,,iv #aafth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,,res4 #cbd ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,april #ah1 #bjai,mr4 ,ted ,lieu of ,california 7for himself and ,mr4 ,allen7 submitted the following resolution2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs ,,resolution ,recognizing the importance of the ,united ,states-,israel economic relationship and encouraging new areas of cooperation4 ,whereas the deep bond between the ,united ,states and ,israel is exemplified by its many facets1 including the robust economic and commercial relationship2 ,whereas1 on ,april #bb1 #bjai1 the ,united ,states will celebrate the #cdth anniversary of its free trade agreement with ,israel1 which was the first free trade agreement entered into by the ,united ,states2 ,whereas the ,united ,states-,israel ,free ,trade ,agreement established a joint committee to facilitate the agreement and collaborate on efforts to increase bilateral cooperation and investment2 ,whereas since the signing of this agreement1 two-way trade has multiplied tenfold to over #dg1ajj1jjj1jjj annually2 ,whereas ,israel is the largest importer of ,united ,states goods in the ,middle ,east and ,north ,africa 7,,mena7 region despite representing only #b percent of the region's population2 ,whereas nearly #dj percent of all investment in the ,united ,states from the ,,mena region comes from ,israel2 ,whereas ,israel has more companies listed on the ,,nasdaq ,stock ,exchange than any other country except for the ,united ,states and ,china2 ,whereas1 in #aief1 the ,united ,states-,israel ,education ,foundation was established to administer the ,fulbright ,program in ,israel and has facilitated the exchange of nearly #c1cjj students between the ,united ,states and ,israel since its inception2 ,whereas1 in #aigb1 the ,united ,states-,israel ,binational ,science ,foundation was established to promote scientific relations between the ,united ,states and ,israel by supporting collaborative research projects in basic and applied scientific fields and has generated investments of over #dhj1jjj1jjj to over #d1jjj projects since its inception2 ,whereas ,binational ,science ,foundation grant recipients have included #de ,nobel laureates1 #ai winners of the ,albert ,lasker ,medical ,research ,award1 and #ch recipients of the ,wolf ,prize2 ,whereas1 in #aigg1 the ,united ,states-,israel ,binational ,industrial ,research and ,development ,foundation 7,,bird7 was established to stimulate1 promote1 and support nondefense industrial research and development of mutual benefit to both countries in agriculture1 communications1 life sciences1 electronics1 electro-optics1 energy1 health care information technology1 homeland security1 software1 water1 and other technologies1 and has provided over #cjj1jjj1jjj to over #gjj joint projects since its inception2 ,whereas recent successful ,,bird projects include the ,re,walk system that helps paraplegics walk1 a medical teaching simulator for laparoscopic hysterectomies1 and a new drug to treat chronic gout2 ,whereas1 in #aigh1 the ,united ,states-,israel ,binational ,agricultural ,research and ,development ,fund was established as a competitive funding program for mutually beneficial1 mission-oriented1 strategic1 and applied research of agricultural problems conducted jointly by ,united ,states and ,israel scientists and has provided over #bej1jjj1jjj to over #a1jjj projects since its inception2 ,whereas an independent review of the ,united ,states-,israel ,binational ,agricultural ,research and ,development ,fund estimated that the dollar benefits of just #aj of its projects through #bjaj came to #ddj1jjj1jjj in the ,united ,states and #cjj1jjj1jjj in ,israel1 far exceeding total investment in the program2 ,whereas1 in #aihd1 the ,united ,states and ,israel began convening the ,joint ,economic ,development ,group to regularly discuss economic conditions and identify new opportunities for collaboration2 ,whereas1 in #aiid1 the ,united ,states-,israel ,science and ,technology ,foundation 7,,usistf7 was established to promote the advancement of science and technology for mutual economic benefit and has developed joint research and development programs that reach #ab ,states2 ,whereas the ,united ,states-,israel ,innovation ,index1 which was developed by ,,usistf to track and benchmark innovation relationships1 ranks the ,united ,states-,israel innovation relationship as top-tier2 ,whereas1 in #bjjg1 the ,,bird energy program was established to provide support for joint ,united ,states-,israel research and development of renewable energy and energy efficiency1 and has provided #ah1jjj1jjj to #bj joint projects since its founding2 ,whereas1 since #bjaa1 the ,united ,states ,department of ,energy and the ,israeli ,ministry of ,national ,infrastructures1 ,energy and ,water ,resources have led an annual ,united ,states-,israel ,energy ,meeting with participants across government agencies to facilitate bilateral cooperation in that sector2 ,whereas1 in #bjab1 ,congress passed and ,president ,barack ,obama signed into law the ,united ,states-,israel ,enhanced ,security ,cooperation ,act of #bjab 7,public ,law #aab-aej71 which set ,united ,states policy to expand bilateral cooperation across the spectrum of civilian sectors1 including high technology1 agriculture1 medicine1 health1 pharmaceuticals1 and energy2 ,whereas1 in #bjac1 ,president ,obama said in reference to ,israel's contribution to the global economy1 ,that innovation is just as important to the relationship between the ,united ,states and ,israel as our security cooperation2 ,whereas1 in #bjad1 ,secretary of the ,treasury ,jacob ,lew said1 ,as one of the most technologically-advanced and innovative economies in the world1 ,israel is an important economic partner to the ,united ,states2 ,whereas1 in #bjad1 ,congress passed and ,president ,obama signed into law the ,united ,states-,israel ,strategic ,partnership ,act of #bjad 7,public ,law #aac-bif71 which deepened cooperation on energy1 water1 agriculture1 trade1 and defense1 and expressed the sense of ,congress that ,israel is a major strategic partner of the ,united ,states2 ,whereas the #bjae ,global ,venture ,capital ,confidence ,survey ranked the ,united ,states and ,israel as the two countries with the highest levels of investor confidence in the world2 ,whereas1 in #bjah1 ,united ,states and ,israel officials convened for the #cc;d session of the ,u4,s4-,israel ,joint ,economic ,development ,group1 the premier annual economic dialogue between the two ,governments2 ,whereas1 in #bjah1 ,secretary of the ,treasury ,steven ,mnuchin said1 ,we have a very important relationship with ,israel4 ,this is really a great place for investments1 particularly technology investments4 ,we are going to make sure we do more infrastructure investments here42 ,whereas1 in #bjah1 the ,environmental ,protection ,agency and ,israel's ,ministry of ,environmental ,protection renewed a ,memorandum of ,understanding to focus on scientific and technical collaboration to protect the environment by exchanging information1 arranging visits of scientific personnel1 cooperating in scientific symposia and workshops1 and undertaking cooperative research projects concerning problems of common interest2 and ,whereas economic cooperation between the ,united ,states and ,israel has also thrived at the ,state and local levels through both formal agreements and bilateral organizations in over #cj ,states that have encouraged new forms of cooperation in fields such as water conservation1 cybersecurity1 and alternative energy and farming technologies3 ,now1 therefore1 be it ,that the ,house of ,representatives-- 7#a7 affirms that the ,united ,states-,israel economic partnership has achieved great tangible and intangible benefits to both countries and is a foundational component of the strong alliance2 7#b7 recognizes that science and technology innovation present promising new frontiers for ,united ,states-,israel economic cooperation1 particularly in light of widespread drought1 cybersecurity attacks1 and other major challenges impacting the ,united ,states2 7#c7 encourages the ,president to regularize and expand existing forums of economic dialogue with ,israel and foster both public and private sector participation2 and 7#d7 expresses support for the ,president to explore new agreements with ,israel1 including in the fields of energy1 water1 agriculture1 medicine1 neurotechnology1 and cybersecurity4