[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 57 (Wednesday, March 29, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1049-S1051]
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-5. A joint resolution adopted by the Legislature of the 
     State of Alaska supporting oil and gas leasing and 
     development within the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska; 
     to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

                     House Joint Resolution No. 34

       Whereas, in 1923, President Warren G. Harding issued an 
     Executive Order establishing Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 4 on 
     the North Slope region to provide a potential supply of oil 
     for the United States Navy; and
       Whereas 42 U.S.C. 6501 (Naval Petroleum Reserves Production 
     Act of 1976) redesignated Naval Petroleum Reserve No. 4 as 
     the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska and transferred 
     responsibility for its administration to the Secretary of the 
     Interior; and
       Whereas the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska 
     encompasses 23,500,000 acres, with boundaries extending south 
     from Icy Cape to the drainage divide of the Brooks Range, 
     then following the divide eastward to 156 degrees west 
     longitude, then north to the Colville River, and following 
     the Colville River downstream to its mouth; and
       Whereas the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska falls 
     entirely within the boundary of the North Slope Borough and 
     includes the communities of Atqasuk, Nuiqsut, Utqiagvik, and 
     Wainwright; and
       Whereas, in 2017, the United States Geological Survey 
     estimated there to be 8,700,000,000 barrels of recoverable 
     oil and 25,000,000,000,000 cubic feet of recoverable gas 
     reserves in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska; and
       Whereas the 2020 National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska 
     Integrated Activity Plan and Environmental Impact Statement 
     estimates potential annual government revenue, including 
     local, state, and federal taxes and royalties, of 
     $730,000,000 to $4,750,000,000 from oil and gas development 
     in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska; and
       Whereas the 2020 National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska 
     Integrated Activity Plan and Environmental Impact Statement 
     estimates that the exploration, development, and production 
     of oil and gas in the reserve could generate 3,600 direct 
     jobs and 2,750 indirect jobs annually over a period of 30 
     years; and
       Whereas state royalties from oil and gas development in the 
     National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska are allocated to the 
     National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska Impact Mitigation Fund, 
     which is used to provide the local communities of Anaktuvuk 
     Pass, Atqasuk, Nuiqsut, Wainwright, Utqiagvik, and the North 
     Slope Borough with grants to mitigate impacts related to oil 
     and gas development; and
       Whereas, in January of 2022, the Department of the Interior 
     took action that would effectively revert management of the 
     National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska to the 2013 National 
     Petroleum Reserve in Alaska Integrated Activity Plan, 
     removing 7,000,000 acres of the National Petroleum Reserve in 
     Alaska from potential oil and gas development; and
       Whereas the 2020 National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska 
     Integrated Activity Plan was developed in partnership with 
     the North Slope Borough and in consultation with North Slope 
     tribes and Alaska Native corporations and it included 
     provisions that would have ensured future economic 
     development opportunities for the North Slope region, allowed 
     for community infrastructure needs to be considered in the 
     National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, and required that areas 
     identified by local and Alaska Native entities be excluded 
     from future leasing; and
       Whereas the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation, the Inupiat 
     Community of the Arctic Slope, and the North Slope Borough 
     are all united in opposition to the Department of the 
     Interior's reversion from the 2020 National Petroleum Reserve 
     in Alaska Integrated Activity Plan to the 2013 National 
     Petroleum Reserve in Alaska Integrated Activity Plan and have 
     expressed concern that this reversion diminishes Alaska 
     Native self-determination by ignoring the needs, concerns, 
     and input of the local people who live, work, and subsist in 
     and around the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska; and
       Whereas oil and gas development in the National Petroleum 
     Reserve in Alaska has the potential to extend the life of the 
     Trans Alaska Pipeline System and increase throughput, which 
     has declined from a peak of 2,033,000 average barrels of oil 
     a day in 1988 to 477,800 average barrels of oil a day in 
     2021; and
       Whereas the failure of the Department of the Interior to 
     consult with the Inupiat Community of the Arctic Slope and 
     the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation before taking sweeping 
     action violates Executive Order 13175: Consultation and 
     Coordination with Indian Tribal Governments; and
       Whereas oil and gas development in the National Petroleum 
     Reserve in Alaska would strengthen national security and 
     provide long-lasting benefits to the national economy by 
     creating thousands of jobs nationwide, generating billions of 
     dollars in government revenue, providing affordable energy to 
     American consumers, and decreasing dependence on foreign 
     energy; and
       Whereas safe and responsible oil and gas exploration, 
     development, and production has been demonstrated by over 50 
     years of activity on the North Slope region without adverse 
     effects on the environment or wildlife populations; be it
       Resolved, That the Alaska State Legislature urges the 
     United States Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land 
     Management, to maximize the area available for oil and gas 
     leasing and development within the National Petroleum Reserve 
     in Alaska while conserving and protecting valued fish, 
     wildlife, subsistence, and cultural resources; and be it 
     further
       Resolved, That the Alaska State Legislature urges the 
     United States Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land 
     Management, when considering management activities related to 
     the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, to take into 
     account the long history of safe and responsible oil and gas 
     development on the North Slope region and the enormous 
     benefits that development of oil and gas resources in the 
     National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska would bring to local 
     communities, tribal governments, the state, and the nation.
       Copies of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable 
     Joseph R. Biden, President of the United States; the 
     Honorable Kamala D. Harris, Vice President of the United 
     States and President of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Deb 
     Haaland, United States Secretary of the Interior; the 
     Honorable Tracy Stone-Manning, Director, Bureau of Land 
     Management, U.S. Department of the Interior; Thomas Heinlein, 
     Acting Alaska State Director, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. 
     Department of the Interior; and the Honorable Lisa Murkowski 
     and the Honorable Dan Sullivan, U.S. Senators, and the U.S. 
     Representative for Alaska, members of the Alaska delegation 
     in Congress.
                                  ____

