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To urge the Congress and President of the United | 1 |
States to fully invest in passenger rail as part | 2 |
of the nation's economic stimulus and recovery | 3 |
plan. | 4 |
WHEREAS, Congress and the President are working to shape | 5 |
federal policy to respond to the nation's economic crisis; and | 6 |
WHEREAS, Congress and the President plan to stimulate the | 7 |
economy by the largest public works investment in many years; and | 8 |
WHEREAS, In any federal stimulus and recovery act, difficult | 9 |
choices must be made in determining the types of investments to | 10 |
make in the nation's infrastructure; and | 11 |
WHEREAS, Passenger train service offers some of the best | 12 |
return on investment as expanded and improved passenger train | 13 |
service is an environmentally friendly transportation choice, a | 14 |
permanent source of economic development uniting the nation's | 15 |
cities and regions, and a creator of permanent jobs both in the | 16 |
operation of the service and in the maintenance of the trains, | 17 |
tracks, and related infrastructure; and | 18 |
WHEREAS, Railroad jobs, whether with Amtrak, host freight | 19 |
railroads, or railroad suppliers, are typically full-time jobs | 20 |
with benefits and pay exceeding the national median; and | 21 |
WHEREAS, The United States' passenger rail service is far | 22 |
inferior to that of our global competitors due largely to a lack | 23 |
of significant federal investment over the last fifty years; and | 24 |
WHEREAS, Although the federal government has begun to | 25 |
increase investment in passenger rail, the upcoming debate over | 26 |
the American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan is an opportunity to | 27 |
fully invest in passenger rail as part of the nation's economic | 28 |
stimulus and recovery; now therefore be it | 29 |
RESOLVED, That we, the members of the 128th General Assembly | 30 |
of the State of Ohio, urge the Congress and President of the | 31 |
United States to expand and improve passenger train service in | 32 |
this country with full federal funding to build the foundation for | 33 |
lasting prosperity with environmentally friendly connections | 34 |
between the cities, towns, and regions of this country; and be it | 35 |
further | 36 |
RESOLVED, That we, the members of the 128th General Assembly | 37 |
of the State of Ohio, urge the Congress and President of the | 38 |
United States to maximize the investment in expanded and improved | 39 |
passenger train service as part of the American Recovery and | 40 |
Reinvestment Plan; and be it further | 41 |
RESOLVED, That the Clerk of the House of Representatives | 42 |
transmit duly authenticated copies of this resolution to the | 43 |
President of the United States, to the Speaker and Clerk of the | 44 |
United States House of Representatives, to the President Pro | 45 |
Tempore and Secretary of the United States Senate, to the members | 46 |
of the Ohio Congressional delegation, and to the news media of | 47 |
Ohio. | 48 |