House Resolution 205

A RESOLUTION COMMENDING THE MOST HONORABLE, DISTINGUISHED GENTLEMAN FROM MADISON, REPRESENTATIVE JOEL BOMGAR, FOR HIS ESTEEMED LEGISLATIVE CAREER AND PUBLIC SERVICE UPON THE OCCASION OF HIS RETIREMENT FROM THE MISSISSIPPI HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.

WHEREAS, the honorable and distinguished Gentleman from Madison, Representative Joel Bomgar, has announced his plans to retire from the Mississippi House of Representatives at the conclusion of his current term, after tirelessly working on behalf of the citizens of Mississippi and House District 58, which encompasses Madison County, for eight outstanding years; and

WHEREAS, before assuming his seat as a member of the House of Representatives in 2016, Representative Bomgar, a 2003 graduate of Belhaven University, founded Bomgar Corporation (now BeyondTrust), while working his way through college as a systems engineer, and created the concept for his company's remote support product, the Bomgar Box, as a way to provide helpdesk and technical support to disparate users without leaving his desk, and as the company expanded and flourished, it remained focused on its Madison County roots as one of the largest employers in the Madison/Ridgeland area; and

WHEREAS, additionally, during his six years of service in the Mississippi Air National Guard, Representative Bomgar honed his networking and computer skills, and earned numerous network certifications, along with the Air Force Achievement Medal and the Air Force Commendation Medal; and

WHEREAS, after his election to the House of Representatives in 2015, Representative Bomgar became the distinguished "Gentleman from Madison" upon being sworn into office on the first day of his first legislative session in January 2016, and he embraced being in the Legislature like he does everything else, with exuberant energy, and wasted no time requesting the drafting of legislation, amendments and reports to try to enact into law the policies that his constituents had elected him to pursue and promote; and

WHEREAS, during his time in the House, Representative Bomgar served as Vice Chairman of the Medicaid Committee from 2016 until 2020, Vice Chairman of the Drug Policy Committee from 2020 until 2024, and as a member of numerous other committees, such as: Ways and Means; Corrections; Education; Judiciary B; Judiciary En Banc; Municipalities; Public Property; Technology; Youth and Family Affairs; and Accountability, Efficiency and Transparency; and

WHEREAS, the primary issue with which Representative Bomgar is most associated, and about which he was most passionate during his legislative career, is medical marijuana, and the very first bill that he introduced as a freshman member in 2016 was to create a medical marijuana pilot program; and there was little interest in passing such a bill at that time, but when he reintroduced his bill in 2017 and 2018, more members were introducing their own bills on the subject, and the support for authorizing medical marijuana kept growing, which led to the overwhelming approval of a constitutional initiative that legalized medical marijuana; and while the initiative was struck down by the state Supreme Court the following year, the Legislature responded during the 2022 session and enacted the Mississippi Medical Cannabis Act, which was the realization of Representative Bomgar's ambitious goal when he introduced his first bill; and

WHEREAS, Representative Bomgar, who always wears a bright orange tie to reflect the color used by his company, is a string bean of energy who moves so quickly his edges nearly blur, and with a strong work ethic, positive, energetic disposition, and unrelenting tenacity, throughout his eight years in the Legislature, Representative Bomgar has had a pertinacious focus and unshakable drive to boldly serve his constituents, even if doing so presented as going against the grain of the majority; and

WHEREAS, not one to limit his community involvement to the Legislature, Representative Bomgar is an advocate for economic growth and developmental efforts in Madison County, and dedicated to improving the quality of life for all citizens, as evidenced by his service and affiliation as Honorary Chairman of the Hazlitt Coalition of Young Americans for Liberty, the founder of Out of Last Place Institute in Mississippi, a member of the Steering Council of Mississippi Economic Council's Blueprint Mississippi, and a former board member of the Madison County Foundation and of his alma mater, Belhaven University; and

WHEREAS, outside of his exceptional legislative service, Representative Bomgar is the president of Próspera, an economic development platform enabling sustainable, profitable growth in partnership with governments and communities, empowering modern pioneers to contribute to a new generation of flourishing cities

by partnering with community leaders, experts and firms across various sectors to provide the knowledge, capital, connections, infrastructure, services, and security needed for sustainable economic development; and

WHEREAS, the service of Representative Bomgar would be without honor but for the continued support, encouragement and love of his family, who have endured the difficulties that accompany the life of an elected official, and much credit is certainly due to his loved ones who have sacrificed countless hours without him in order to allow him to fulfill his legislative obligations, including his wife, Rachel, and their children, Amelia, Simon, Mark and Seth; and

WHEREAS, one of Representative Bomgar's favorite Bible verses, Psalm 127:1, states "Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain", and he believes that excellence should be the hallmark of every Christian; and

WHEREAS, it is the policy of the House of Representatives to honor the stellar service of public servants such as our colleague and friend, Joel Bomgar, who represented his district, this body and the people of this state with honor and dignity:

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, That we do hereby commend the Gentleman from Madison, Representative Joel Bomgar, for his esteemed legislative career and public service, and express best wishes for continued success in all his future endeavors.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be furnished to Representative Joel Bomgar and to the members of the Capitol Press Corps.