       POM-6. A joint resolution adopted by the Legislature of the 
     State of Alaska urging the United States Congress to repeal 
     the Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension 
     Offset of the Social Security Act; to the Committee on 
     Finance.

                     Senate Joint Resolution No. 12

       Whereas public employees, while employed by the State of 
     Alaska or a political subdivision of the state that 
     participates in the Public Employees' Retirement System of 
     Alaska, are ineligible by law to earn Social Security 
     credits; and
       Whereas teachers, while employed by a school district that 
     participates in the Teachers' Retirement System of Alaska, 
     are ineligible by law to earn Social Security credits; and
       Whereas provisions of the Social Security Act known as the 
     Windfall Elimination Provision and the Government Pension 
     Offset reduce the amount of social security benefits public 
     employees and teachers might otherwise receive if they 
     qualify for Social Security benefits; and
       Whereas the Windfall Elimination Provision substantially 
     reduces Social Security benefits earned by public employees 
     and teachers; and
       Whereas, in 2021, a Social Security benefit reduction by 
     the Windfall Elimination Provision may be as much as $498 a 
     month for each recipient; and
       Whereas the Government Pension Offset reduces Social 
     Security spousal and survivor benefits for recipients of 
     Social Security spousal or survivor benefits who also receive 
     a benefit from a public employees' or teachers' retirement 
     system; and
       Whereas the Government Pension Offset may reduce the Social 
     Security monthly benefit payment, for a current or former 
     public employee or teacher who is eligible to receive a 
     benefit, by an amount equal to two-thirds of the amount the 
     public employee or teacher receives from a public employees' 
     or teachers' retirement system each month; and
       Whereas nothing in the relationship between the Public 
     Employees' Retirement System of Alaska, the Teachers' 
     Retirement System of Alaska, or similar public employees' or 
     teachers' retirement systems and Social Security legally or 
     financially justifies a policy of reducing the amount of 
     Social Security benefits earned by public employees or 
     teachers for military service, including civilian military 
     service, or time worked in the private sector; and
       Whereas the lowest-earning public employees and teachers 
     are disproportionately and negatively affected by the 
     Windfall Elimination Provision and the Government Pension 
     Offset; and
       Whereas public employees and teachers who reside in the 
     state are disproportionately and more negatively affected, 
     per capita, by the Windfall Elimination Provision

[[Page S1050]]

