H.Con.Res. 402: Recognizing the historical significance of the discovery of oil and the birth of the petroleum and natural gas industries on the banks of Oil Creek, Venango County, near Titusville, Pennsylvania on August 27, 1859, and designating the year 2009 as the "Sesquicentennial of Oil".

H.Con.Res. 402: Recognizing the historical significance of the discovery of oil and the birth of the petroleum and natural gas industries on the banks of Oil Creek, Venango County, near Titusville, Pennsylvania on August 27, 1859, and designating the year 2009 as the "Sesquicentennial of Oil".

110th Congress · introduced 2008-07-31 · Commemorations · Latest: Referred to the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources.

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Where it came from: introduced 2008-07-31 · official record
Who proposed it: Rep. Peterson, John E. [R-PA-5] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Referred to the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
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What does this mean?

Official title

Recognizing the historical significance of the discovery of oil and the birth of the petroleum and natural gas industries on the banks of Oil Creek, Venango County, near Titusville, Pennsylvania on August 27, 1859, and designating the year 2009 as the "Sesquicentennial of Oil".

Plain summary

Recognizes the significance of the discovery of oil in Pennsylvania in 1859 and requests the President to issue a proclamation recognizing the "Sesquicentennial of Oil" and the accomplishments of the petroleum and natural gas industries.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

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What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Recognizing the historical significance of the discovery of oil and the birth of the petroleum and natural gas industries on the banks of Oil Creek, Venango County, near Titusville, Pennsylvania on August 27, 1859, and designating the year 2009 as the "Sesquicentennial of Oil".

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)

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Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Peterson, John E. [R-PA-5] · 0 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

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Words on this page, explained (2)

Resolution: A formal statement or decision by a legislative body. Simple resolutions often only express an opinion or set rules for one chamber; they do not become law.
Roll-call vote: A vote where each member's position is recorded by name, so the public can see how every member voted. "Yea" means yes, "Nay" means no, "Present" means the member was there but did not take a side.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-110hconres402.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/110/hconres>

Record fed-us-cong110-hconres402 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong110 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong110