tool in accomplishing this 
     mission; and
       Whereas, The 179th Airlift Wing has made United States Air 
     National Guard history by deploying the C-27J in Afghanistan 
     in Operation Enduring Freedom; and
       Whereas, Closing the Air National Guard Station at 
     Mansfield-Lahm, relocating its personnel, and diverting or 
     retiring its C-27J aircraft would create discontinuity and 
     weaken national defense and homeland disaster readiness; now 
     therefore be it
       Resolved, That the Congress of the United States is urged 
     to maintain operation of the 179th Airlift Wing at Mansfield-
     Lahm Regional Airport to ensure Ohio and our nation will 
     continue to benefit from the unique experience and 
     capabilities of its personnel and the region; and be it 
     further
       Resolved, That the Clerk of the House of Representatives 
     transmit duly authenticated copies of this resolution to the 
     President of the United States, to the President Pro Tempore 
     and Secretary of the United States Senate, to the Speaker and 
     the Clerk of the United States House of Representatives, to 
     the members of the Ohio Congressional delegation, and to the 
     news media of Ohio.
                                  ____

       POM-10. A joint memorial adopted by the Legislature of the 
     State of New Mexico urging Congress to reauthorize the Water 
     Resources Development Act of 2007, section 5056, and to 
     appropriate sufficient funds to carry out the purposes of the 
     act; to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.

                       House Joint Memorial No. 7

       Whereas, the Rio Grande basin spans the territory of three 
     states, Colorado, New Mexico and Texas, and twenty-two Native 
     American tribes and pueblos and is one of the most rapidly 
     growing areas in the United States; and
       Whereas, the Rio Grande runs the entire length of New 
     Mexico, for more than four hundred fifty river-miles, and 
     major tributaries to the Rio Grande are located in New 
     Mexico, including the Pecos river, the Rio Chama, the Jemez 
     river and the Rio Puerco, and many other smaller tributaries 
     too numerous to list; and
       Whereas, the Rio Grande mainstem and tributaries provide a 
     renewable water supply for irrigation and drinking water and 
     support nationally significant ecosystems for fish and 
     wildlife and renowned tourism destinations; and
       Whereas, the water quality of the Rio Grande and the Pecos 
     river and other tributaries is impaired, in part, by high 
     concentrations of dissolved salts and elevated levels of 
     bacteria that can limit available water supply for municipal 
     and agricultural use; and
       Whereas, the Rio Grande and Pecos watersheds in New Mexico 
     have the highest total number of New Mexico species of 
     greatest conservation need across all taxa and are predicted 
     to contain some of the greatest diversity of aquatic species 
     of greatest conservation need; and
       Whereas, water quality, supply, conveyance and delivery; 
     ecosystem degradation; and flooding are major issues in the 
     Rio Grande basin in New Mexico, and state and local funding 
     to address these issues is inadequate; and
       Whereas, while the United States army corps of engineers 
     has nationwide watershed assessment and construction 
     authorities to study problems, recommend solutions and 
     construct projects to restore the health of rivers, all Rio 
     Grande basin projects must compete nationally for these 
     limited federal funds; and
       Whereas, the United States congress and president of the 
     United States established a Rio Grande basin-specific funding 
     authority in the Water Resource Development Act of 2007 under 
     Section 5056, called the Rio Grande environmental management 
     program, which authorized federal funding of up to fifteen 
     million dollars ($15,000,000) annually for the Rio Grande 
     mainstem and tributaries and directed the secretary of the 
     army to rehabilitate and enhance fish and wildlife habitat in 
     partnership with local sponsors and to implement long-term 
     monitoring, data collection and analysis, applied research 
     and adaptive management; and
       Whereas, the Rio Grande environmental management program 
     authority expired in September 2011 before any funds could be 
     appropriated to carry out the program, and congress is 
     considering draft language for the next water resource 
     development act; Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Legislature of the State of New Mexico that 
     congress be requested to reauthorize Section 5056 of the 
     Water Resource Development Act of 2007 and to appropriate 
     sufficient funds to carry out work related to that 
     legislation; and be it further
       Resolved that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the 
     president of the United States, the speaker of the United 
     States house of representatives, the president of the United 
     States senate, the members of the New Mexico congressional 
     delegation, the commanding general of the United States army 
     corps of engineers, the assistant secretary of the army 
     (civil works), the district commander of the United States 
     army corps of engineers, Albuquerque district, and the chair 
     of the president's council on environmental quality.
                                  ____

       POM-11. A joint memorial adopted by the Legislature of the 
     State of New Mexico requesting Congress to continue funding 
     its appropriate share of the costs associated with the 
     benefits received by Indian tribes and the United States, as 
     trustee, from settling Indian water rights disputes; to the 
     Committee on Indian Affairs.

