III 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. RES. 163 

Expressing the sense of the Senate on the humanitarian catastrophe caused 

by the April 25, 2015, earthquake in Nepal. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 30, 2015 

Mr. CARDIN (for himself, Mr. RISCH, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. MARKEY, Mrs. SHAHEEN, Ms. MIKULSKI, Mr. TESTER, Mr. MURPHY, Mr. SCHUMER, Mrs. 

BOXER, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. KAINE, Mr. COONS, Mr. REED, Ms. MURKOWSKI, Mr. RUBIO, and Ms. AYOTTE) submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to 

RESOLUTION 

Expressing the sense of the Senate on the humanitarian 

catastrophe caused by the April 25, 2015, earthquake 

in Nepal. 

Whereas, on April 25, 2015, an earthquake measuring 7.8 on 

the Richter scale and the aftershocks of the earthquake 

devastated Kathmandu, Nepal and the surrounding 

areas, killing thousands, injuring thousands more people, 

and leaving many thousands of people homeless; 

Whereas the earthquake also resulted in the loss of life and 

destruction of property in India, Bangladesh, and the Tibetan Autonomous Region of China; 

Whereas United States citizens were also killed in the widescale destruction caused by the earthquake; 


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•SRES 163 ATS 

Whereas Nepal, which is one of the poorest countries in the 

world, has an estimated 25 percent of the population living on less than $1.25 a day, has an estimated 46 percent unemployment rate with a majority of the population engaged in subsistence agriculture, and has one of 

the slowest economic growth rates in the region; 

Whereas years of civil conflict in Nepal led to a massive influx of people into urban areas despite the absence of appropriate facilities, roads, housing, and infrastructure to 

support the people; 

Whereas, since the end of hostilities, political gridlock among 

the leadership of Nepal to finalize a constitution has stymied growth and development; 

Whereas the loss of infrastructure will further inhibit economic growth in the impoverished country of Nepal; 

Whereas the United States Government has worked with the 

Government of Nepal on disaster risk reduction and 

earthquake preparedness for years, which certainly saved 

many lives and accelerated the ability of the Government 

and people of Nepal to respond to disasters and earthquakes; 

Whereas the United States Government and the international 

community are mounting a large-scale response and recovery effort; and 

Whereas the United States Agency for International Development is leading the response of the United States by providing a Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART), 

funding, and Urban Search and Rescue experts: Now, 

therefore, be it 

1 Resolved, That the Senate— 


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•SRES 163 ATS 

1 (1) expresses profound sympathy to, and un2 wavering support for, the people of Nepal, India, 

3 Bangladesh, and the Tibetan Autonomous Region of 

4 China, who have always shown resilience and now 

5 face catastrophic conditions in the aftermath of the 

6 April 25, 2015, earthquake, and sympathy for the 

7 families of the citizens of the United States who per8 ished in the disaster; 

9 (2) applauds the rapid and concerted mobiliza10 tion by President Barack Obama to provide imme11 diate emergency humanitarian assistance to Nepal, 

12 and the hard work and dedication of the people at 

13 the Department of State, the United States Agency 

14 for International Development, and the Department 

15 of Defense in quickly marshaling United States Gov16 ernment resources to address both the short- and 

17 long-term needs in Nepal; 

18 (3) urges that all appropriate efforts be made 

19 to secure the safety of orphans in Nepal; 

20 (4) urges that all appropriate efforts be made 

21 to sustain recovery assistance to Nepal beyond the 

22 immediate humanitarian crisis to support the people 

23 of Nepal with appropriate humanitarian, develop24 mental, and infrastructure assistance needed to 

25 overcome the effects of the earthquake; 


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•SRES 163 ATS 

1 (5) expresses appreciation for the ongoing and 

2 renewed commitment of the international community 

3 to the recovery and development of Nepal; 

4 (6) urges all countries to commit to assisting 

5 the people of Nepal with their long-term needs; 

6 (7) calls on the Government of Nepal to take all 

7 necessary actions to enable a faster and more sus8 tainable recovery; and 

9 (8) expresses support for the United States 

10 Embassy team in Kathmandu, DART members, 

11 other Federal agencies, and the non governmental 

12 organization community in the United States, who 

13 are valiantly working to assist thousands of people 

14 in Nepal under extremely adverse conditions. 

Æ 


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