By Alexander                                           H.R. No. 637
         77R3917 JKB-D                           
                                 R E S O L U T I O N
 1-1           WHEREAS, David M. Laney is ending a distinguished tenure as a
 1-2     member of the Texas Transportation Commission, and his noteworthy
 1-3     accomplishments while in office indeed merit special legislative
 1-4     recognition; and
 1-5           WHEREAS, The chairman of the board and president of Dallas's
 1-6     largest law firm, Jenkens & Gilchrist, Mr. Laney was appointed to
 1-7     the Texas Transportation Commission in April 1995 by Governor
 1-8     George W. Bush and was named chairman of the commission; and
 1-9           WHEREAS, Under his exceptional leadership, the commission has
1-10     been credited with a host of significant achievements, including
1-11     increasing highway construction contracts to a total of more than
1-12     $3 billion a year, building the first private toll road in the
1-13     state, and creating the North Texas Turnpike Authority; and
1-14           WHEREAS, Recognizing that the highways crossing the border
1-15     between Texas and Mexico were expected to increase in traffic, he
1-16     led the commission to create a $2.8 billion initiative to improve
1-17     the area's infrastructure; and
1-18           WHEREAS, Working to increase federal funding for Texas, he
1-19     drew an additional $700 million to the Lone Star State; these funds
1-20     have provided for much needed highway repair and construction and
1-21     have supported state transportation agencies, general aviation and
1-22     reliever airports, and the state's extensive urban and rural
1-23     transit systems; and
1-24           WHEREAS, Mr. Laney encouraged the Texas Department of
 2-1     Transportation to develop more flexible financing tools to better
 2-2     respond to the state's exploding transportation needs, and the
 2-3     achievements of the department  during his tenure on the commission
 2-4     include such capital improvement projects as the LBJ Freeway and
 2-5     the Grand Parkway in Houston; and
 2-6           WHEREAS, This Dallas native is a graduate of Stanford
 2-7     University and the Southern Methodist University School of Law; he
 2-8     and his wife of more than 20 years, Eleanor, are the parents of two
 2-9     daughters, Margaret and Virginia; highly regarded for his integrity
2-10     and insightfulness, he is also a former member of the Texas Finance
2-11     Commission; and
2-12           WHEREAS, Mr. Laney stepped down as commissioner of
2-13     transportation in April 2000 and will soon complete his six-year
2-14     term as a member of the commission; in light of his myriad
2-15     contributions to the Lone Star State, it is truly a privilege to
2-16     honor him at this time; now, therefore, be it
2-17           RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 77th Texas
2-18     Legislature hereby express its appreciation to David M. Laney for
2-19     years of dedicated service to the Texas Transportation Commission
2-20     and extend to him sincere best wishes for success in his future
2-21     endeavors; and, be it further
2-22           RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
2-23     prepared for Mr. Laney as an expression of high regard by the Texas
2-24     House of Representatives.