IV 
116TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. RES. 219 
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 avail-
ability, accuracy, reliability, and resiliency of the Global Positioning Sys-
tem constellation. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 12, 2019 
Mr. LOEBSACK (for himself and Mr. BACON) submitted the following 
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services 
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, reliability, and resiliency of the Global Posi-
tioning 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 op-
erating at an altitude of approximately 12,550 miles 
above the Earth; 
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•HRES 219 IH 
Whereas GPS-enabled precision agriculture has led to input 
cost savings of $8,200,000,000 and yield increases in 
grain production in the United States; 
Whereas GPS precision timing allows for accurate record 
management by major financial institutions, including de-
tailed transaction management for large and small busi-
nesses; 
Whereas GPS has proven to be an essential tool in facili-
tating social and economic activity around the world; 
Whereas consumers overwhelmingly access GPS using a vari-
ety 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, re-
sulting in savings in time and money to taxpayers; 
Whereas first responders utilize GPS to enable more timely 
and accurate disaster response, improve situational 
awareness as well as for identifying the location of 9–1– 
1 calls made from wireless phones; 
Whereas the safety of our Nation’s rail systems is improved 
by implementing GPS-based Positive Train Control 
(PTC) systems; 
Whereas GPS-enabled applications and services enhance the 
independence of individuals with visual impairments; 
Whereas marine operations depend on GPS for precise navi-
gation as well as for determining location and measuring 
speed; 
Whereas the land surveying and mapping sector utilizes GPS 
to produce data that are more accurate and reliable; 
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Whereas GPS-based time synchronization assists power and 
utility companies in providing efficient power trans-
mission and distribution; 
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 commercial aviation safety and 
efficiency, including by providing greater precision and 
accuracy in all phases of flight, and GPS is also essential 
for enabling the Next Generation Air Transportation 
(NEXTGEN) system; 
Whereas the Federal Aviation Administration relies on GPS 
to improve commercial aviation safety by synchronizing 
reporting of hazardous weather with 45 Terminal Dopp-
ler Weather Radars; 
Whereas GPS-based time synchronization assists power and 
utility companies in providing efficient power trans-
mission and distribution; and 
Whereas economic contributions by GPS include— 
(1) GPS provides economic benefits valued at 
$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 clas-
sified as part of the Nation’s critical infrastructure; 
(3) GPS-enabled precision agriculture is estimated 
to save farmers 10 to 15 percent in operating costs and 
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purchased inputs and the broad economic benefits of pre-
cision agriculture are estimated at $13,700,000,000; 
(4) GPS-enabled surveying is estimated to produce 
$11,600,000,000 in economic impact; 
(5) globally, 3,600,000,000 Global Navigation Sat-
ellite System devices were in use in 2014, 450,000,000 
of which were in North America; 
(6) geospatial services ecosystem, which are sup-
ported 
by 
GPS, 
are 
estimated 
to 
drive 
$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 $87,000,000,000 in rev-
enue and supported 181,000 jobs; 
(8) GPS enables location-based services that will en-
hance the $950,000,000,000 app economy, supporting 
4,700,000 jobs across the United States; and 
(9) GPS has proven to be essential to the foundation 
of the ridesharing industry accessed on smartphones, val-
ued close to $61,000,000,000: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved, That the House of Representatives— 
(1) recognize the contributions made by the 
men and women of the Air Force who are respon-
sible for operating and maintaining the Global Posi-
tioning System constellation; and 
(2) recognize the importance of continuous 
availability, accuracy, reliability, and resiliency of 
the Global Positioning System constellation. 
Æ 
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