HM 887

1	House Memorial
2	A memorial to the Congress of the United States urging
3	passage of the defense appropriations bill before all
4	other appropriations bills.
5
6	WHEREAS, the security of our nation and people is the first
7	and foremost obligation of the Federal Government, and
8	WHEREAS, the men and women of our United States Armed
9	Forces now serving in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps,
10	Coast Guard, Merchant Marines, National Guard, and Reserves have
11	shown great courage and self-sacrifice and deserve to be
12	equipped with the best weapons and provided with the best
13	resources to protect our nation, and
14	WHEREAS, in the past, Congress has delayed passage of the
15	defense appropriations bill until late in the budget year,
16	making the bill susceptible to the addition of appropriations
17	unrelated to the defense budget needs, and
18	WHEREAS, in the wake of the terrorist attacks on the Untied
19	States of America, on September 11, 2001, President George W.
20	Bush asked that the Congress of the United States pass the
21	defense appropriations bill before passing other spending bills,
22	and
23	WHEREAS, Congress acted responsibly in 2002, 2003, 2004,
24	and 2005 by passing the defense appropriations bill before any
25	other appropriations bill, thereby lessening the possibility of
26	unrelated appropriations being added to the bill while providing
27	the necessary funding to protect the men and women in our Armed
28	Forces, NOW, THEREFORE,
29
30	Be It Resolved by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
31
32	That the United States Congress is commended for making our
33	nation's defense its first priority in 2002, 2003, 2004, and
34	2005 and is requested to continue this important tradition by
35	passing the defense appropriations bill before all other
36	spending bills in 2006 and in future years.
37	BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this memorial be
38	dispatched to the President of the United States, to the
39	President of the United States Senate, to the Speaker of the
40	United States House of Representatives, and to each member of
41	the Florida delegation to the United States Congress.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.