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R E S O L U T I O N
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WHEREAS, Since its ratification in 1994, the North American |
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Free Trade Agreement has produced great opportunities for economic |
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growth and development in the United States and our bordering |
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countries; and |
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WHEREAS, According to the U.S. Census Bureau, American trade |
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with Canada and Mexico has tripled under NAFTA, reaching an annual |
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total of $1 trillion in 2015; Mexico is America's third-largest |
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export market for agricultural products, including corn, soybeans, |
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dairy, pork, and beef, and each year Texas sends about 36 percent of |
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the state's total exports to Mexico; furthermore, Canada is the |
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world's leading purchaser of U.S. goods; and |
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WHEREAS, NAFTA has benefited American workers by creating new |
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avenues for employment; a 2014 study conducted by the U.S. Chamber |
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of Commerce showed that nearly five million U.S. jobs, including |
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some 350,000 in Texas, are supported by increased trade from NAFTA; |
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in addition, 90 percent of Fortune 500 companies have investments |
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in Mexico; and |
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WHEREAS, NAFTA has had particularly profound and positive |
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implications for Texas; according to the U.S. Department of |
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Commerce, NAFTA has created over 190,000 export-related jobs in |
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Texas; the state has also seen a substantial increase in exports to |
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Canada and Mexico since NAFTA was enacted; and |
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WHEREAS, Through NAFTA, Canada and Mexico have become |
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America's largest and third-largest trading partners, |
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respectively; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 85th Texas |
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Legislature hereby respectfully urge Congress to work with the |
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president of the United States to improve and enhance the North |
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American Free Trade Agreement through modernization and the |
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recognition of new technological advancements in order to move |
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toward expanding economic opportunity for the betterment of our |
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country; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That the chief clerk of the house forward official |
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copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to |
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the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of |
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Representatives of the United States Congress, and to all the |
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members of the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that |
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this resolution be entered in the Congressional Record as a |
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memorial to the Congress of the United States of America. |