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WHEREAS, California's legacy includes a supremacy in the design and engineering of spacecraft, launch vehicles, and the development of satellites and space based services; and

WHEREAS, California has experienced many space firsts, including having been the site of the world's first polar-orbiting satellite launch at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Chuck Yeager's breaking of the sound barrier at Edwards Air Force Base and the first American rocket to probe space was launched with engines built by a California company; and

WHREAS, California hosts more NASA centers than any other state, including Ames Research Center, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and the Dryden Flight Research Center, which, when coupled with California's institutes of higher education, have produced engineers and skilled workers with the intellectual capital and innovation capable of fostering new and expanded growth areas for California's space legacy and greater economy; and

WHEREAS, San Luis Obispo County has contributed through California State Polytechnic University, countless engineers and one astronaut to the space program; and WHEREAS, California's Aerospace Industry is playing a vital role in developing the technologies that will support our national Homeland Defense strategy; now

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, that the Economic Vitality Corporation (EVC) of San Luis Obispo County recognizes, and asks Governor Gray Davis and the California State legislature to acknowledge the economic value of space enterprise to the state's economy and memorializes them to work with academic, local governments, economic development organizations, and industry leaders, including the California Space Authority, to attract, retain, and grow space enterprise by enacting policies that will assist with space-related education, academic research and development, workforce development, economic development and space infrastructure upgrades; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the EVC does hereby support, and urge Governor Gray Davis and the California State Legislature to acknowledge the date of March 18, 2003 as California Space Day; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the EVC does hereby congratulate the California Space Authority and the Golden State Museum for bringing together the educational exhibit "100 Years A lot: California Takes Wing" showcasing California's history and the development of flight and the eventual conquest of space, to run from March 15 through May 30, 2003; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the EVC calls upon the Governor and each state agency and department, within its budget authority, to promote and support the development of California space enterprise, consistent with prudent environmental sensitivity and minimal regulations designed to retain California's historic position as a world leader in space education, research and development, manufacturing, services and transportation.

The foregoing resolution is adopted in its entirety by a vote of the EVC Board of Directors on February 26, 2003.

Sandy Lubin,

Board Chair

Economic Vitality Corporation

San Luis Obispo County

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