R E S O L U T I O N
1-1 WHEREAS, Republican State Representative Tommy Merritt has
1-2 accrued a distinguished record of public service, including three
1-3 successful sessions in the Texas Legislature, selection to host the
1-4 "Best Little Ball in D.C.," for the president's inauguration,
1-5 appointment to President Bush's energy advisory transition team,
1-6 and appointment by Governor Bush to the Interstate Oil & Gas
1-7 Compact Commission; and
1-8 WHEREAS, While serving as a Republican legislator, member of
1-9 the Gregg County Appraisal Board, and the Sabine River Authority,
1-10 Mr. Merritt has lived up to his nickname as the "taxpayers'
1-11 watchdog," and his fight to save money for the citizens of this
1-12 state has included support of the two largest tax cuts in Texas
1-13 history and the emergency relief of the severance tax on oil
1-14 production; and
1-15 WHEREAS, A Republican state representative who has stood tall
1-16 and courageous working on behalf of small-town Texans, he has
1-17 promoted the fair and reflective redistricting of state legislative
1-18 boundaries and encouraged economic development of rural areas in
1-19 East Texas through the statutory creation of the Texas-Louisiana
1-20 Border Region, which allows rural Northeast Texas to compete as a
1-21 region with larger urban areas such as Dallas or Houston; and
1-22 WHEREAS, A devoted family man, Mr. Merritt has been married
1-23 to his beloved wife Janet for 29 years, and the couple are the
1-24 proud parents of three children and active members of the First
2-1 Baptist Church of Longview, and as a Republican member of the State
2-2 Affairs Committee, he has helped pass strong pro-family values
2-3 legislation, including the requirement for parental notification
2-4 for abortion; and
2-5 WHEREAS, Known throughout his community for his dedication to
2-6 the youth of this state, this Republican legislator has long fought
2-7 for quality public education and supported such worthwhile civic
2-8 initiatives as his local Junior Achievement program, which
2-9 currently hosts the nation's top high school women's basketball
2-10 tournaments in Longview; and
2-11 WHEREAS, A local crime fighter, Mr. Merritt has been actively
2-12 involved with Turn Around Longview and Turn Around Kilgore and
2-13 participated in citizen marches against local drug dealers and
2-14 crack houses, and he has worked to strengthen our criminal justice
2-15 system as a Republican state legislator; and
2-16 WHEREAS, While a member of the house, he has received
2-17 legislator distinction awards, including an award for his diligent
2-18 efforts to assist the state's domestic oil and gas producers; in
2-19 addition, he was the first Republican legislator in more than two
2-20 decades to be selected for the Legislative Black Caucus's G. J.
2-21 Sutton award for outstanding service in the House of
2-22 Representatives; and
2-23 WHEREAS, Tommy Merritt is a lifelong conservative and
2-24 Republican, whose East Texas roots date back to Barry Goldwater's
2-25 1960s visit to Longview; selected as a presidential election
2-26 recount poll watcher in Florida last year, he has truly proven
2-27 himself to be an asset both to the state of Texas and to the
3-1 current legislative session; now, therefore, be it
3-2 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 77th Texas
3-3 Legislature hereby express respect and appreciation to Republican
3-4 State Representative Tommy Merritt for being loyal to his state and
3-5 his community and for proudly serving the state with integrity,
3-6 courage, and distinction.
Jones of Lubbock
Laney Glaze Moreno of Harris
Alexander Goodman Moreno of El Paso
Allen Goolsby Morrison
Averitt Gray Naishtat
Bailey Gutierrez Najera
Bonnen Haggerty Noriega
Bosse Hardcastle Oliveira
Brimer Hawley Olivo
Brown of Brazos Hilbert Pickett
Burnam Hilderbran Pitts
Capelo Hinojosa Puente
Carter Hochberg Ramsay
Chavez Hodge Rangel
Chisum Homer Raymond
Coleman Hope Reyna of Bexar
Cook Hopson Ritter
Corte Hunter Sadler
Counts Isett Salinas
Craddick Janek Smith
Crownover Jones of Lubbock Smithee
Danburg Jones of Bexar Solis
Davis of Harris Jones of Dallas Solomons
Davis of Dallas Junell Swinford
Deshotel Keel Telford
Driver Keffer Thompson
Dukes King of Uvalde Tillery
Dunnam Kitchen Truitt
Dutton Kolkhorst Turner of Coleman
Edwards Kuempel Turner of Harris
Ehrhardt Lewis of Tarrant Uher
Eiland Lewis of Orange Uresti
Elkins Longoria Villarreal
Ellis Luna Walker
Farabee McCall West
Farrar McClendon Williams
Flores McReynolds Wilson
Gallego Marchant Wise
Garcia Martinez Fischer Wolens
George Maxey Yarbrough
Geren Menendez Zbranek
Giddings
_______________________________
Speaker of the House
I certify that H.R. No. 1233 was adopted by the House on May
24, 2001, by a non-record vote.
_______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House