THE SENATE	S.R. NO.	69
TWENTY-FIFTH LEGISLATURE, 2009
STATE OF HAWAII

SENATE RESOLUTION

SUPPORTing the PEACE CORPS EXPANSION ACT OF 2009.

     WHEREAS, on March 1, 1961, President John F. Kennedy signed an Executive Order establishing the Peace Corps; and

     WHEREAS, since President Kennedy established the Peace Corps, more than 195,000 volunteers, 1,274 from Hawaii, have served in 139 countries; and

     WHEREAS, the Peace Corps continues to be one of America's finest expressions of friendship and solidarity across the globe; and

     WHEREAS, the Peace Corps is focused on grassroots, bottom-up development, with volunteers working side-by-side with community members in the most humble communities around the world; and

     WHEREAS, the Peace Corps has reported that over 20 countries have requested a Peace Corps program, and that many countries with existing programs would welcome additional volunteers; and

     WHEREAS, in Fiscal Year 2008, the Peace Corps reported that its volunteers provided assistance to more than 2.1 million people around the world, helped train nearly 160,000 service providers, and assisted with nearly 600 grassroots projects through the Peace Corps Partnership Program; and

     WHEREAS, at the cost of less than $45,000 per volunteer, Peace Corps volunteers are highly cost-effective; and

     WHEREAS, in so many ways, returned Peace Corps volunteers continue to provide service and play important roles as leaders in our community; and

     WHEREAS, although 13,011 Americans applied in 2008 to volunteer their service to serve the world’s poorest communities, the Peace Corps is able to provide placements for fewer than 4,000; and

     WHEREAS, a devalued dollar, increased energy prices, and budget constraints would result in 300 to 400 further reductions in volunteers with current funding; and

WHEREAS, the grassroots MorePeaceCorps Campaign supports doubling the size of the Peace Corps; and

     WHEREAS, the United States House of Representatives is considering H.R. 1066, the "Peace Corps Expansion Act of 2009," to increase the 2010 fiscal year budget of the Peace Corps to $450,000,000; now, therefore,

     BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Twenty-fifth Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2009, to provide support to the MorePeaceCorps Campaign and the Congressional Peace Corps Expansion Act of 2009; and

     BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to Hawaii's Congressional delegation and to Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of Hawaii.

OFFERED BY:

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Report Title: 

Peace Corps Expansion Act of 2009