_______________________, read first time and referred to Committee on

    A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION honoring Rodney E. Slater, United States Secretary of Transportation.

    Whereas, Rodney E. Slater, the 13th United States Secretary of Transportation, was named Secretary of Transportation on February 14, 1997, making him only the third Arkansan in our history to hold a position in the President's cabinet;

    Whereas, Secretary Slater was born on February 23, 1955, in Marianna, Arkansas;

    Whereas, Secretary Slater graduated from Eastern Michigan University and earned a law degree at the University of Arkansas;

    Whereas, As head of the Department of Transportation, which employs 100,000 people and has a budget of $40 billion, Secretary Slater "has built bridges both of steel and of goodwill to bring people closer together";

    Whereas, In his first year, the Department of Transportation has constructed more than 100 miles of transit lines, repaired thousands of America's bridges, worked tirelessly to improve the safety of our rail system and avert a strike by Amtrak, saved more than 5,000 lives at sea, and stopped more drugs from entering our country than ever before;

    Whereas, Secretary Slater is also concerned with the

future of our children, establishing the Garrett A. Morgan Technology and Transportation Futures Program that is aimed at attracting one million young people into transportation careers;

    Whereas, Transportation plays an important, yet often unheralded, role in the economic well-being of the State of Indiana and the lives of Hoosiers;

    Whereas, It is imperative that Indiana receive federal highway money to maintain, improve, and expand the state's highway system;

    Whereas, Secretary Slater has been instrumental in this effort;

    Whereas, Indiana's share of federal highway money increased from an average of 78 cents to 90.5 cents on every dollar in federal gas tax Indiana sends to Washington, D.C.;

    Whereas, The additional $209 million Indiana receives each year of the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA 21) will greatly help state and local governments meet their highway needs;

    Whereas, Secretary Slater has been extremely helpful in dealing with two Indiana highway projects - the Southwest Indiana Corridor and the Hoosier Heartland Highway;

    Whereas, the Southwest Indiana Corridor, which links Bloomington with Evansville via an interstate highway, is in the final stages of an environmental impact study with first construction anticipated to begin before 2002;

    Whereas, the Hoosier Heartland Highway, linking Lafayette and Fort Wayne via a four-lane limited access highway, is in the developmental stage with a portion of that project, the upgrading of Indiana 25 between Lafayette and Logansport, entering the environmental impact study phase;

    Whereas, Secretary Slater has received many honors during his distinguished career, among them the Black

Alumni Achievement Award from Eastern Michigan University, Ebony's 100 Most Influential Black Americans, the National Bar Association's President's Award, The Arkansas Times "Arkansas Hero" award, and the W. Harold Flowers Law Society Lawyer-Citizen Award; and

    Whereas, Secretary Slater's feelings regarding his job and his duty to the citizens of our great nation can best be summed up in his own words - "I believe that transportation is about more than concrete, asphalt, and steel. It is truly about people and providing them the opportunity to be successful and responsible individuals.": Therefore,

    SECTION 1. That the Indiana General Assembly wishes to recognize the many contributions Secretary of Transportation Rodney E. Slater has made to the mobility of the nation and to the well-being of its citizens.
    SECTION 2. That the Principal Clerk of the House of Representatives transmit a copy of this resolution to Secretary of Transportation Rodney E. Slater; his wife, Cassandra; and their daughter, Bridgette Josette.