Bill Text: TX HR200 | 2011 | 82nd Legislature 1st Special | Enrolled
Bill Title: Congratulating Hilton Kelley of Port Arthur on his receipt of a 2011 Goldman Environmental Prize.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2011-06-28 - Reported enrolled [HR200 Detail]
Download: Texas-2011-HR200-Enrolled.html
H.R. No. 200 |
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WHEREAS, Hilton Kelley of Port Arthur has been named a | ||
recipient of the 2011 Goldman Environmental Prize, an | ||
accomplishment that is truly worthy of celebration; and | ||
WHEREAS, Created in 1990 by Richard and Rhoda Goldman, the | ||
Goldman Environmental Prize honors individuals from around the | ||
world who are working at the local level to protect and enhance the | ||
natural environment; through their grassroots efforts, these | ||
community leaders have helped to empower their fellow citizens and | ||
have inspired many to stand up for their rights; the prize is | ||
awarded annually in April to one individual from each of the six | ||
inhabited regions of Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, South and | ||
Central America, and the islands and island nations; in addition to | ||
providing the recipients with enhanced credibility and | ||
international recognition for their causes, the prize includes | ||
financial support of $150,000 to assist them in pursuing their | ||
work, making this the world's largest award honoring grassroots | ||
environmentalists; and | ||
WHEREAS, Hilton Kelley was recognized with this prestigious | ||
accolade for his efforts to fight pollution in his community and to | ||
secure environmental justice for residents along the Texas Gulf | ||
Coast; a Port Arthur native, Mr. Kelley was raised in the city's | ||
West Side, a predominately African American neighborhood that has | ||
long stood in the shadow of the area's many oil refineries and | ||
chemical plants; after graduating from high school he enlisted in | ||
the U.S. Navy; his service took him to the San Francisco Bay area, | ||
where he remained after his discharge from the navy as a petty | ||
officer second class; based in Oakland, California, he found work | ||
as an actor and stuntman in television and the movies and was | ||
admitted to the Screen Actors Guild in 1991; he also served his | ||
community as a youth activist and helped lead efforts to end gang | ||
violence; and | ||
WHEREAS, On a visit to his hometown in 2000, Mr. Kelley found | ||
his former community in steep decline, wracked by poverty and | ||
rampant crime and plagued by pollution; the U.S. Environmental | ||
Protection Agency has noted that Port Arthur has some of the highest | ||
levels of toxic air releases in the country, and the companies | ||
operating the plants have been cited with hundreds of air pollution | ||
violations; the effects of the emissions have been particularly | ||
evident in the West Side neighborhood, where Mr. Kelley discovered | ||
many people ill with a variety of maladies and suffering from some | ||
of the highest asthma and cancer rates in the state; with few job | ||
prospects, however, and with property values that have plummeted | ||
due to the continued expansion of the chemical plants, most West | ||
Side residents have had no avenue of escape; faced with these harsh | ||
facts, Mr. Kelley was inspired to move back to Port Arthur to help | ||
its citizens rebuild; and | ||
WHEREAS, Since returning to Port Arthur, Mr. Kelley has | ||
launched a number of initiatives that have had a significant impact | ||
on his community; he realized early on that the city's severe | ||
environmental problems would have to be addressed in order to | ||
improve economic and social conditions; to this end, he established | ||
the Community In-Power and Development Association (CIDA), an | ||
organization that strives to empower citizens by training them to | ||
monitor emissions and air quality and by educating them about | ||
pollution and their rights; CIDA also advocates in behalf of the | ||
community by pushing for stricter environmental regulation and by | ||
challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Texas | ||
Commission on Environmental Quality to enforce such existing laws | ||
as the Clean Air Act; and | ||
WHEREAS, Among his many accomplishments, Mr. Kelley led a | ||
campaign that resulted in the Motiva Refinery installing | ||
state-of-the-art equipment to reduce emissions when it expanded its | ||
facility; he also helped negotiate an agreement with the company | ||
that included the provision of three years of health coverage for | ||
people in the West Side neighborhood and that led to the | ||
establishment of a $3.5 million fund to spur community development | ||
and provide job training; in addition, he guided the successful | ||
effort to prevent 20,000 tons of toxic chemicals from Mexico from | ||
being brought to Port Arthur for incineration; and | ||
WHEREAS, Along with overseeing the work of CIDA, this notable | ||
Texan serves on the EPA National Environmental Justice Advisory | ||
Council, and he speaks extensively on the environment and social | ||
justice; he has been the recipient of numerous honors, including | ||
the 2003 Environmental Justice Award from the Lone Star Chapter of | ||
the Sierra Club, a 2004 Ben and Jerry's Award for Environmental | ||
Activism, a 2006 Houston Hero Award from the Citizens League for | ||
Environmental Action Now, and a 2009 Houston-Galveston | ||
Environmental Research and Outreach Award from The University of | ||
Texas Medical Branch; and | ||
WHEREAS, With his continuing advocacy for clean air and | ||
environmental justice, Hilton Kelley has made a positive difference | ||
in the lives of many Texans, and he is an inspiring example of the | ||
exceptional good that one person can accomplish; now, therefore, be | ||
it | ||
RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 82nd Texas | ||
Legislature, 1st Called Session, hereby congratulate Hilton Kelley | ||
on receiving the Goldman Environmental Prize and extend to him | ||
sincere best wishes for continued success in all his endeavors; | ||
and, be it further | ||
RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be | ||
prepared for Mr. Kelley as an expression of high regard by the Texas | ||
House of Representatives. | ||
Deshotel | ||
______________________________ | ||
Speaker of the House | ||
I certify that H.R. No. 200 was adopted by the House on June | ||
27, 2011, by a non-record vote. | ||
______________________________ | ||
Chief Clerk of the House | ||