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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Cotton has ranked as one of the most important crops |
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in Texas for a century and a half, and its significance was formally |
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recognized in 1997 by the 75th Legislature, which named it the |
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official fiber and fabric of the Lone Star State; and |
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WHEREAS, Introduced to Texas by Spanish missionaries, cotton |
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soared in production between 1850 and 1900, when it reached more |
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than 3.4 million bales; contributing to the expansion were the |
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opening of new lands for cultivation, the invention of barbed wire, |
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and the extension of the railroad; cultivation on the Blackland |
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Prairie of Central Texas was also spurred by the development of a |
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plow that could break the heavy soil there and by the influx of |
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thousands of immigrants, both from the Deep South and from Europe; |
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and |
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WHEREAS, The State of Texas has been the scene of several |
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major innovations in the cotton industry; Robert S. Munger, who |
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became a leading designer of ginning equipment, developed an |
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automated system ginning process in Mexia in 1884, and in 1980 the |
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country's first high-volume instrument cotton-classing office |
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opened in Lamesa; and |
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WHEREAS, Evolution of the industry within the state has seen |
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the center of cotton cultivation shift from East and Central Texas |
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to the High Plains and South Texas, where the use of fertilizer and |
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irrigation has promoted large yields; and |
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WHEREAS, In past years, approximately a quarter of all the |
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cotton harvested in the United States has been grown in Texas, and |
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the state usually ranks first among all the states in cotton |
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production; since 1997, the annual cotton crop in Texas has |
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averaged 5.4 million bales, and in 2005, Texas upland cotton and |
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pima lint cotton were valued at $1.6 billion and Texas cottonseed at |
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$255.2 million; and |
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WHEREAS, With improved seed cotton varieties, along with the |
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recent success of the boll weevil eradication program in Texas, |
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production in 2005 of 8.5 million bales of cotton on 5.6 million |
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acres far exceeded the previous production record of 5.6 million |
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bales on 5.4 million acres in 2004, allowing the state to account |
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for 35.5 percent of the total U.S. production; and |
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WHEREAS, Much of the Texas cotton crop is shipped abroad, |
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with Mexico, Central America, and Asian countries figuring among |
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the largest buyers; and |
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WHEREAS, The history of Texas cannot be told without taking |
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into account the enormous role that cotton has played in the |
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development of the state and in the lives of so many of its people, |
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and the crop continues to provide the livelihood of thousands of |
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Texans; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 80th Texas |
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Legislature hereby recognize March 6, 2007, as Cotton Day at the |
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State Capitol and extend to all those associated with the industry |
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and who are present here today a warm welcome and sincere best |
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wishes for an enjoyable and memorable visit. |
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Heflin |
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______________________________ |
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Speaker of the House |
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I certify that H.R. No. 635 was adopted by the House on March |
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6, 2007, by a non-record vote. |
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______________________________ |
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Chief Clerk of the House |
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