                      House Joint Memorial No. 22

       Whereas, the United States government has a trust 
     responsibility to American Indians established through 
     treaties and agreements with Indian tribes and affirmed by 
     the United States supreme court; and
       Whereas, Indian tribes gave up lands in return for goods, 
     money and other resources promised by the United States 
     government; and
       Whereas, in exchange for taking Indian land and Indian 
     resources, the United States made binding legal agreements 
     that tribes would exercise sovereign authority within their 
     reservation boundaries and be funded in perpetuity by the 
     United States government; and
       Whereas, pursuant to the trust responsibility, the United 
     States has a legal obligation to protect Indian tribes' 
     assets and provide needed services to Indian people; and
       Whereas, the United States supreme court, in Winters v. 
     United States, established that, when the United States 
     government established reservations for Indian tribes, it 
     also, by implication, reserved appurtenant water, then 
     unappropriated, to the extent needed to satisfy both present 
     and future needs of the reservations; and
       Whereas, the United States government has supported 
     settlement negotiations that are consistent with its trust 
     responsibilities to Indian tribes in the Aamodt, Taos and 
     Navajo Nation water rights settlements; and
       Whereas, the Aamodt, Taos and Navajo Nation water rights 
     settlements contain appropriate funding and cost-sharing by 
     the United States government proportionate to the benefits 
     received by all parties benefiting from the settlements; and
       Whereas, continuing to provide adequate funding for pending 
     Indian water rights disputes in the same cost-sharing 
     proportions as past Indian water rights settlements provides 
     certainty for all stakeholders; and
       Whereas, the New Mexico legislature created the Indian 
     water rights settlement fund to aid the implementation of the 
     state's portion of Indian water rights settlements based on 
     the cost-sharing proportions of the Aamodt, Taos and Navajo 
     Nation water rights settlements; and
       Whereas, the fund is used to pay the state's portion of the 
     cost necessary to implement Indian water rights settlements 
     approved by the legislature and the United States congress; 
     and
       Whereas, there are still pending Indian water rights 
     disputes in New Mexico that need to be settled to satisfy 
     both present and future water needs of the Indian tribes, 
     nations and pueblos of New Mexico; and
       Whereas, the New Mexico legislature requires continued full 
     funding and cost-sharing by the United States government to 
     reach settlements in the pending Indian water rights disputes 
     in New Mexico; now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Legislature of the State of New Mexico that 
     congress be requested to provide full funding to cover the 
     costs associated with the benefits received by Indian tribes 
     and the United States, as trustee, in the same cost-sharing 
     proportions as the Aamodt, Taos and Navajo Nation water 
     rights settlements; and be it further
       Resolved that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the 
     speaker of the United States house of representatives, the 
     president pro tempore of the United States senate, the New 
     Mexico congressional delegation, the assistant secretary for 
     Indian affairs of the department of the interior and the 
     state engineer.
                                  ____

       POM-12. A joint memorial adopted by the Legislature of the 
     State of New Mexico requesting reauthorization of the Federal 
     Violence Against Women Act 1994; to the Committee on the 
     Judiciary.

[[Page S3158]]

                      House Joint Memorial No. 34

       Whereas, the federal Violence Against Women Act of 1994 
     recognizes the insidious and pervasive nature of domestic 
     violence, dating violence, sexual assault and stalking and 
     created comprehensive, effective cost-saving responses to 
     these crimes; and
       Whereas, domestic violence and sexual assault affect 
     millions of Americans every year regardless of their age, 
     economic status, race, religion or education; and
       Whereas, nearly one in four women is beaten or raped by a 
     partner during adulthood, and each year approximately two 
     million three hundred thousand people are raped or physically 
     assaulted by a current or former intimate partner; and
       Whereas, New Mexico law enforcement identified twenty-one 
     thousand three hundred sixty-eight victims of domestic 
     violence in 2011 and six thousand two hundred nineteen 
     children who were present and witnessed domestic violence; 
     and
       Whereas, New Mexico receives approximately one million two 
     hundred thousand dollars ($1,200,000) in funding for domestic 
     violence, teen dating violence, sexual assault and stalking 
     program services through the Violence Against Women Act; and
       Whereas, it has been more than two years since the Violence 
     Against Women Act expired; Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate of the State of New Mexico that it 
     encourage the New Mexico congressional delegation in 
     Washington, D.C., to immediately vote in favor of 
     reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 in a 
     bipartisan manner to protect all victims of intimate partner 
     violence; and be it further
       Resolved that copies of this memorial be transmitted to 
     each member of the New Mexico congressional delegation and to 
     the chief clerks of the United States Senate and the United 
     States House of Representatives.
                                  ____

