House Concurrent Resolution 16

PAG LIN

  1  1           HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO.    
  1  2   BY  FREEMAN, MILLER, MURPHY, WENDT, WHITEAD, MERTZ,
  1  3      KUHN, D. TAYLOR, SHOULTZ, OSTERHAUS, JOCHUM,
  1  4     THOMAS, BERRY, FORD, MYERS, TJEPKES, RASMUSSEN,
  1  5       HUSEMAN, CHAMBERS, ALONS, HOFFMAN, GRANZOW,
  1  6       ROBERTS, TYMESON, FREVERT, RAYHONS, LUKAN,
  1  7    MANTERNACH, DENNIS, D. HANSON, EICHHORN, KLEMME,
  1  8    RANTS, UPMEYER, JENKINS, SCHICKEL, DIX, and GIPP
  1  9 A Concurrent Resolution supporting the completion of
  1 10    U.S. Highway 20 across northern Iowa and requesting
  1 11    federal assistance.
  1 12    WHEREAS, the Iowa General Assembly finds that a
  1 13 critical need exists to complete U.S. Highway 20 as a
  1 14 four=lane, high priority corridor across the state of
  1 15 Iowa; and
  1 16    WHEREAS, the road known as U.S. Highway 20 was one
  1 17 of the first coast=to=coast highways in the United
  1 18 States, beginning in downtown Boston and continuing
  1 19 across the country to the Pacific Coast in Oregon; and
  1 20    WHEREAS, U.S. Highway 20 connects all north=south
  1 21 interstates in Iowa and is an arterial link to the
  1 22 North American Free Trade Act (NAFTA) corridor; and
  1 23    WHEREAS, Iowa has three north=south interstate
  1 24 highways, but only one east=west interstate highway,
  1 25 and the distance from northwest Iowa to Chicago via
  1 26 Interstate 80 is approximately 100 miles farther than
  1 27 the distance via U.S. Highway 20; and
  1 28    WHEREAS, most northwest Iowa businesses and farms
  1 29 are located 60 to 90 miles from a four=lane highway,
  1 30 limiting the region's potential for economic growth;
  2  1 and
  2  2    WHEREAS, an estimated 50 percent of the millions of
  2  3 bushels of corn and soybeans grown in the region are
  2  4 shipped out of northwest Iowa by truck; and
  2  5    WHEREAS, more than 6,500 businesses are located in
  2  6 the 10 Iowa counties along the U.S. Highway 20
  2  7 corridor, and of the 109 Iowa companies with 1,000 or
  2  8 more employees, 30 are located or have a presence in
  2  9 those counties; and
  2 10    WHEREAS, more than 11,000 businesses are located in
  2 11 the 19 Iowa counties that U.S. Highway 20 serves as an
  2 12 arterial highway connecting to Interstate 29 and
  2 13 Interstate 35; and
  2 14    WHEREAS, the environmentally friendly bridge built
  2 15 over the Iowa river near Iowa Falls at a cost of $20
  2 16 million demonstrates the corridor's promise as a
  2 17 showcase for Iowa's natural beauty; and
  2 18    WHEREAS, the estimated cost to complete the
  2 19 construction of U.S. Highway 20 as a four=lane highway
  2 20 from Fort Dodge, Iowa, to Moville, Iowa, is $450
  2 21 million; and
  2 22    WHEREAS, the completion of U.S. Highway 20 as a
  2 23 high priority, east=west corridor is a good investment
  2 24 for all of Iowa and the nation; NOW THEREFORE,
  2 25    BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, THE
  2 26 SENATE CONCURRING, That the Iowa General Assembly
  2 27 supports the completion of U.S. Highway 20 as a high
  2 28 priority corridor across the northern half of Iowa;
  2 29 and
  2 30    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Iowa General
  3  1 Assembly supports inclusion of U.S. Highway 20 as a
  3  2 high priority corridor in the upcoming reauthorization
  3  3 of the federal Transportation Equity Act for the 21st
  3  4 Century and in the federal appropriation request by
  3  5 the State Department of Transportation for fiscal year
  3  6 2004; and
  3  7    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this
  3  8 Resolution be sent to the Director of the United
  3  9 States Department of Transportation, the Director of
  3 10 the State Department of Transportation, and to the
  3 11 members of Iowa's congressional delegation.
  3 12 LSB 2395HH 80
  3 13 dea/cf/24