Title: A 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.
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security

Summary:
This resolution recognizes the contributions made by the Air Force personnel responsible for operating and maintaining the Global Positioning System (GPS) constellation of satellites; those made by the Department of Transportation in coordinating interactions with civil users of the GPS; and the importance of continuous availability, accuracy, efficiency, robustness, reliability, and resiliency of the GPS constellation.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 216 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]

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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;
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;
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.

    (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

    Resolved, That the Senate recognizes--
            (1) the contributions made by the men and women of the Air 
        Force who are responsible for operating and maintaining the 
        Global Positioning System constellation;
            (2) the valuable contributions made by the Department of 
        Transportation in coordinating interactions with the civil 
        users of the Global Positioning System; and
            (3) the importance of continuous availability, accuracy, 
        efficiency, robustness, reliability, and resiliency of the 
        Global Positioning System constellation.
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