Bill Text: TX HCR1 | 2013-2014 | 83rd Legislature | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Directing the Texas Facilities Commission to rename the State Insurance Building Annex in the Capitol Complex the John G. Tower State Office Building.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 4-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2013-05-22 - Placed on intent calendar [HCR1 Detail]
Download: Texas-2013-HCR1-Comm_Sub.html
By: Branch (Senate Sponsor - Carona) | H.C.R. No. 1 | |
(In the Senate - Received from the House April 30, 2013; | ||
May 2, 2013, read first time and referred to Committee on | ||
Administration; May 15, 2013, reported adversely, with favorable | ||
Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 4, Nays 0; | ||
May 15, 2013, sent to printer.) | ||
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.C.R. No. 1 | By: Uresti |
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WHEREAS, John Goodwin Tower greatly benefited his state and | ||
his nation through his dedicated public service, including nearly a | ||
quarter-century in the United States Senate; and | ||
WHEREAS, Born in Houston on September 29, 1925, John Tower | ||
served in the United States Navy during World War II on an | ||
amphibious gunboat in the Pacific; he was discharged as a seaman | ||
first class and remained active in the naval reserve until 1989, | ||
when he retired with the rank of master chief boatswain's mate; and | ||
WHEREAS, Senator Tower earned a bachelor's degree in | ||
political science at Southwestern University and a master's degree | ||
in the same discipline at Southern Methodist University; he | ||
accepted a position as an assistant professor at Midwestern | ||
University in the early 1950s and continued his studies at the | ||
London School of Economics; and | ||
WHEREAS, He soon became a rising star in conservative | ||
politics, and in 1960, he was elected as the first Republican | ||
senator from Texas since Reconstruction; Senator Tower took on | ||
numerous committee assignments in Washington and played a key role | ||
in the modernization and expansion of the military as chair of the | ||
Armed Services Committee and as a member of the Joint Committee on | ||
Defense Production; he also served on the Labor and Public Welfare | ||
and Banking and Currency Committees, among many others; he was | ||
known for his skill at guiding legislation through Congress, and he | ||
sought to stimulate economic growth, increase small business | ||
opportunities, improve transportation systems, and encourage | ||
strong financial institutions; working diligently in behalf of his | ||
fellow Texans, he promoted agriculture as well as the energy, | ||
fishing, and maritime industries; and | ||
WHEREAS, After retiring from Congress in 1985, Senator Tower | ||
served as President Ronald Reagan's strategic arms negotiator in | ||
Geneva, and he further assisted the president by advocating for | ||
ratification of a medium-range nuclear weapons treaty with the | ||
Soviet Union; in late 1986, President Reagan appointed him as chair | ||
of the special review board assigned to investigate the Iran-contra | ||
scandals; and | ||
WHEREAS, This dynamic Texan established a consulting company | ||
in Dallas that served some of the nation's largest weapons | ||
manufacturers, and from 1986 to 1988, he taught political science | ||
as a distinguished lecturer at Southern Methodist University; in | ||
1990, President Bush named him chair of the President's Foreign | ||
Intelligence Advisory Board; tragically, he died in a plane crash | ||
the following year; and | ||
WHEREAS, Through his leadership in national security and | ||
foreign policy issues, John Tower made vital contributions to the | ||
United States, and his tireless efforts to advance the interests of | ||
the Lone Star State earned the lasting appreciation of his fellow | ||
Texans; naming the State Insurance Building in the Capitol Complex | ||
in his honor would provide a most fitting tribute to his outstanding | ||
accomplishments; now, therefore, be it | ||
RESOLVED, That the 83rd Legislature of the State of Texas | ||
hereby direct the Texas Facilities Commission to rename the State | ||
Insurance Building the John G. Tower State Office Building as a | ||
lasting tribute to this esteemed Texan; and, be it further | ||
RESOLVED, That the secretary of state forward an official | ||
copy of this resolution to the chair and executive director of the | ||
Texas Facilities Commission. | ||
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