[110th Congress Public Law 203]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]
[DOCID: f:publ203.110]
[[Page 122 STAT. 701]]
Public Law 110-203
110th Congress
Joint Resolution
Congratulating the Army Reserve on its centennial, which will be
formally celebrated on April 23, 2008, and commemorating the historic
contributions of its veterans and continuing contributions of its
soldiers to the vital national security interests and homeland defense
missions of the <<NOTE: Apr. 23, 2008 - [H.J. Res. 70]>> United States.
Whereas on January 9, 1905, the 26th President of the United States,
Theodore Roosevelt, dispatched a ``special message'' to the Senate
and the House of Representatives that ``earnestly recommended
passage'' of legislation to establish a Federal reserve force of
skilled and trained personnel to bring ``our Army * * * to the
highest point of efficiency'';
Whereas on December 14, 1905, the then-Secretary of War and later 27th
President of the United States, William Howard Taft, transmitted to
the Senate and the House of Representatives a draft bill and letter
authored by Major General Leonard Wood, ``strongly commending * * *
proposed legislation'' to ``increase the efficiency of the Medical
Corps of the Army'' by establishing a Federal reserve force
comprised of specially trained personnel;
Whereas in response to the recommendations of President Theodore
Roosevelt and senior military and civilian leaders, the 60th
Congress enacted Public Law 101, entitled ``An Act to increase the
efficiency of the Medical Department of the United States Army'',
ch. 150, 35 Stat. 66, which was signed into law on April 23, 1908,
by President Theodore Roosevelt;
Whereas Public Law 101 authorized the establishment of the first Federal
reserve force and the first reservoir of trained officers in a
reserve status for a United States military service;
Whereas Congress subsequently adapted, expanded, and amended the reserve
organization of the Army to include additional military occupational
specialties and capabilities and established the organization today
known as the Army Reserve;
Whereas the Army Reserve has played a major role in the defense of our
Nation and in furtherance of United States interests for 100 years;
Whereas many distinguished Americans have served honorably and with
distinction in the Army Reserve, including Presidents Harry S Truman
and Ronald W. Reagan, the former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff, General Henry H. Shelton, Brigadier General Theodore
Roosevelt, Jr., Major General William J. Donovan (Director of the
Office of Strategic Services during World War II), Drs. Charles H.
Mayo and William J. Mayo, and Captain Eddie Rickenbacker;
[[Page 122 STAT. 702]]
Whereas the Army Reserve contributed 169,500 soldiers to the Army during
World War I;
Whereas the Army Reserve contributed 200,000 soldiers and 29 percent of
the Army's officers during World War II and was recognized by
General George C. Marshall for its unique and invaluable
contributions to the national defense;
Whereas 240,500 soldiers of the Army Reserve were called to active duty
during the Korean War;
Whereas more than 60,000 Army Reserve soldiers were called to active
duty during the Berlin Crisis;
Whereas 35 Army Reserve units were activated and deployed in support of
operations in Vietnam, where they served with distinction and honor;
Whereas the Army Reserve contributed more than 94,000 soldiers in
support of Operations Desert Storm and Desert Shield in 1990 and
1991;
Whereas the Army Reserve contributed more than 48 percent of the reserve
component soldiers mobilized in support of Operation Joint Endeavor
and Operation Joint Guard in Bosnia;
Whereas since September 11, 2001, the Army Reserve has provided
indispensable and sustained support for Operations Enduring Freedom,
Noble Eagle, and Iraqi Freedom, with 98 percent of units either
deployed or providing mobilized soldiers, and more than 147,000
individual soldiers being mobilized (of which more than 110,000
individual soldiers have deployed) in support of the Global War on
Terrorism;
Whereas more than 39,000 individual soldiers of the Army Reserve have
served multiple deployments since September 11, 2001;
Whereas 13,003 Army Reserve soldiers were forward-deployed in the
Central Command Area of Responsibility on October 31, 2007, and 102
soldiers of the Army Reserve had borne the ultimate sacrifice in
support of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom through
October 31, 2007;
Whereas the Army Reserve is organized into 3 components, the Ready
Reserve, the Standby Reserve, and the Retired Reserve, which
together contain more than 601,000 soldiers;
Whereas the Army cannot go to war or sustain a military operation
without the highly skilled and trained personnel of the Army
Reserve;
Whereas the Army Reserve provides more than 37 percent of the mission
essential combat support and combat service support forces of the
Army;
Whereas 100 percent of the Army's Internment Settlement Brigades, Judge
Advocate General Units (Legal Support Organizations), Medical
Groups, Railway Units, and Training and Exercise Divisions are in
the Army Reserve;
Whereas more than 66 percent of the Army's Civil Affairs Units,
Psychological Operations Units, Theater Signal Commands,
Expeditionary Sustainment Commands, and Medical Capabilities are in
the Army Reserve;
Whereas the Army Reserve is no longer a force held in strategic reserve
but today functions as an integral and essential operational reserve
in support of the missions of the active Army;
[[Page 122 STAT. 703]]
Whereas the Army cannot go to war or sustain a military operation
without the skilled and trained Ready Reserve and Retired Reserve
soldiers of the Army Reserve;
Whereas the Selected Reserve component of the Army Reserve is comprised
of more than 30,000 officers and 150,000 enlisted soldiers who have
volunteered their personal service in defense of the Constitution
and their fellow citizens;
Whereas the Army and the Army Reserve are recognized as institutions
that have played historic and decisive roles in promoting the cause
of individual dignity and the value of integration;
Whereas nearly one in four Selected Reserve soldiers and more than one
in five Individual Ready Reserve soldiers are women whose
contributions are consistently characterized by a high degree of
commitment, professionalism, and military bearing;
Whereas the ability of individual soldiers and the Army Reserve to
perform their wartime missions is contingent on the active
engagement and support of their families, employers, and local
communities;
Whereas the Army Reserve is a community-based force with an active
presence in 1,100 communities and 975 Army Reserve centers in
operation throughout the United States;
Whereas Sir Winston Churchill once remarked that ``Reservists are twice
the citizen'', a sentiment that applies especially to the soldiers
of the Army Reserve; and
Whereas the Army Reserve makes these contributions to the security of
our Nation in return for less than 5 percent of the Army's total
budget: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United
States of America in Congress assembled, That the Congress--
(1) congratulates the Army Reserve on the occasion of the
100th anniversary of the enactment of its original authorizing
law;
(2) recognizes and commends the Army Reserve for the
selfless and dedicated service of its past and present citizen-
soldiers whose personal courage, contributions, and sacrifices
have helped preserve the freedom and advance the national
security and homeland defense of the United States; and
[[Page 122 STAT. 704]]
(3) extends its gratitude to the veterans, soldiers,
families, and employers whose essential and constant support
have enabled the Army Reserve to accomplish its vital missions
and renews our Nation's commitment in support of their noble
efforts.
Approved April 23, 2008.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY--H.J. Res. 70:
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CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 154 (2008):
Apr. 8, considered and passed House.
Apr. 14, considered and passed Senate.
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