Senate Concurrent Resolution 8

PAG LIN

  1  1          SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO.    
  1  2     BY  HOSCH, BEALL, QUIRMBACH, WARNSTADT, HATCH,
  1  3      DOTZLER, GRONSTAL, STEWART, CONNOLLY, KIBBIE,
  1  4   VEENSTRA, HOUSER, WIECK, SEYMOUR, JOHNSON, REHBERG,
  1  5     ZIEMAN, BRUNKHORST, PUTNEY, LUNDBY, KETTERING,
  1  6  SCHUERER, BEHN, SIEVERS, GASKILL, REDFERN, McKIBBEN,
  1  7                       and IVERSON
  1  8 A Concurrent Resolution supporting the completion of
  1  9    U.S. Highway 20 across northern Iowa and requesting
  1 10    federal assistance.
  1 11    WHEREAS, the Iowa General Assembly finds that a
  1 12 critical need exists to complete U.S. Highway 20 as a
  1 13 four=lane, high priority corridor across the state of
  1 14 Iowa; and
  1 15    WHEREAS, the road known as U.S. Highway 20 was one
  1 16 of the first coast=to=coast highways in the United
  1 17 States, beginning in downtown Boston and continuing
  1 18 across the country to the Pacific Coast in Oregon; and
  1 19    WHEREAS, U.S. Highway 20 connects all north=south
  1 20 interstates in Iowa and is an arterial link to the
  1 21 North American Free Trade Act (NAFTA) corridor; and
  1 22    WHEREAS, Iowa has three north=south interstate
  1 23 highways, but only one east=west interstate highway,
  1 24 and the distance from northwest Iowa to Chicago via
  1 25 Interstate 80 is approximately 100 miles farther than
  1 26 the distance via U.S. Highway 20; and
  1 27    WHEREAS, most northwest Iowa businesses and farms
  1 28 are located 60 to 90 miles from a four=lane highway,
  1 29 limiting the region's potential for economic growth;
  1 30 and
  2  1    WHEREAS, an estimated 50 percent of the millions of
  2  2 bushels of corn and soybeans grown in the region are
  2  3 shipped out of northwest Iowa by truck; and
  2  4    WHEREAS, more than 6,500 businesses are located in
  2  5 the 10 Iowa counties along the U.S. Highway 20
  2  6 corridor, and of the 109 Iowa companies with 1,000 or
  2  7 more employees, 30 are located or have a presence in
  2  8 those counties; and
  2  9    WHEREAS, more than 11,000 businesses are located in
  2 10 the 19 Iowa counties that U.S. Highway 20 serves as an
  2 11 arterial highway connecting to Interstate 29 and
  2 12 Interstate 35; and
  2 13    WHEREAS, the environmentally friendly bridge built
  2 14 over the Iowa river near Iowa Falls at a cost of $20
  2 15 million demonstrates the corridor's promise as a
  2 16 showcase for Iowa's natural beauty; and
  2 17    WHEREAS, the estimated cost to complete the
  2 18 construction of U.S. Highway 20 as a four=lane highway
  2 19 from Fort Dodge, Iowa, to Moville, Iowa, is $450
  2 20 million; and
  2 21    WHEREAS, the completion of U.S. Highway 20 as a
  2 22 high priority, east=west corridor is a good investment
  2 23 for all of Iowa and the nation; NOW THEREFORE,
  2 24    BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE, THE HOUSE OF
  2 25 REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING, That the Iowa General
  2 26 Assembly supports the completion of U.S. Highway 20 as
  2 27 a high priority corridor across the northern half of
  2 28 Iowa; and
  2 29    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Iowa General
  2 30 Assembly supports inclusion of U.S. Highway 20 as a
  3  1 high priority corridor in the upcoming reauthorization
  3  2 of the federal Transportation Equity Act for the 21st
  3  3 Century and in the federal appropriation request by
  3  4 the State Department of Transportation for fiscal year
  3  5 2004; and
  3  6    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That a copy of this
  3  7 Resolution be sent to the Director of the United
  3  8 States Department of Transportation, the Director of
  3  9 the State Department of Transportation, and to the
  3 10 members of Iowa's congressional delegation.
  3 11 LSB 2395XS 80
  3 12 dea/cf/24