     and the Government Pension Offset, than public employees and 
     teachers who reside in any other state or territory in the 
     United States; and
       Whereas persons who are eligible to earn Social Security 
     credits for work in the private sector or in active or 
     civilian military service are deterred from becoming public 
     employees or teachers by the negative effects of the Windfall 
     Elimination Provision and the Government Pension Offset; and
       Whereas the Windfall Elimination Provision and the 
     Government Pension Offset impair the ability of state and 
     local governments to recruit and retain public school 
     teachers, police officers, firefighters, and other public 
     employees; and
       Whereas bipartisan legislation has been introduced in the 
     117th United States Congress to address the Windfall 
     Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset;
       Be it Resolved, That the Alaska State Legislature urges the 
     United States Congress to pass legislation eliminating the 
     Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset.
       Copies of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable 
     Joseph R. Biden, President of the United States; the 
     Honorable Kamala D. Harris, Vice President of the United 
     States and President of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Xavier 
     Becerra, United States Secretary of Health and Human 
     Services; the Honorable Miguel Cardona, United States 
     Secretary of Education; the Honorable Andrew Saul, 
     Commissioner of the Social Security Administration; and the 
     Honorable Lisa Murkowski and the Honorable Dan Sullivan, U.S. 
     Senators, and the U.S. Representative for Alaska, members of 
     the Alaska delegation in Congress.
                                  ____

       POM-7. A memorial adopted by the House of Representatives 
     of the State of Arizona supporting the enactment by the 
     United States Congress of the Securing America's Land from 
     Foreign Interference Act or similar legislation; to the 
     Committee on Foreign Relations.

                       House Resolution No. 2002

       Whereas, the United States Department of Agriculture 
     reports that at the end of 2020, foreign investors held an 
     interest in more than 37 million acres of United States 
     agricultural land, with China's investment increasing from 
     13,720 acres in 2010 to more than 350,000 in 2020; and
       Whereas, from 2009 to 2016, China's agricultural 
     investments in countries around the world grew substantially; 
     and
       Whereas, Chinese investments in American property could 
     provide the Chinese Communist Party with undue leverage over 
     our nation's supply chains as well as access to sensitive 
     national security information; and
       Whereas, approximately 14 states have restrictions in place 
     regarding the amount of private agricultural land that 
     foreign interests may own, but the federal government has yet 
     to enact any restrictions on foreign ownership of United 
     States real estate; and
       Whereas, as American farmers age and the amount of U.S. 
     farmland changing hands increases in coming years, foreign 
     land grabbing will become an even greater threat; and
       Whereas, foreign investments in American farmland, 
     particularly by the Chinese Communist Party, not only provide 
     opportunities for espionage against our military bases and 
     infrastructure but may also undermine our nation's food 
     security; and
       Whereas, in the last congressional session, several members 
     of Congress introduced legislation known as the ``Securing 
     America's Land from Foreign Interference Act.'' These bills, 
     S. 4703 and H.R. 3847, would require the United States 
     President to take action to prohibit members of the Chinese 
     Communist Party from purchasing public or private real estate 
     located in the United States; and
       Whereas, it is imperative that Congress take action to 
     prohibit our nation's top adversaries from purchasing land in 
     the United States in order to protect our nation's food 
     supply and national security. Therefore, be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives of the State of 
     Arizona:
       1. That the Members of the House of Representatives support 
     the enactment of the Securing America's Land from Foreign 
     Interference Act, or similar legislation, to prohibit the 
     sale of United States land to foreign investors.
       2. That the Secretary of State of the State of Arizona 
     transmit copies of this Resolution to the President of the 
     United States, the President of the United States Senate, the 
     Speaker of the United States House of Representatives and 
     each Member of Congress from the State of Arizona.
                                  ____

       POM-8. A joint resolution adopted by the Legislature of the 
     State of Alaska standing in solidarity with the people of 
     Ukraine; condemning the illegal invasion of Ukraine; 
     endorsing the sanctions and export controls directed at the 
     Russian Federation by the United States government; urging 
     the United States Congress and the President to consider 
     measured and appropriate sanctions and actions; demanding the 
     Russian Federation immediately stop all hostilities against 
     Ukraine and withdraw from Ukrainian territory; and supporting 
     the United States in urging the Russian Federation to 
     immediately stop its assault on Ukraine; to the Committee on 
     Foreign Relations.