       POM-13. A joint resolution adopted by the General Assembly 
     of the State of Tennessee urging the United States Congress 
     to adopt a balanced budget; to the Committee on the 
     Judiciary.

                       Senate Joint Resolution 38

       Whereas, with each passing year our nation falls further 
     into debt as federal government expenditures repeatedly 
     exceed available revenue; and
       Whereas, the annual federal budget has risen to 
     unprecedented levels, demonstrating an unwillingness or 
     inability of both the Legislative and Executive branches of 
     federal government to control the federal debt; and
       Whereas, knowledgeable planning and fiscal prudence require 
     that the budget reflect all federal spending and that the 
     budget be in balance; and
       Whereas, fiscal discipline is a powerful means for 
     strengthening our nation; with less of America's future 
     financial resources channeled into servicing the national 
     debt, more of our tax dollars would be available for public 
     endeavors that reflect our national priorities, such as 
     education, health, the security of our nation, and the 
     creation of jobs; and
       Whereas, Thomas Jefferson recognized the importance of a 
     balanced budget when he wrote: ``The question whether one 
     generation has the right to bind another by the deficit it 
     imposes is a question of such consequence as to place it 
     among the fundamental principles of government. We should 
     consider ourselves unauthorized to saddle posterity with our 
     debts, and morally bound to pay for them ourselves.''; and
       Whereas, state legislatures overwhelmingly recognize the 
     necessity of maintaining a balanced budget; whether through 
     constitutional requirement or by statute, forty-nine states 
     require a balanced budget; and
       Whereas, the federal government's unlimited ability to 
     borrow involves decisions of such magnitude, with such 
     potentially profound consequences for the nation and its 
     people, today and in the future, that it is of vital 
     importance to the future of the United States of America that 
     a balanced budget be adopted on an annual basis; now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate of the One Hundred Eighth General 
     Assembly of the State of Tennessee, the House of 
     Representatives concurring, that we hereby strongly urge the 
     United States Congress to adopt a balanced federal budget on 
     an annual basis, and be it further
       Resolved, that an enrolled copy of this resolution be 
     transmitted to the President and the Secretary of the United 
     States Senate, the Speaker and the Clerk of the United States 
     House of Representatives, and each member of Tennessee's 
     Congressional delegation.
                                  ____

       POM-14. A resolution adopted by the Municipal Legislature 
     of Toa Alta, Puerto Rico relative to urging the President and 
     the Congress of the United States of America to act on the 
     results from the November 6, 2012 plebiscite by the 
     Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, which would assure democratic 
     justice for 3.7 million U.S. citizens; to the Committee on 
     Energy and Natural Resources.
       POM-15. A resolution adopted by the Senate of the 
     Legislature of the Northern Marianas Commonwealth requesting 
     the Governor of the North Marinas Islands appoint a special 
     representative for 902 Talks to discuss matters that are 
     currently affecting the relationship between the Northern 
     Mariana Islands and the United States; and for other 
     purposes; to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.
       POM-16. A resolution adopted by the Conservation Federation 
     of Missouri relative to appropriating funds for the North 
     American Wetlands Conservation Act; to the Committee on 
     Environment and Public Works.
       POM-17. A resolution adopted by the Council of the City of 
     Monterey, California relative to supporting ratification of 
     the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All forms 
     of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW); to the Committee on 
     Foreign Relations.
       POM-18. A resolution adopted by the Senate of the 
     Legislature of the Northern Marianas Commonwealth requesting 
     the United States Congress to officially acknowledge the 
     Chamorro and Carolinian people of the Commonwealth of the 
     Northern Mariana Islands as Native Americans and to include 
     the Chamorro and Carolinian people in definitions set forth 
     under 25 U.S.C. Chapter 14, Subchapter II, Indian Self-
     Determination and Education Assistance, Section 450(b)(e); to 
     the Committee on Indian Affairs.

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