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RESOLUTION URGING THE FLORIDA LEGISLATURE TO ADOPT SENATE MEMORIAL 302 AND HOUSE MEMORIAL 63 OR SIMILAR LEGISLATION URGING THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS TO RECOGNIZE THE EPIDEMIC OF SUICIDE AMONG VETERANS AND FULLY FUND SUICIDE PREVENTION EFFORTS BY THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS; AND URGING THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS TO FULLY FUND THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS SUICIDE PREVENTION EFFORTS

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WHEREAS, according to a report released in June 2020 by the United States Census Bureau, as of 2018 there are approximately 18 million veterans of the United States Armed Forces; and
WHEREAS, this figure represents the men and women who served the United States in peacetime and during military engagement ranging from before World War II through the post-9/11 period; and
WHEREAS, tragically, and as demonstrated in a September 2021 report published by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (�V.A.�), veterans are at a higher risk of suicide as compared to their non-veteran peers; and
WHEREAS, as that report from the V.A. reveals, in 2019, the suicide rate amongst non-veterans was 16.8 per 100,000, while the suicide rate amongst veterans was 31.6 per 100,000; and
WHEREAS, while the V.A. has noted positive trends in the rates of veteran suicides insofar as fewer veterans died by suicide in 2019 than in 2018, nevertheless, as the V.A. observes, �[a]s long as [v]eteran suicides numbers are annually in the thousands, there is no sense of mission accomplishment or satisfaction�; and
WHEREAS, Senate Memorial 302 and House Memorial 63 correctly recognize veteran suicides as a crisis and wisely urge the United States Congress to fully fund the V.A.�s veteran suicide prevention efforts,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA, that this Board:
Section 1. Urges the Florida Legislature to adopt Senate Memorial 302 and House Memorial 63 or similar legislation urging the United States Congress to recognize the current crises of veteran suicide and to fully fund suicide prevention efforts undertaken by the V.A.
Section 2. Urges the United States Congress to fully fund the V.A.�s veteran suicide prevention efforts.
Section 3. Directs the Clerk of the Board to transmit a certified copy of this resolution to the Governor, Senate President, House Speaker, Senator Danny Burgess, Representative Matt Willhite, the Chair and Members of the Miami-Dade County Legislative Delegation, the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Executive Director of the Florida Department of Veterans� Affairs.
Section 4. Directs the County�s state lobbyists to advocate for the legislative action set forth in section 1 above, and authorizes and directs the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs to amend the 2022 State Legislative Package to include this item.
Section 5. Directs the County�s federal lobbyists to advocate for the legislative action set forth in section 2 above, and authorizes and directs the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs to amend the 2021 Federal Legislative Package to include this item and to include this item in the 2022 Federal Legislative Package when it is presented to the Board.