                     Senate Joint Resolution No. 25

       Whereas the post-war international security order led by 
     the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), has relied on 
     diplomacy, peace, and open communication over armed conflict 
     to ensure prosperity and stability for over 1,000,000.000 
     people for more than 70 years; and
       Whereas, on December 1, 1991, the Ukrainian people voted 
     overwhelmingly to form a State independent from the Soviet 
     Union, building a democracy and a thriving country grounded 
     in the rule of law; and
       Whereas the borders of Ukraine were subsequently 
     universally recognized by the international community, 
     including by the Russian Federation; and
       Whereas, in 2014, pro-Western protests in Ukraine led to 
     the resignation of authoritarian president Viktor Yanukovych, 
     an ally of Vladimir Putin, and ushered in democratically 
     elected leaders who have sought closer ties to the European 
     Union and the United States; and
       Whereas, contrary to the free will of the Ukrainian people 
     in their pursuit of security, peace, and prosperity through 
     closer ties to the European Union and the United States, the 
     Russian Federation annexed territory from Ukraine in 2014 and 
     instigated, supported, and supplied a deadly separatist war 
     in Eastern Ukraine, particularly in the Donetsk and Luhansk 
     provinces of Ukraine, destabilizing the region; and
       Whereas the Russian Federation violated international peace 
     and security agreements that sought a peaceful solution in 
     Eastern Ukraine and instead amassed hundreds of thousands of 
     troops on Ukraine's border; and
       Whereas Vladimir Putin has now launched an unjust and 
     illegal invasion of the peaceful nation of Ukraine; and
       Whereas Russian soldiers are currently sweeping through the 
     country, inflicting violence and terror on millions of 
     civilians and destroying homes, businesses, and economic 
     infrastructure; and
       Whereas reports of civilian casualties call for ensuring 
     humanitarian access and respect for human rights and the 
     relevant provisions of international humanitarian law; and
       Whereas Ukraine has been a bulwark against Russian military 
     aggression in Europe, and Vladimir Putin has said that 
     Russia's territory should extend to the historical boundaries 
     of Imperial Russia, with possible intentions of threatening 
     NATO allies with military force; and
       Whereas Russia's aggression against Ukraine is a violation 
     of Article 2, paragraph 4, of the United Nations Charter, 
     which states that all member states shall refrain from the 
     threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or 
     political independence of any state, or in any other manner 
     inconsistent with the purposes of the United Nations; and
       Whereas Ukraine is a nation under siege, and the brutality 
     of this unnecessary and violent war is an affront to both 
     international law and common decency; and
       Whereas the United States has galvanized the international 
     community and our allies to impose the strongest possible 
     sanctions on Russia and its financial institutions as a means 
     to inhibit Russia's ability to finance and replenish arms for 
     its war against Ukraine; and
       Whereas the patriotism, perseverance, and tenacity the 
     Ukrainian people have shown in defending their country is an 
     inspiration to the entire world; and
       Whereas Ukraine deserves the support of every American and 
     the entire international community as it defends itself from 
     this unprovoked Russian invasion, which is the largest attack 
     by one state against another in Europe since World War II; be 
     it
       Resolved, That the Alaska State Legislature proudly stands 
     in solidarity with the people of Ukraine during this horrific 
     and unnecessary war; and be it further
       Resolved, That the Alaska State Legislature condemns, in 
     the strongest possible terms, Vladimir Putin's violent attack 
     on the people of Ukraine; and be it further
       Resolved, That the Alaska State Legislature strongly 
     endorses the swift and severe economic sanctions and 
     stringent export controls that the United States has imposed 
     on Russia and urges the United States Congress and the 
     President to consider measured and appropriate sanctions and 
     actions; and be it further
       Resolved, That the Alaska State Legislature supports the 
     United States in urging Russia to immediately stop its 
     violent, illegal, and immoral assault on Ukraine, end the 
     needless bloodshed, completely withdraw its military forces 
     from within Ukraine's internationally recognized borders, and 
     return to diplomacy and the rules-based international order 
     that has ensured peace and prosperity for so many, for so 
     long.
       Copies of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable 
     Joseph R. Biden, President of the United States; the 
     Honorable Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy, President of 
     Ukraine; Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, President of the 
     Russian Federation; the Honorable Kamala D. Harris. Vice 
     President of the United States and President of the U.S. 
     Senate; the Honorable Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the U.S. House 
     of Representatives; the Honorable Kevin McCarthy, Minority 
     Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives; the Honorable 
     Charles Schumer, Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate; the 
     Honorable Mitch McConnell, Minority Leader of the U.S. 
     Senate; the Honorable Oksana Markarova, Ambassador 
     Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the United 
     States; the Honorable Anatoly T. Antonov, Ambassador 
     Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation 
     to the

[[Page S1051]]

     United States; members of the United Nations Security 
     Council; and the Honorable Lisa Murkowski and the Honorable 
     Dan Sullivan. U.S. Senators, and the U.S. Representative for 
     Alaska, members of the Alaska delegation in Congress.
                                  ____

       POM-9. A resolution adopted by the Senate of the State of 
     California urging the President of the United States and the 
     United States Congress to enact federal legislation that 
     guarantees the right to reproductive freedom, including 
     abortion and contraception; to the Committee on Health, 
     Education, Labor, and Pensions.

