Recognizing the contributions made by the men and women of the Air Force who are responsible for operating and maintaining the Global Positioning System constellation and affirming the importance of continuous availability, accuracy, reliability, and resiliency of the Global Positioning System constellation.

IV 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. RES. 219 Recognizing the contributions made by the men and women of the Air Force who are responsible for operating and maintaining the Global Positioning System constellation and affirming the importance of continuous avail- ability, accuracy, reliability, and resiliency of the Global Positioning Sys- tem constellation. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MARCH 12, 2019 Mr. LOEBSACK (for himself and Mr. BACON) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services RESOLUTION Recognizing the contributions made by the men and women of the Air Force who are responsible for operating and maintaining the Global Positioning System constellation and affirming the importance of continuous availability, accuracy, reliability, and resiliency of the Global Posi- tioning System constellation. Whereas the Global Positioning System (referred to in this preamble as ‘‘GPS’’) offers both military and civilian benefits of positioning, navigation, and timing services; Whereas the GPS constellation is managed and operated by the Air Force and consists of more than 30 satellites op- erating at an altitude of approximately 12,550 miles above the Earth; VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:03 Mar 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR219.IH HR219 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HRES 219 IH Whereas GPS-enabled precision agriculture has led to input cost savings of $8,200,000,000 and yield increases in grain production in the United States; Whereas GPS precision timing allows for accurate record management by major financial institutions, including de- tailed transaction management for large and small busi- nesses; Whereas GPS has proven to be an essential tool in facili- tating social and economic activity around the world; Whereas consumers overwhelmingly access GPS using a vari- ety of platforms, such as smartphones and a wireless broadband connection; Whereas cities leverage GPS applications to support Smart Cities initiatives that will increase service efficiency, re- sulting in savings in time and money to taxpayers; Whereas first responders utilize GPS to enable more timely and accurate disaster response, improve situational awareness as well as for identifying the location of 9–1– 1 calls made from wireless phones; Whereas the safety of our Nation’s rail systems is improved by implementing GPS-based Positive Train Control (PTC) systems; Whereas GPS-enabled applications and services enhance the independence of individuals with visual impairments; Whereas marine operations depend on GPS for precise navi- gation as well as for determining location and measuring speed; Whereas the land surveying and mapping sector utilizes GPS to produce data that are more accurate and reliable; VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:03 Mar 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR219.IH HR219 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HRES 219 IH Whereas GPS-based time synchronization assists power and utility companies in providing efficient power trans- mission and distribution; Whereas smart grid infrastructure is increasingly reliant on GPS for synchronization and system resilience; Whereas GPS supports autonomous vehicle development by complementing embedded vehicle sensors to determine precise vehicle location and improving safety; Whereas the Federal Aviation Administration relies on GPS to improve all aspects of commercial aviation safety and efficiency, including by providing greater precision and accuracy in all phases of flight, and GPS is also essential for enabling the Next Generation Air Transportation (NEXTGEN) system; Whereas the Federal Aviation Administration relies on GPS to improve commercial aviation safety by synchronizing reporting of hazardous weather with 45 Terminal Dopp- ler Weather Radars; Whereas GPS-based time synchronization assists power and utility companies in providing efficient power trans- mission and distribution; and Whereas economic contributions by GPS include— (1) GPS provides economic benefits valued at $68,700,000,000 or 0.4 percent of the gross domestic product of the United States; (2) the Department of Homeland Security identifies GPS as essential to 14 of the 16 industries that are clas- sified as part of the Nation’s critical infrastructure; (3) GPS-enabled precision agriculture is estimated to save farmers 10 to 15 percent in operating costs and VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:03 Mar 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6300 E:\BILLS\HR219.IH HR219 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HRES 219 IH purchased inputs and the broad economic benefits of pre- cision agriculture are estimated at $13,700,000,000; (4) GPS-enabled surveying is estimated to produce $11,600,000,000 in economic impact; (5) globally, 3,600,000,000 Global Navigation Sat- ellite System devices were in use in 2014, 450,000,000 of which were in North America; (6) geospatial services ecosystem, which are sup- ported by GPS, are estimated to drive $1,600,000,000,000 in revenues and $1,400,000,000,000 in cost savings throughout the United States economy; (7) GPS-enabled internet publishing, broadcasting, and search portals accounted for $87,000,000,000 in rev- enue and supported 181,000 jobs; (8) GPS enables location-based services that will en- hance the $950,000,000,000 app economy, supporting 4,700,000 jobs across the United States; and (9) GPS has proven to be essential to the foundation of the ridesharing industry accessed on smartphones, val- ued close to $61,000,000,000: Now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 1 (1) recognize the contributions made by the 2 men and women of the Air Force who are respon- 3 sible for operating and maintaining the Global Posi- 4 tioning System constellation; and 5 (2) recognize the importance of continuous 6 availability, accuracy, reliability, and resiliency of 7 the Global Positioning System constellation. 8 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:03 Mar 13, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\HR219.IH HR219 pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS