A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO APPROPRIATE FUNDS FOR THE ONSLOW VIETNAM VETERANS MEMORIAL.
Whereas, thousands of men and women have proudly served in the United States Marine Corps; and
Whereas, many of these men and women have trained at Camp Lejeune and Marine Corps Air Station New River in Onslow County; and 
Whereas, the locations of these training facilities have been beneficial to Onslow County and the surrounding areas, generating millions of dollars for the community and attracting new residents and businesses; and
Whereas, there is strong community support in Onslow County in establishing the Onslow Vietnam Veterans Memorial; and
Whereas, plans have been made to locate the Onslow Vietnam Veterans Memorial with the Beirut Memorial in the Lejeune Memorial Gardens at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina; and
Whereas, the present Beirut Memorial draws an average of 4,000 visitors per year and generates more than $400,000 into the local economy; and
Whereas, the addition of the Onslow Vietnam Veterans Memorial would increase visitors by 2,500 per year with a $250,000 increase in tourism spending; and
Whereas, the Onslow Vietnam Veterans Memorial will feature the names of the 58,229 men and women who died in the Vietnam War while serving in the armed forces; and
Whereas, the Onslow Vietnam Veterans Memorial will provide a place of solitude for visitors to remember their loved ones and for Marines to remember those gone before them; Now, therefore,
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Onslow Vietnam Veterans Memorial Foundation, a nonprofit corporation, the sum of one million five hundred thousand dollars ($1,500,000) for the 2005‑2006 fiscal year to assist with the construction of a memorial to honor the men and women who have served during the Vietnam era in the armed forces of the United States.
SECTION 2.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2005.