                        Senate Resolution No. 9

       Whereas, January 22, 2023, marks the 50th anniversary of 
     the United States Supreme Court's landmark decision in Roe v. 
     Wade (1973) 410 U.S. 113, which affirmed the fundamental 
     right to control reproductive decisions and decide whether to 
     continue a pregnancy or obtain an abortion, which is an 
     occasion deserving of acknowledgment; and
       Whereas, Roe v. Wade was overturned by a 6-3 vote of the 
     United States Supreme Court in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's 
     Health Organization (2022) 597 U.S. __ on June 24, 2022; and
       Whereas, Roe v. Wade had been the cornerstone of one's 
     ability to control their reproductive lives, affirming the 
     right of anyone who could become pregnant in the United 
     States to decide when and if to have children; and
       Whereas, Abortion is a safe and common medical procedure 
     and nearly one in four women in the United States will have 
     an abortion by 45 years of age; and
       Whereas, The Turnaway Study shows that denying people 
     abortion creates economic hardship and insecurity that lasts 
     for years and negatively impacts those people and their 
     children; and
       Whereas, Maternal death rates are 62 percent higher and 
     perinatal death rates are 15 percent higher in states where 
     abortion is restricted than in states with access to abortion 
     and abortion bans disproportionately harm youth, people with 
     low incomes, and communities of color; and
       Whereas, As a result of the Dobbs decision repealing Roe v. 
     Wade, 13 states have total abortion bans in effect and almost 
     one-third of women and people who can become pregnant of 
     reproductive age in the United States live in a state where 
     abortion is not legal or is severely restricted; and
       Whereas, With Roe v. Wade overturned, it is likely that 
     abortion will be banned or severely restricted in 24 states, 
     affecting more than 36 million women and even more people who 
     can become pregnant; and
       Whereas, Without the protections under Roe, there are no 
     federal protections for patients and providers of sexual and 
     reproductive health care from being criminalized for 
     receiving or providing essential health care services; and
       Whereas, The State of California stands in strong support 
     of every individual's fundamental right to choose whether to 
     continue a pregnancy; and
       Whereas, Four years before Roe v. Wade, our state Supreme 
     Court held that Californians have the fundamental 
     constitutional right to procreative choice, a right that 
     follows our state's recognition of the right to privacy in 
     matters relating to marriage, family, and sex, in People v. 
     Belous (1969) 71 Cal. 2d 954; and
       Whereas, Our state Supreme Court recognized that while, at 
     the time, there was no enumerated privacy right in either our 
     or federal Constitution, the right to privacy was 
     indisputably a fundamental right; and
       Whereas, To further lay the groundwork to protect that 
     right, California voters, in 1972, one year before Roe v. 
     Wade, passed a constitutional amendment to explicitly provide 
     for the constitutional right to privacy; and
       Whereas, In the immediate aftermath of the United States 
     Supreme Court's devastating decision in Dobbs v. Jackson, the 
     Legislature passed and the Governor signed a comprehensive 
     package of legislation expanding, protecting, and 
     strengthening access to reproductive health care, including 
     abortions for all Californians and people seeking such care, 
     in our state; and
       Whereas, The Legislature passed Senate Constitutional 
     Amendment 10 to put Proposition 1 on the November 2022 
     ballot; and
       Whereas, The California voters overwhelmingly supported 
     Proposition 1, and enacted a state constitutional right to 
     prohibit the state from interfering with an individual's 
     reproductive freedom in their most intimate decisions, which 
     includes their fundamental right to choose to have an 
     abortion and their fundamental right to choose or refuse 
     contraceptives; now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, That the 
     Senate urges the President of the United States and the 
     United States Congress to enact federal legislation that 
     guarantees the right to reproductive freedom, including 
     abortion and contraception; and be it further
       Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies 
     of this resolution to the President and Vice President of the 
     United States, to the Speaker of the House of 
     Representatives, to the Majority Leader of the Senate, to 
     each Senator and Representative from California in the 
     Congress of the United States, and to the author for 
     appropriate distribution.
                                  ____

       POM-10. A joint resolution adopted by the Legislature of 
     the State of Alaska encouraging the United States Congress to 
     pass legislation granting the Hmong veterans of the Vietnam 
     War access to the same veteran benefits received by United 
     States veterans; to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

