H.R. No. 475

	R E S O L U T I O N
	WHEREAS, The House of Representatives of the State of Texas
	is pleased to honor the National Aeronautics and Space
	Administration (NASA) for its intrepid exploration of space and
	commend the agency for its many significant scientific discoveries;
	and
	WHEREAS, The objectives of the Vision for Space Exploration
	program are to safely use the space shuttle until its retirement,
	complete and maintain the International Space Station, develop the
	crew exploration vehicle, Orion, and return humans to the Moon and
	send them to Mars and beyond; and
	WHEREAS, The year 2006 was an outstanding one for space
	exploration and included three successful space shuttle missions to
	work on the International Space Station; Texas A&M University
	graduate Michael Fossum and Stephanie Wilson, a graduate of The
	University of Texas, flew aboard the space shuttle Discovery in
	July, representing the State of Texas in space; and
	WHEREAS, In 2007, NASA will continue building the
	International Space Station and forge ahead, keeping the tradition
	of Texans in space; three crewmembers of Mission STS-117 call Texas
	home--James Francis Reilly II, John "Danny" Olivas, and Patrick
	Graham Forrester; and
	WHEREAS, Space exploration has ushered in new and exciting
	technological advances that have benefited our nation's security,
	safety, and communications; NASA has advanced our health-care
	system through the development of MRI and CAT scan technology,
	fetal heart monitors, programmable heart pacemakers, and other
	valuable medical devices; and
	WHEREAS, Through education programs like Texas Aerospace
	Scholars, the NASA Explorer Schools, and the Network of Educator
	Astronaut Teachers, NASA is nurturing a new generation of explorers
	and scientists who can contribute to our nation's excellence; and
	WHEREAS, The agency plays a vital role in the economy of the
	Lone Star State by employing more than 3,400 civil servants and
	approximately 13,000 contractor personnel at the Johnson Space
	Center and by awarding more than $4 billion worth of NASA contracts
	annually; small businesses across Texas with technical challenges
	have benefited from NASA and the aerospace industry through the
	support of the Technology Outreach Program, resulting in the
	creation of new jobs and new business ventures within the state; and
	WHEREAS, The Vision for Space Exploration is a bold
	initiative that has the potential to inspire further innovation,
	development, and advancement in the aerospace and other
	high-technology industries across the nation and in the State of
	Texas; and
	WHEREAS, The extraordinary contributions of NASA to science
	and technology are the pride of our state, and its implementation of
	the Vision for Space Exploration is truly deserving of legislative
	recognition; now, therefore, be it
	RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the State of
	Texas, 80th Legislature, hereby commend the National Aeronautics
	and Space Administration on its outstanding accomplishments and
	extend best wishes to the agency for many successful endeavors
	through the Vision for Space Exploration program; and, be it
	further
	RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be prepared for the
	agency as an expression of highest regard from the Texas House of
	Representatives.
	Davis of Harris
	Taylor
	Talton
	Noriega
	Craddick Gattis Miles
	Allen Geren Miller
	Alonzo Giddings Moreno
	Anchia Gonzales Morrison
	Anderson Gonzalez Toureilles Mowery
	Aycock Goolsby Murphy
	Bailey Guillen Naishtat
	Berman Haggerty Noriega
	Bohac Hamilton O'Day
	Bolton Hancock Oliveira
	Bonnen Hardcastle Olivo
	Branch Harless Orr
	Brown of Kaufman Harper-Brown Ortiz, Jr.
	Brown of Brazos Hartnett Otto
	Burnam Heflin Parker
	Callegari Hernandez Patrick
	Castro Herrero Paxton
	Chavez Hilderbran Pena
	Chisum Hill Phillips
	Christian Hochberg Pickett
	Cohen Hodge Pierson
	Coleman Homer Pitts
	Cook of Navarro Hopson Puente
	Cook of Colorado Howard of Fort Bend Quintanilla
	Corte Howard of Travis Raymond
	Crabb Hughes Riddle
	Creighton Isett Ritter
	Crownover Jackson Rodriguez
	Darby Jones Rose
	Davis of Harris Keffer Smith of Tarrant
	Davis of Dallas King of Parker Smith of Harris
	Delisi King of Taylor Smithee
	Deshotel King of Zavala Solomons
	Driver Kolkhorst Strama
	Dukes Krusee Straus
	Dunnam Kuempel Swinford
	Dutton Latham Talton
	Eiland Laubenberg Taylor
	Eissler Leibowitz Thompson
	Elkins Lucio III Truitt
	England Macias Turner
	Escobar Madden Van Arsdale
	Farabee Mallory Caraway Vaught
	Farias Martinez Veasey
	Farrar Martinez Fischer Villarreal
	Flores McCall Vo
	Flynn McClendon West
	Frost McReynolds Woolley
	Gallego Menendez Zedler
	Garcia Merritt Zerwas
	______________________________
	Speaker of the House
	I certify that H.R. No. 475 was adopted by the House on
	February 22, 2007, by a non-record vote.
	______________________________
	Chief Clerk of the House