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HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, Since its founding in 1958, the National Aeronautics |
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and Space Administration has been a leader in space exploration, |
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and the city of Houston has played an instrumental role in advancing |
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the agency's mission; and |
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WHEREAS, Nicknamed "Space City," Houston has long been at the |
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forefront of human spaceflight development; the city famously |
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served as the site for NASA's mission control during the first moon |
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landing in 1969, and some of the first words spoken on the surface |
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of the moon called out to Houston; in addition, the Lyndon B. |
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Johnson Space Center is located in Houston, and with more than |
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12,000 employees, the facility encompasses a large portion of the |
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NASA workforce; the city is also home to the Mission Control Center, |
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NASA Astronaut Corps, Lunar Sample Laboratory Facility, commercial |
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space agreements, and extensive research and development |
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partnerships; and |
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WHEREAS, Despite having historic ties to Houston, NASA |
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established its headquarters in Washington, D.C., an area that is |
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disconnected from most of the agency's centers and facilities; that |
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decision has separated NASA's leadership from the agency's |
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workforce and day-to-day activities; in 2028, at the end of the |
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lease for its current headquarters, NASA will have the opportunity |
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to move its leadership to a new site, and Houston would be a fitting |
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location for the facility; situated at the center of NASA's |
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operations, the city has a cost of living that is less than half |
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that of the Washington, D.C., area, and it provides access to three |
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universities with R1 designations as well as two major commercial |
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airports; and |
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WHEREAS, Houston also offers tremendous benefits from its |
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connection to Texas, which boasts the eighth-largest economy in the |
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world, with low government regulation and a strong business |
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environment; more than 2,000 aerospace, aviation, and |
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defense-related companies have established locations in the state, |
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including SpaceX in Starbase, Blue Origin in West Texas, Firefly |
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Aerospace in Cedar Park, and Axiom Space in Houston; moreover, the |
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State of Texas recently created the Texas Space Commission to |
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promote innovation in space operations and commercial aerospace and |
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to attract commercial space ventures to the state; and |
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WHEREAS, No city is more closely linked to America's space |
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program than "Space City," and NASA's headquarters should be |
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located at a place where the agency's leadership can directly |
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engage with its most critical missions; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the 89th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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hereby respectfully urge the Congress of the United States to move |
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NASA's headquarters to Houston; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state 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. |
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