                     House Joint Resolution No. 16

       Whereas, beginning in 1960, the United States Central 
     Intelligence Agency recruited thousands of Hmong people to 
     fight against the Communist Pathet Lao and North Vietnamese 
     Army regulars in Laos; and
       Whereas, in July 1961, Brigadier General Edward G. Lansdale 
     wrote in a memo to General Maxwell D. Taylor that about 9,000 
     Hmong tribesmen had been equipped for guerilla operations and 
     these operations were being conducted with considerable 
     effectiveness in Communist-dominated territory in Laos; and
       Whereas as many as 100,000 Hmong soldiers were recruited 
     and trained as Special Guerrilla Units to engage the North 
     Vietnamese Army; and
       Whereas the United States relied heavily on the Hmong 
     Special Guerrilla Units, although outnumbered by enemy 
     forces, to intercept and prevent the flow of troops and war 
     supplies along the Ho Chi Minh Trail; and
       Whereas the Hmong soldiers conducted tactical guerrilla 
     actions, flew thousands of deadly combat missions in support 
     of the United States Armed Forces and the Central 
     Intelligence Agency, and fought in conventional and guerilla 
     combat with an extremely high number of casualties; and
       Whereas the Hmong soldiers protected United States 
     personnel, guarded United States Air Force radar 
     installations, gathered critical intelligence about enemy 
     operations, and undertook rescue missions to save the lives 
     of downed United States pilots; and
       Whereas approximately 40,000 Hmong soldiers lost their 
     lives defending democracy, approximately 50,000 Hmong 
     soldiers were seriously injured and disabled, and 
     approximately 3,000 Hmong soldiers were missing in action; 
     and
       Whereas Hmong soldiers died at 10 times the rate of United 
     States soldiers in the Vietnam War; and
       Whereas, because the war effort of the United States in 
     Laos was covert, the accounts of the sacrifices and service 
     of the Hmong soldiers remain largely unknown; and
       Whereas many Hmong soldiers became refugees because the 
     United States government encouraged them to fight for the 
     United States, and, as a result, thousands of family members 
     of Hmong soldiers were evacuated to a United States air base 
     in Thailand to avoid bloody vengeance by the communists in 
     Laos and Vietnam; and
       Whereas, after the conclusion of the Vietnam War, thousands 
     of Hmong soldiers suffered acts of retribution and atrocities 
     by the Pathet Lao and North Vietnamese, causing hundreds of 
     thousands of Hmong refugees to flee to neighboring Thailand; 
     and
       Whereas approximately 50,000 Hmong veterans reside in the 
     United States, and 150,000 Hmong and Laotian-born children 
     have graduated from schools in this country; and
       Whereas the Hmong warriors were promised that they would be 
     treated just like other United States veterans;
       Be it Resolved that the Alaska State Legislature encourages 
     the United States Congress to pass legislation granting the 
     Hmong veterans of the Vietnam War full access to the same 
     veteran benefits received by United States veterans.


 =========================== NOTE =========================== 

  
  On page S1051, March 29, 2023, in the right column, the 
following appears: Whereas the Hmong warriors were promised that 
they would be treated just like other United States veterans; and 
be it Resolved and be it that the Alaska State Legislature 
encourages the United States Congress to pass legislation granting 
the Hmong veterans of the Vietnam War full access to the same 
veteran benefits received by United States veterans.
  
  The online Record has been corrected to read: Whereas the Hmong 
warriors were promised that they would be treated just like other 
United States veterans; Be it Resolved that the Alaska State 
Legislature encourages the United States Congress to pass 
legislation granting the Hmong veterans of the Vietnam War full 
access to the same veteran benefits received by United States 
veterans.


 ========================= END NOTE ========================= 


       Copies of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable 
     Joseph R. Biden, President of the United States; the 
     Honorable Kamala D. Harris, Vice President of the United 
     States and President of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Denis 
     McDonough, United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs; the 
     Honorable Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the U.S. House of 
     Representatives; the Honorable Charles Schumer, Majority 
     Leader of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Kevin McCarthy, 
     Minority Leader of the U.S. House of Representatives; the 
     Honorable Mitch McConnell, Minority Leader of the U.S. 
     Senate; the Honorable Lisa Murkowski and the Honorable Dan 
     Sullivan, U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S. 
     Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in Congress; 
     and all other members of the 117th United States Congress.

       POM-11. A petition from a citizen of the State of Texas 
     relative to enactment of federal legislation prohibiting 
     federal officials from removing original documents from 
     federal premises; to the Committee on Homeland Security and 
     Governmental Affairs.

                          ____________________