III 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 216 

Recognizing the contributions made by the men and women of the Air Force 

who are responsible for operating and maintaining the Global Positioning 

System constellation and affirming the importance of continuous availability, accuracy, efficiency, robustness, reliability, and resiliency of the 

Global Positioning System constellation. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MAY 21, 2019 

Ms. DUCKWORTH (for herself, Ms. ERNST, Mr. MERKLEY, and Ms. HASSAN) 

submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to 

RESOLUTION 

Recognizing the contributions made by the men and women 

of the Air Force who are responsible for operating and 

maintaining the Global Positioning System constellation 

and affirming the importance of continuous availability, 

accuracy, efficiency, robustness, reliability, and resiliency 

of the Global Positioning System constellation. 

Whereas the Global Positioning System (referred to in this 

preamble as ‘‘GPS’’) offers both military and civilian 

benefits of positioning, navigation, and timing services; 

Whereas the GPS constellation is managed and operated by 

the Air Force and consists of more than 30 satellites operating at an altitude of approximately 12,550 miles 

above the Earth; 


pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS
2 

•SRES 216 ATS 

Whereas GPS precision timing allows for accurate record 

management by major financial institutions, including detailed transaction management for large and small businesses; 

Whereas GPS has proven to be an essential tool in facilitating social and economic activity around the world; 

Whereas consumers overwhelmingly access GPS using a variety of platforms, such as smartphones and a wireless 

broadband connection; 

Whereas cities leverage GPS applications to support Smart 

Cities initiatives that will increase service efficiency, resulting in savings in time and money for taxpayers; 

Whereas first responders use GPS to enable more timely and 

accurate disaster response and improve situational awareness and to identify the location of 9–1–1 calls made 

from wireless phones; 

Whereas the safety of the rail systems in the United States 

is improved by implementing GPS-based positive train 

control systems; 

Whereas GPS-enabled applications and services enhance the 

independence of individuals with visual impairments; 

Whereas marine operations depend on GPS for precise navigation as well as for determining location and measuring 

speed; 

Whereas the land surveying and mapping sector uses GPS to 

produce data that is more accurate and reliable; 

Whereas GPS-based time synchronization assists power and 

utility companies in providing efficient power transmission and distribution; 


pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS
3 

•SRES 216 ATS 

Whereas smart grid infrastructure is increasingly reliant on 

GPS for synchronization and system resilience; 

Whereas GPS supports autonomous vehicle development by 

complementing embedded vehicle sensors to determine 

precise vehicle location and improving safety; 

Whereas the Federal Aviation Administration relies on GPS 

to improve all aspects of aviation safety and efficiency, 

including by providing greater precision and accuracy in 

all phases of flight; 

Whereas GPS is also essential for enabling the Next Generation Air Transportation system; 

Whereas the Federal Aviation Administration relies on GPS 

to improve aviation safety by synchronizing reporting of 

hazardous weather with 45 Terminal Doppler Weather 

Radars; and 

Whereas economic contributions by GPS include the following: 

(1) In 2013, GPS provided economic benefits with a 

mid-range estimated value of approximately 

$68,700,000,000 or 0.4 percent of the gross domestic 

product of the United States. 

(2) The Department of Homeland Security identifies 

GPS as essential to 14 of the 16 industries that are classified as part of the nation’s critical infrastructure. 

(3) In 2013, GPS-enabled precision agriculture was 

estimated to save grain farmers 10 to 15 percent in operating costs and purchased inputs and the broad economic 

benefit of precision agriculture in grain farming was estimated to provide a mid-range benefit of 

$13,700,000,000. 


pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS
4 

•SRES 216 ATS 

(4) In 2013, GPS-enabled surveying was estimated 

to produce a mid-range economic benefit of 

$11,600,000,000. 

(5) Globally, 3,600,000,000 Global Navigation Satellite System devices were in use in 2014, 450,000,000 

of which were in North America. 

(6) In 2012, the Boston Consulting Group estimated 

that the geospatial services ecosystem, which is supported 

by GPS, drove $1,600,000,000,000 in revenues and 

$1,400,000,000,000 in cost savings throughout the 

United States economy. 

(7) GPS-enabled internet publishing, broadcasting, 

and search portals accounted for $170,781,000,000 in 

revenue in 2017 and supported over 275,000 jobs in 

2017. 

(8) GPS enables location-based services that will enhance the over $568,470,000,000 app economy, supporting an estimated 5,744,481 jobs across the United 

States in 2018. 

(9) GPS has proven to be essential to the foundation 

of the ridesharing industry accessed on smartphones, valued by one estimate to be over $61,000,000,000: Now, 

therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate recognizes— 

2 (1) the contributions made by the men and 

3 women of the Air Force who are responsible for op4 erating and maintaining the Global Positioning Sys5 tem constellation; 

6 (2) the valuable contributions made by the De7 partment of Transportation in coordinating interVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:06 May 21, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\SR216.ATS SR216

pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS
5 

•SRES 216 ATS 

1 actions with the civil users of the Global Positioning 

2 System; and 

3 (3) the importance of continuous availability, 

4 accuracy, efficiency, robustness, reliability, and resil5 iency of the Global Positioning System constellation. 

Æ 


pamtmann on DSKBFK8HB2PROD with BILLS