107TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. CON. RES. 233
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Whereas law enforcement officers, firefighters, and emer-
gency medical personnel are collectively known as first re-
sponders;
Whereas following the terrorist attacks on the World Trade
Center and the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, first
responders reacted immediately in evacuating and res-
cuing innocent people from the buildings;
•HCON 233 EH
Whereas first responders also arrived quickly at the crash site
of United Airlines flight 93 in southwestern Pennsyl-
vania;
Whereas if it were not for the heroic efforts of first respond-
ers immediately after the terrorist attacks, numerous ad-
ditional casualties would have resulted from the attacks;
Whereas as the first emergency personnel to arrive at the
scenes of the terrorist attacks, first responders risked
their lives in their efforts to save others;
Whereas while first responders were bravely conducting the
evacuation and rescue after the terrorist attack on the
World Trade Center, the two towers of that complex col-
lapsed, and many first responders themselves became vic-
tims of the attack;
Whereas the everyday well-being, security, and safety of
Americans depend upon the official duties of first re-
sponders;
Whereas in addition to their official duties, first responders
around the Nation participate in planning, training, and
exercises to respond to terrorist attacks;
Whereas emergency managers, public health officials, and
medical care providers also invest significant time in
planning, training, and exercises to better respond to ter-
rorist attacks in the United States;
Whereas the Nation has not forgotten the heroic efforts of
first responders after the bombing of the World Trade
Center on February 26, 1993, and the bombing of the
Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma, on April 19, 1995;
Whereas there are numerous Federal programs that help pre-
pare first responders from across the Nation, including
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the Domestic Preparedness Program and other training
and exercise programs administered by the Department
of Justice;
Whereas there are also domestic preparedness programs ad-
ministered by the Federal Emergency Management Agen-
cy, which together with the programs of the Department
of Justice support State and local first responders with
funding, training, equipment acquisition, technical assist-
ance, exercise planning, and execution;
Whereas many of the first responders who participate in such
programs do so on their own time;
Whereas an effective response of local first responders to a
terrorist attack saves lives; and
Whereas in response to a terrorist attack, first responders are
exposed to a high risk of bodily harm and death as the
first line of defense of the United States in managing the
aftermath of the attack: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That the Congress—
(1) expresses its profound sorrow for the death
and injuries suffered by first responders as they en-
deavored to save innocent people in the aftermath of
the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and
the Pentagon on September 11, 2001;
(2) expresses its deepest sympathies to the fam-
ilies and loved ones of the fallen first responders;
(3) honors and commends the first responders
who participated in evacuating and rescuing the in-
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nocent people in the World Trade Center and the
Pentagon after the terrorist attacks;
(4) encourages the President to issue a procla-
mation calling upon the people of the United States
to pay respect to the first responder community for
their service in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks
and their continuing efforts to save lives; and
(5) encourages all levels of government to con-
tinue to work together to effectively coordinate emer-
gency preparedness by providing the infrastructure,
funding, and interagency communication and co-
operation necessary to ensure that when another ter-
rorist attack occurs, first responders will be as pre-
pared as possible to respond to the attack effectively.
Passed the House of Representatives October 30,
2001.
Attest:
Clerk.