00CS FOR HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 8(MLV) am S                                                                         
01 Relating to a national ballistic missile defense system.                                                                
02 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                              
03  WHEREAS the collapse of the Soviet Union has rendered obsolete the treaty                                            
04 constraints and diplomatic understandings that limited the development and deployment of                                
05 weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems during the Cold War; and                                         
06  WHEREAS the world has consequently witnessed during this decade an unprecedented                                     
07 proliferation of sophisticated military technology, including nuclear, chemical, and biological                         
08 weapons and ballistic missiles; and                                                                                     
09  WHEREAS the United States has recognized that it currently has no means of                                           
10 protecting persons living in all 50 states from attack by these new threats and has initiated a                         
11 program to develop and deploy a national ballistic missile defense system; and                                          
12  WHEREAS four locations in Alaska are currently being considered as sites for                                         
13 deployment of the intercept vehicles for this system; and                                                               
14  WHEREAS each of these locations provides the unmatched military value of a                                           

01 strategic location from which persons living in all 50 states can be defended as required by                            
02 the United States Constitution; and                                                                                     
03  WHEREAS, throughout Alaska's history as a territory and a state, Alaska's citizens                                   
04 have been unwavering in their support of a strong national defense while warmly welcoming                               
05 the men and women of our armed forces stationed in Alaska; and                                                          
06  WHEREAS construction, operation and maintenance of a high technology missile                                         
07 defense system would require advanced labor skills; and                                                                 
08  WHEREAS these high technology workers would increase Alaska's human asset base                                       
09 and provide a highly skilled labor force for use by private enterprise;                                                 
10  BE IT RESOLVED that the Twenty-First Alaska State Legislature calls upon the                                         
11 President, as Commander In Chief of the Armed Forces of the United States, to provide for                               
12 the common defense of our nation by selecting an Alaska site for the deployment of the                                  
13 intercept vehicles for the national ballistic missile defense system; and be it                                         
14  FURTHER RESOLVED that the Twenty-First Alaska State Legislature requests that,                                       
15 in the development and operation of a national ballistic missile defense system in Alaska, the                          
16 Department of Defense provide adequate protection from any danger posed by the system to                                
17 local residents; and be it                                                                                              
18  FURTHER RESOLVED that the Twenty-First Alaska State Legislature strongly                                             
19 encourages the Department of Defense to contract with Alaska businesses in the development,                             
20 construction, and operation of a national ballistic missile defense system in Alaska.                                   
21  COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Bill Clinton, President of the                              
22 United States; the Honorable William Cohen, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Defense;                                
23 the Honorable Floyd D. Spence, Chair, Committee on Armed Services, U.S. House of                                        
24 Representatives; the Honorable John Warner, Chair, Committee on Armed Services, U.S.                                    
25 Senate; and to the Honorable Ted Stevens and the Honorable Frank Murkowski, U.S. Senators,                              
26 and the Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in                                   
27 Congress.