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HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 13
IN THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE - SECOND SESSION
BY REPRESENTATIVES TUCK, Shaw, Tarr
Introduced: 2/24/20
Referred: House Special Committee on Arctic Policy, Economic Development, & Tourism
A RESOLUTION
1 Urging the United States Coast Guard to name one of the two new polar class
2 icebreakers the "Polar Bear" and to station the icebreaker in the Arctic.
3 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:
4 WHEREAS the Cutter Bear, referred to here as the "USCGC Bear" because of its
5 longevity of service to the United States Coast Guard, was a vessel that served the United
6 States Revenue Cutter Service, United States Coast Guard, and the United States Navy; and
7 WHEREAS the USCGC Bear served those respective estimable institutions from
8 1884 to 1944; and
9 WHEREAS the USCGC Bear was an infallible asset in the Bering Sea Patrol, helping
10 to develop, protect, and explore the state's coast in the late nineteenth century and early
11 twentieth century; and
12 WHEREAS the USCGC Bear conducted several different exploratory missions in the
13 Arctic and Antarctic regions; and
14 WHEREAS the USCGC Bear served in the Greenland Patrol during World War II,
15 helping to protect allied shipping during the Battle of the Atlantic; and
16 WHEREAS, while being towed in March of 1963, the USCGC Bear was lost at sea;
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1 and
2 WHEREAS the Natural Resources Management Act of 2019 passed by the 116th
3 Congress of the United States of America appropriated funds for two new polar class
4 icebreakers for service in the Arctic; and
5 WHEREAS the two new polar class icebreakers will operate in similar conditions to
6 the USCGC Bear, and will likely be as imperative as the USCGC Bear was in furthering the
7 development of coastal areas of the state; and
8 WHEREAS the Arctic will continue to offer significant economic opportunities in
9 natural resource development and international trade; and
10 WHEREAS severe weather conditions in the Arctic Ocean require year-round ice
11 breaking capabilities; and
12 WHEREAS other Arctic nations are proactively developing infrastructure, including
13 building more icebreakers, to take advantage of the opportunities in the Arctic; and
14 WHEREAS naming one of the new vessels the "Polar Bear" encourages placement in
15 the Arctic as polar bears do not live in any other part of the world that requires ice-breaking
16 capabilities;
17 BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature requests the United States Coast
18 Guard to name one of the new polar class icebreakers currently under construction the "Polar
19 Bear" to pay homage to the lost USCGC Bear; and be it
20 FURTHER RESOLVED the Alaska State Legislature urges the United States Coast
21 Guard to permanently station the polar class icebreakers in the Arctic to ensure safe year-
22 round navigation and national security.
23 COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Donald J. Trump, President
24 of the United States; the Honorable Michael R. Pence, Vice President of the United States and
25 President of the U.S. Senate; Admiral Karl L. Schultz, Commandant, U.S. Coast Guard; and
26 the Honorable Lisa Murkowski and the Honorable Dan Sullivan, U.S. Senators, and the
27 Honorable Don Young, U.S. Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in Congress.
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