By Junell                                              H.R. No. 725
         77R12313 GMW-D                           
                                 R E S O L U T I O N
 1-1           WHEREAS, Billy Hamilton, deputy comptroller of public
 1-2     accounts, has had a long and distinguished career that has spanned
 1-3     three decades and three Texas comptrollers:  Bob Bullock, John
 1-4     Sharp, and Carole Keeton Rylander; and
 1-5           WHEREAS, For nine years, Mr. Hamilton has demonstrated his
 1-6     outstanding leadership skills as deputy comptroller, and for his
 1-7     exemplary work he was given the Administrator of the Year Award by
 1-8     the Texas State Agency Business Administrators Association; he has
 1-9     also served as executive director for the Select Committee on Tax
1-10     Equity and as chief revenue estimator of Texas, and he survived the
1-11     tax reform of the 75th Texas Legislature; and
1-12           WHEREAS, This esteemed gentleman organized and managed the
1-13     nationally recognized Texas Performance Reviews of 1991, 1993,
1-14     1994, and 1996, identifying a combined total of more than $11.5
1-15     billion in potential savings while ensuring numerous improvements
1-16     in the performance of state government; and
1-17           WHEREAS, Mr. Hamilton designed, planned, and directed the
1-18     Texas Information Technology (IT) Academy, a collaborative effort
1-19     between state government agencies and the private sector to help
1-20     the state recruit, train, and retain IT workers while also
1-21     expanding the private IT labor pool in Texas; moreover, he created
1-22     the Agency's Renaissance Project:  Rethinking the Way We Do
1-23     Business, invoking a new period of employee creativity,
1-24     inventiveness, and innovation to improve service to citizens of
 2-1     Texas, and this project has now expanded to include the annual Idea
 2-2     Fair; and
 2-3           WHEREAS, Recognized for his expertise in tax administration
 2-4     and financial management, Mr. Hamilton is the past president and
 2-5     current board member of the National Tax Association and the
 2-6     National Federation of Tax Administrators; he was the first
 2-7     recipient of the Bob Bullock Award for Public Stewardship presented
 2-8     by the Government Technology Conference; and
 2-9           WHEREAS, This McGregor, Texas, native graduated from The
2-10     University of Texas at Austin with highest honors and the Lyndon B.
2-11     Johnson School of Public Affairs, and the LBJ School presented him
2-12     its first Distinguished Alumni Award; Mr. Hamilton is a devoted
2-13     husband and father, and he and his wife, Chris, have raised three
2-14     outstanding children:  Kelly, Michael, and Mark; and
2-15           WHEREAS, Referencing the contributions of Billy Hamilton to
2-16     the State of Texas evokes an expression he is wont to use:  "It's
2-17     like eating potato chips--or Krispy Kreme Doughnuts:  Once you
2-18     start, it's hard to stop"; now, therefore, be it
2-19           RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 77th Texas
2-20     Legislature hereby honor Billy Hamilton on the occasion of his 50th
2-21     birthday and extend to him sincere best wishes for continued
2-22     success and happiness in all his endeavors.