19.3150.01000
Sixty-sixth
Legislative Assembly HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 3059
of North Dakota
Introduced by
Representatives Eidson, Dockter, Grueneich, Kasper, Keiser, Laning, Owens, Pyle, M. Ruby
Senators Bekkedahl, G. Lee, Marcellais
(Approved by the Delayed Bills Committee)
1 A concurrent resolution urging Congress to pass, and President Donald Trump to sign, House
2 Resolution 1911, also known as the SFC Brian Woods Gold Star and Military Survivors Act.
3 WHEREAS, Army Sergeant 1st Class William Brian Woods, Jr. (SFC Brian Woods), a
4 decorated special forces medical sergeant, made the ultimate sacrifice for his country and died
5 of wounds sustained while on patrol in Afghanistan in 2009. He was survived by a wife and two
6 young children; and
7 WHEREAS, service members and their families endure hardships and make sacrifices
8 unique to the military in the service of honor, duty, freedom, and patriotism; and
9 WHEREAS, one way we, as a grateful nation, honor those hardships and sacrifices is by
10 promising we will provide financially for spouses and children of service members who die in the
11 line of duty. In the words of Representative Seth Moulton of Delaware, "[w]hen Gold Star
12 spouses are handed a folded flag, it comes with a sacred commitment from the American
13 people. That commitment is for life . . . . That means Gold Star families should have the peace
14 of mind that comes with knowing child care and funeral expenses are taken care of and that
15 they will receive the nation's lifelong financial support"; and
16 WHEREAS, under current law, widows and widowers of service members who die in the
17 line of duty lose their annuities and other survivor benefits upon remarriage; and
18 WHEREAS, the SFC Brian Woods Gold Star and Military Survivors Act would require the
19 United States Department of Defense to pay the costs of transporting the remains of a service
20 member killed in combat to the service member's hometown for a memorial and to a national
21 cemetery of the Gold Star family's choice, and allow remarried Gold Star widows and widowers
22 to continue to receive annuities and child care service assistance and, if they have dependent
23 children, continue to access facilities on military bases; and
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 Sixty-sixth
Legislative Assembly
1 WHEREAS, it is consistent with North Dakotans' strong support for service members to
2 uphold the nation's promise to care for Gold Star spouses throughout their lifetimes, as provided
3 by the SFC Brian Woods Gold Star and Military Survivors Act;
4 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF
5 NORTH DAKOTA, THE SENATE CONCURRING THEREIN:
6 That the Sixty-sixth Legislative Assembly urges the Congress of the United States to pass
7 the SFC Brian Woods Gold Star and Military Survivors Act and urges President Donald Trump
8 to sign the SFC Brian Woods Gold Star Military Survivors Act; and
9 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Secretary of State forward copies of this resolution
10 to the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, the President Pro Tempore of
11 the United States Senate, each member of the North Dakota Congressional Delegation, and
12 President Donald Trump.
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