[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 106 (Thursday, June 17, 2021)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4621-S4622]
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-20. A concurrent resolution adopted by the Legislature 
     of the State of Louisiana urging the United States Congress 
     and the Louisiana congressional delegation to take such 
     actions as are necessary to rename the Department of Veterans 
     Affairs' Lafayette Community Based Outpatient Clinic in honor 
     of Rodney C. Hamilton Sr.; to the Committee on Veterans' 
     Affairs.

                  Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 46

       Whereas, Rodney Carroll Hamilton Sr. was born in Fort 
     Worth, Texas, on March 24, 1932, and his family moved to 
     Lafayette, Louisiana, in the summer of 1948; and
       Whereas, God, family, country, and community were his 
     strong interests; and
       Whereas, in 1949, he joined the Marine Reserve at age 
     seventeen while attending Lafayette High School at the urging 
     of his football coach, Lou Campbell; and
       Whereas, Rodney served our country during the Korean War, 
     was wounded in combat in September 1951, and was awarded the 
     Purple Heart; and
       Whereas, he loved the United States Marine Corps and was 
     proud of all Marines who served their country; and
       Whereas, his military involvement included being a member 
     of the Marine Corps League, the Military Order of the Purple 
     Heart, and the Veteran's Action Coalition of Southwest 
     Louisiana where he served as Founder and Chairman Emeritus; 
     and
       Whereas, he served as a full-time elected official in the 
     Lafayette city government from 1968 through 1972 as a Trustee 
     of Public Property; and
       Whereas, Rodney made numerous contributions to help make 
     Lafayette a better place

[[Page S4622]]

     including leading efforts to secure and build the United 
     States Department of Veterans Affairs' Lafayette Community 
     Based Outpatient Clinic, which opened in 2016; and
       Whereas, due to Rodney's dedication in realizing the 
     veterans clinic in Lafayette, the street there was named in 
     his honor and now bears signs saying, ``Veterans Way, 
     Honorary Rodney Hamilton''; and
       Whereas, Rodney Carroll Hamilton Sr. passed away at the age 
     of eighty-eight on November 30, 2020. Therefore, be it
       Resolved that the Legislature of Louisiana hereby 
     memorializes the Louisiana congressional delegation and the 
     United States Congress to take such actions as are necessary 
     to rename the United States Department of Veterans Affairs' 
     Lafayette Community Based Outpatient Clinic in honor of 
     Rodney C. Hamilton Sr., and be it further
       Resolved, That a copy of this Resolution shall be 
     transmitted to the secretary of the United States Senate, the 
     clerk of the United States House of Representatives, and to 
     each member of the Louisiana delegation to the United States 
     Congress.
                                  ____

       POM-21. A concurrent resolution adopted by the Legislature 
     of the State of West Virginia urging the United States 
     Congress to extend federal tax incentives to participants in 
     Jumpstart Savings programs that are similar to those that are 
     currently provided to participants in College Savings plans; 
     to the Committee on Finance.

                     House Concurrent Resolution 24

       Whereas, The economy of the United States is experiencing 
     increased demands for highly trained, skilled tradespeople to 
     fill jobs in the construction, welding, and other vocational 
     sectors; and
       Whereas, In the United States, there are nearly half a 
     million more jobs available in the skilled trades than 
     workers with the skills to fill them; and
       Whereas, The number of available jobs in the skilled trades 
     is anticipated to rise to two million over the next decade; 
     and
       Whereas, A traditional college education is one path to 
     success, but not the only path, especially in light of the 
     increasing costs of a traditional four-year college degree 
     and the growing demand for skilled labor; and
       Whereas, Encouraging students and their families to invest 
     in alternative forms of postsecondary skills could help 
     reshape our nation's future workforce; and
       Whereas, Providing the next generation the ability to save 
     money for the future costs of tools, equipment, and business 
     expenses will make it easier to enter a vocation, trade, or 
     start a small business in the skilled trades industry; and
       Whereas, The West Virginia Legislature has adopted 
     legislation authorizing the West Virginia Jumpstart Savings 
     Program, which creates several tax incentives to help program 
     participants save money, by allowing an income tax deduction 
     for contributions to a Jumpstart Savings account, by 
     providing businesses with a non-refundable state tax credit 
     for matching an employee's own contribution to his or her 
     account each year; and
       Whereas, The Jumpstart Savings Program will allow 
     individuals to roll 529 College Savings plan funds over to a 
     Jumpstart Savings account without facing state income tax 
     penalties; and
       Whereas, West Virginia's Jumpstart Savings Program could be 
     a model for other states to invest in the future 
     entrepreneurship and small business trade industries in our 
     nation, and Congress should extend federal tax benefits to 
     such programs; therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Legislature of West Virginia:
       That Congress is urged to provide tax benefits to 
     participants in Jumpstart Savings programs that are similar 
     to those currently provided to participants in College 
     Savings plans pursuant to 26 U.S.C. 529; and, be it further
       Resolved, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates is 
     hereby directed to forward a copy of this resolution, along 
     with a copy of the Jumpstart Savings Act, to the President 
     and Secretary of the United States Senate, to the Speaker and 
     Clerk of the United States House of Representatives, and to 
     members of West Virginia's congressional delegation.

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