Amended in Assembly August 9, 2016

Amended in Senate June 9, 2016

Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 139

Introduced by Senator Gaines

(Coauthors: Senators Fuller, Nielsen, and Pan)

May 5, 2016

Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 139—Relative to the Merle Haggard Memorial Overpass.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SCR 139, as amended, Gaines. Merle Haggard Memorial Overpass.

This measure would designate the overpass at the interchange of Interstate 5 and State Highway Route 44 begin insert in the City of Redding end insert as the Merle Haggard Memorial Overpass. The measure would also request the Department of Transportation to determine the cost of appropriate signs showing this special designation and, upon receiving donations from nonstate sources covering that cost, to erect those signs.

Fiscal committee: yes.

WHEREAS, Merle Ronald Haggard was born to James and
Flossie Haggard on April 6, 1937, in Oildale, just north of
Bakersfield, California. Merle’s father was a railroad worker, and
Merle grew up during the Great Depression. He lived with his
family in a boxcar that they had converted into a home. As a child,
Merle suffered from a respiratory condition that frequently kept
him out of school and confined to bed rest; and

WHEREAS, James Haggard died from a brain tumor when
Merle was nine years of age. After his father’s death, Merle became
rebellious. In an attempt to straighten her son out, his mother put
him in several juvenile detention centers, but it had little effect on
Merle’s behavior; and

WHEREAS, As a teenager, Merle fell in love with country
music, particularly begin insert the songs of end insert Bob Wills, Lefty Frizzell, and
Hank Williams. When he was 12 years of age, Merle was given
his first guitar by his older brother. He then taught himself how to
play by listening to records. Continuing to rebel, he went to Texas
with his friend Bob Teague and, after returning to California, he
moved to Modesto, where he made his performing debut with
Teague at a bar named the Fun Center. The two were paid five
dollars and given all the beer that they could drink; and

WHEREAS, In 1958, at 20 years of age, Merle was sentenced
to begin insert the California State Prison at end insert San Quentin begin delete State Prison end delete for
burglary and an attempted escape from county jail. While serving
a two-and-one-half-year term, he played in the prison’s country
band and took high school equivalency courses. In 1959, he was
a member of the audience that witnessed Johnny Cash’s first
performance at San Quentin. Merle Haggard would later be
officially pardoned in 1972 by then-Governor Ronald Reagan; and

WHEREAS, In begin delete 1962 end delete begin insert 1962, end insert Merle Haggard signed with a small
label called Tally Records for begin delete whom end delete begin insert which end insert he recorded five songs,
including his debut single, “Sing a Sad Song,” which rose to No.
19 on the country music charts. In begin delete 1965 end delete begin insert 1965, end insert he formed his own
band, The Strangers, before signing with Capitol Records, and
later that year the band released begin delete their end delete begin insert its end insert debut self-titled album.
begin delete Their end delete begin insert The group’s end insert followup album, “Swinging Doors,” reached
No. 1 on the country music charts the following year, and in 1967
begin delete their end delete begin insert the group’s end insert single “I’m a Lonesome Fugitive” did the same.
Later that year, Merle Haggard continued his runaway success
with “Branded Man,” his first self-penned No. 1 song; and

WHEREAS, During the remainder of the 1960s, Merle Haggard
produced a string of No. 1 singles, culminating with what would
become his signature song and his most controversial recording,
“Okie from Muskogee.” Released in 1969, the song became an
anthem for middle Americans whose patriotism and traditional
values were under attack from Vietnam War protesters and hippies.
“Okie from Muskogee” crossed over to the pop charts and in 1970
earned Merle Haggard the Country Music Association’s awards
for Single, Entertainer, and Top Male Vocalist of the Year. The
album of the same name also won Album of the Year; and

WHEREAS, Merle Haggard released nearly 70 albums and 600
songs, 250 of which he wrote himself. Among his most memorable
albums were “The Fightin’ Side of Me” (1970), “Someday We’ll
Look Back” (1971), “If We Make It Through December” (1974),
and “A Working Man Can’t Get Nowhere Today” (1977). In begin delete 1982 end delete
begin insert 1982, end insert he recorded a duet album with George Jones called “A Taste
of Yesterday’s Wine,” which yielded the chart toppers “Yesterday’s
Wine” and “C.C. Waterback.” The following year, he collaborated
with Willie Nelson to record the widely praised compilation
“Pancho & Lefty.” In addition to an impressive title track, “Pancho
& Lefty” featured the touching ballads “It’s My Lazy Day,” “Half
a Man,” “Reasons to Quit,” and “All the Soft Places to Fall”; and

WHEREAS, Merle Haggard was elected to the Songwriters Hall
of Fame in 1977. In begin delete 1994 end delete begin insert 1994, end insert his wealth of artistic achievements,
including 38 No. 1 hits, earned him induction into the Country
Music Hall of Fame. Though his musical output waned over the
years, he continued to find success with albums such as “If I Could
Fly” (2000), “Haggard Like Never Before” (2003), and his 2015
reunion album with Willie Nelson, begin delete “Djano end delete begin insert “Django end insert & Jimmie,”
which placed him atop the country music charts one more time;
and

WHEREAS, In begin delete 2008 end delete begin insert 2008, end insert Merle Haggard was diagnosed with
lung cancer and underwent surgery to remove a tumor. Reflecting
on the situation, he referred to it as “the greatest test of my
fortitude”; and

WHEREAS, At the time of his death, Merle Haggard was
married to Theresa Lane, whom he married in 1993. He had begin delete three end delete
begin insert four end insert children from his marriage to Leona Hobbs and two children
with Lane; and

WHEREAS, Merle Haggard died at home on his northern
California ranch in Palo Cedro in Shasta County on April 6, 2016,
his 79th birthday. He had been suffering from double pneumonia
and had to cancel a string of scheduled concerts with Willie Nelson.
The 11 days he spent trying to recover from his illness had become
so difficult that he reportedly told his friends and family that he
would die on his birthday; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, the Assembly
thereof concurring, That the Legislature hereby designates the
overpass on Interstate 5 at the interchange of Interstate 5 and State
Highway Route 44 begin delete in end delete in the City of Redding as the Merle Haggard
Memorial Overpass; and be it further

Resolved, That the Department of Transportation is requested
to determine the cost of appropriate signs to be placed on Interstate
5, north and south, consistent with the signing requirements for
the state highway system showing this special designation and,
upon receiving donations from nonstate sources sufficient to cover
the cost, to erect those signs; and be it further

Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of
this resolution to the Director of Transportation and to the author
for appropriate distribution.