Relates to the designation of the "United States Submarine Veterans' Memorial Highway - Saratoga County"

Section 2 - calls for the Commissioner of Transportation to provide for the installation and maintenance of appropriate signage of the state highway system as designated pursuant to section 1.

Section 3 - is the effective date.

Justification

The United States Submarine Service was born on April 11, 1900 and on April 11, 2016, will be 115 years old. The Service has always been known as the 'Silent Service', but its accomplishments have been much more than silent. Following the attacks on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, with the Pacific Fleet in ruins, Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz, a submariner himself, declared after the attack, "it was the Submarine Force that I looked to carry the load until our great industrial activity could produce the weapons we so sorely needed to carry the war to the enemy. It is to the everlasting honor and glory of our submarine personnel that they never failed us in our days of great peril".

During WWII, the US Submarine Force consisted of 1.6% of all Naval personnel but inflicted a staggering 55% of Japan's maritime losses. Of approximately 6,000,000 tons comprising the entire Japanese merchant-fleet, U.S. submarines sank 4,860,000 tons, 1,113 Japanese merchant ships and during the same period, sank 214 Naval warships, about 1/3 of all warships destroyed. However these successes did not come without a price. 52 American submarines were lost during WWII along with 3500 submariners when their 'Boats' didn't return from patrol. From 1900 to 2016, the U.S. Submarine Force has become a major deterrent to global wars. In the words of former Army General and Secretary of State Colin Powell; "No one has done more to prevent conflict - no one has made a greater sacrifice for the cause of peace - than you America's proud submarine family. You stand tall among our heroes of the Cold War".

Historic State Route 9 was chosen as the Saratoga County U.S. Submarine Veterans' Memorial Highway because New York and Saratoga County are rich in military history, and are natural places for this memorial. This portion of the highway was chosen due to the rich heritage and dense Naval presence in the Capital/Saratoga Region. The Naval Nuclear Power Training Unit in West Milton, Knolls Atomic Power Labs in Schenectady, and Naval Support Units in both Scotia and Saratoga, along with our Submarine Veterans group are all close by. Over the years over 57,000 students and staff, including former President Jimmy Carter, have gone through the Nuclear Power training program and many have returned to make their home in this area. We can think of no better place than Saratoga County's portion of Historic New York State Route 9. The Saratoga County Board of Supervisors has passed a Resolution in support of this project. This Bill will provide visibility and long-overdue recognition to a region of New York State and Submarine Force that has contributed so much to the nation's security

Legislative history

None

Fiscal implications

None

Effective date

This act shall take effect immediately.