1-1                                     1                                  
 1-2                          SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 580
 1-3           WHEREAS, David M. Laney, chairman of the board and
 1-4     president of the law firm Jenkens and Gilchrist, was appointed
 1-5     by Governor George W. Bush to the Texas Transportation Commission
 1-6     in April, 1995, designating him its chairman and Commissioner of
 1-7     Transportation; and
 1-8           WHEREAS, As Commissioner of Transportation, Mr. Laney
 1-9     championed efforts to increase the Texas share of federal
1-10     transportation dollars, working with the Texas congressional
1-11     delegation and the Coalition for a Surface Transportation Equity
1-12     Program for the 21st Century (the STEP 21 Coalition) to guarantee
1-13     that every state receive a fairer return on its contributions to
1-14     the Highway Trust Fund; and
1-15           WHEREAS, In addition to a 40 percent increase in federal
1-16     highway funding, the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century
1-17     (TEA 21), through the efforts of the STEP 21 Coalition, crafted
1-18     "real world" funding formulas and guarantees states a return of at
1-19     least 90.5 cents for each dollar paid into the Highway Trust Fund,
1-20     giving Texas an increase of more than $700 million annually in
1-21     federal highway funds; and
1-22           WHEREAS, With David Laney at its helm, the Texas
 2-1     Transportation Commission has begun development of Interstate 69,
 2-2     our country's next great north-south trade corridor, almost half
 2-3     of which is in Texas; and
 2-4           WHEREAS, David Laney has supported increased federal
 2-5     funding for the nation's general aviation and reliever airports,
 2-6     which Congress provided in the historic Wendall H. Ford Aviation
 2-7     Investment Reform Act for the 21st Century (AIR 21); and
 2-8           WHEREAS, David Laney has been a strong and consistent
 2-9     advocate for our state's small urban and rural transit systems,
2-10     the most extensive in the nation, working closely with the Texas
2-11     congressional delegation to provide much-needed federal funding
2-12     necessary to enable these systems to replace vehicles that have
2-13     served well beyond their expected life; and
2-14           WHEREAS, Recognizing that highways on the
2-15     United States-Mexico border in Texas are already strained by
2-16     the demands from international trade and that large increases
2-17     in that demand are expected, David Laney led the commission to
2-18     create a $1.8 billion initiative to increase funding for highways
2-19     in the area; and
2-20           WHEREAS, David Laney encouraged the Texas Department of
2-21     Transportation to investigate and develop more flexible financing
2-22     tools to better respond to our state's exploding transportation
2-23     needs; and
2-24           WHEREAS, David Laney worked with the Texas Legislature to
 3-1     create the Texas Department of Transportation's Texas Turnpike
 3-2     Authority Division, bringing with it toll-funding options for the
 3-3     state's major transportation projects; and
 3-4           WHEREAS, David Laney strongly supported and encouraged the
 3-5     recent successful effort by the Turnpike Division to obtain an
 3-6     $800 million loan under the federal Transportation Infrastructure
 3-7     Finance and Innovation Act for the Central Texas Turnpike Project;
 3-8     and
 3-9           WHEREAS, David Laney led efforts in the Texas Legislature to
3-10     establish the Texas State Infrastructure Bank, as authorized by
3-11     the National Highway System Designation Act of 1995, and that bank
3-12     has helped Texas communities to accelerate important transportation
3-13     improvements; and
3-14           WHEREAS, Throughout his tenure on the Texas Transportation
3-15     Commission, David Laney recognized that the roads and bridges that
3-16     make up the Texas Highway System are also works of public art,
3-17     championing an initiative to raise awareness of bridge aesthetics
3-18     throughout the department while maintaining the good fiscal
3-19     stewardship for which TXDOT has long been known; and
3-20           WHEREAS, The foresight and initiative David Laney
3-21     demonstrated in negotiating the purchase of the South Orient
3-22     Railroad has protected and preserved a valuable rail corridor
3-23     into Mexico, rail service to West Texas, and an economic asset
3-24     to future generations of Texans; and
 4-1           WHEREAS, Both as Commissioner of Transportation and as a
 4-2     member of the Texas Transportation Commission, David Laney has
 4-3     demonstrated strong, confident, and visionary leadership, always
 4-4     looking both above and beyond highways and well into the future;
 4-5     and
 4-6           WHEREAS, David M. Laney stepped down as Commissioner of
 4-7     Transportation in April, 2000, and has completed his term as a
 4-8     member of the commission; and
 4-9           WHEREAS, Texas can better respond to the demands of growing
4-10     regional and international trade because of David Laney's leadership;
4-11     and
4-12           WHEREAS, In addition to the nation's premier transportation
4-13     system, David Laney's legacy includes a transportation agency with
4-14     an expanded menu of financial and operational tools to maintain and
4-15     improve the safety and effectiveness of the transportation system
4-16     with greater environmental sensitivity; and
4-17           WHEREAS, The people of Texas and the nation will miss
4-18     David Laney's dedication to transportation and his strong
4-19     leadership on the commission; now, therefore, be it
4-20           RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas,
4-21     77th Legislature, hereby express appreciation to David M. Laney
4-22     for a job well done and wish him even greater success in his
4-23     future endeavors; and, be it further
 5-1           RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution be prepared for
 5-2     Mr. Laney as an expression of highest esteem from the Texas Senate.
 5-3                                                    Shapiro
 5-4           Armbrister           Gallegos            Ogden
 5-5           Barrientos           Harris              Shapleigh
 5-6           Bernsen              Haywood             Sibley
 5-7           Bivins               Jackson             Staples
 5-8           Brown                Lindsay             Truan
 5-9           Cain                 Lucio               Van de Putte
5-10           Carona               Madla               Wentworth
5-11           Duncan               Moncrief            West
5-12           Ellis                Nelson              Whitmire
5-13           Fraser                                   Zaffirini
5-14                      Ratliff, President of the Senate
5-15                                  ______________________________________
5-16                                          President of the Senate
5-17                                       I hereby certify that the above
5-18                                  Resolution was adopted by the Senate
5-19                                  on March 29, 2001.
5-20                                  ______________________________________
5-21                                          Secretary of the Senate
5-22                                  ______________________________________
5-23                                            Member, Texas Senate