WE, your Memorialists, the Members of the One Hundred and Twenty-fourth Legislature of the State of Maine now assembled in the Second Regular Session, most respectfully present and petition the Secretary of the Navy as follows:

WHEREAS,  the USS John F. Kennedy, CV-67, is a decommissioned supercarrier of the United States Navy and named after the 35th President of the United States, John F. Kennedy; and

WHEREAS,  the late President Kennedy was a beloved figure not only in Maine and New England, but throughout the Nation; and

WHEREAS,  after nearly 40 years of service in the United States Navy, the USS John F. Kennedy was officially decommissioned on August 1, 2007; and

WHEREAS,  the United States Navy is willing to give the ship to a nonprofit organization pursuant to federal laws and regulations as long as the nonprofit organization has the support of a host city; and

WHEREAS,  the USS John F. Kennedy Museum Committee, also known as "JFK for ME," is a nonprofit organization in Maine established for the sole purpose of obtaining ownership of the USS John F. Kennedy and relocating it to the City of Portland; and

WHEREAS,  JFK for ME proposes to undertake this task at no expense to the taxpayers of Maine; and

WHEREAS,  other communities throughout the country have become host cities for retired naval vessels; and

WHEREAS,  those retired vessels have served as successful tourist attractions and places for public use and enjoyment such as museums, historic sites, conference centers and similar uses; now, therefore, be it