SLS 17RS-986 ORIGINAL
2017 Regular Session
SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 66
BY SENATOR HEWITT
SENATE. Designates Thursday, May 4, 2017, as "NASA Day" at the state capitol and
extols the accomplishments of NASA and the technical and scientific contributions made
to the state and nation.
1 A RESOLUTION
2 To designate Thursday, May 4, 2017, as "NASA Day" at the state capitol and to extol the
3 accomplishments of NASA and the remarkable technical and scientific contributions
4 made to the state of Louisiana and the United States of America through the efforts
5 of the distinguished engineers, technicians, management, and support personnel
6 working at the Michoud Assembly Facility.
7 WHEREAS, NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center and Michoud Assembly Facility
8 in New Orleans have been instrumental in the success of the United States Space Program
9 during the previous five decades, manufacturing the Saturn rockets for the Apollo program
10 and the external tanks for the Space Shuttle program from the 1970s until the program was
11 retired in 2011; and
12 WHEREAS, NASA and the state of Louisiana share a commitment to promoting the
13 growth of a well-trained aerospace workforce and sustaining the world-class manufacturing
14 capabilities at Michoud Assembly Facility where NASA is building the Space Launch
15 System (SLS) and the Orion Multipurpose Crew Vehicle that will usher in a new era of
16 exploration and discovery, taking mankind further than we have been before, during the
17 maiden flight in the next two years; and
18 WHEREAS, NASA and the Louisiana Space Consortium (LaSPACE) share the
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SLS 17RS-986 ORIGINAL
1 common goal of fostering aerospace-related, interdisciplinary, science, technology, and
2 engineering research in Louisiana schools, colleges, and universities to continue promoting
3 STEM education and jobs in the aerospace industry within Louisiana and inspiring a new
4 generation of scientists, engineers, and explorers to carry on NASA's mission of discovery;
5 and
6 WHEREAS, NASA and the state of Louisiana in 2012 signed a five-year extension
7 on an agreement, an investment worth $62 million, to continue supporting the National
8 Center for Advanced Manufacturing, which is located at Michoud and provides research and
9 advanced manufacturing technology for use in aerospace and commercial markets; and
10 WHEREAS, NASA's Small Business Innovation Research/Small Business
11 Technology Transfer (SBIR/STTR) program stimulates technological innovation by
12 encouraging small, high-tech companies, particularly minority and disadvantaged
13 businesses, to partner with NASA to help meet its research and development needs in key
14 technology areas, investing more than $2 million to date in nine Louisiana companies; and
15 WHEREAS, NASA spinoffs have benefitted Louisiana in the decontamination of
16 polluted soil and groundwater, providing forecasting models for storm surge predictions,
17 weather models, and fishing hotspots, enabling the remote transfer of high-speed digital data,
18 and lowering costs and reducing manufacturing time for the prosthetics industry; and
19 WHEREAS, the citizens of the state of Louisiana are indeed exceedingly proud of
20 their state's critical role in the United States Space Program and the tremendous advances
21 in space exploration and scientific progression its cooperation with NASA has produced.
22 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate of the Legislature of Louisiana
23 does hereby designate Thursday, May 4, 2017, as "NASA Day" at the state capitol and does
24 hereby extol the accomplishments of NASA and the remarkable technical and scientific
25 contributions made to the state of Louisiana and the United States of America through the
26 efforts of the distinguished engineers, technicians, management, and support personnel
27 working at the Michoud Assembly Facility, all of whom have achieved distinction beyond
28 measure.
29 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this Resolution be transmitted to
30 center director Todd May.
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SLS 17RS-986 ORIGINAL
The original instrument and the following digest, which constitutes no part
of the legislative instrument, were prepared by Jerry J. Guillot.
DIGEST
SR 66 Original 2017 Regular Session Hewitt
Designates Thursday, May 4, 2017, as NASA Day at the state capitol and extols the
accomplishments of NASA and the remarkable technical and scientific contributions made
to the state and nation through the efforts of the distinguished engineers, technicians,
management, and support personnel working at the Michoud Assembly Facility.
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