A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to APPROPRIATE FUNDS TO THE SOUTHERN APPALACHIAN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY CENTER (SASTC) LOCATED IN POLK COUNTY.
Whereas, North Carolina's mountain counties have undergone significant economic upheaval due to the decline of the region's traditional manufacturing industries; and
Whereas, Polk County is among the many counties in North Carolina that have lost jobs as a result of textile mill closings; and
Whereas, the region's future economic vitality relies on its ability to spawn, foster, and attract entrepreneurial ventures in emerging technologies and scientific disciplines; and
Whereas, the ability of North Carolina's academic institutions west of the Research Triangle to conduct effective and successful technology maturation and commercialization remains limited by lack of resources and barriers to collaboration; and
Whereas, North Carolina's Rural Internet Access Authority provided e‑Polk a grant in the amount of $375,000 for the installation of OC12‑capacity Internet infrastructure access critical to the economic development of the area; and
Whereas, now that Polk County has world‑class Internet capacity in place, a local group of visionaries has created The Southern Appalachian Science & Technology Center (SASTC) to build upon the foresight of the State and bring new jobs to the area; and
Whereas, SASTC has a multipurpose vision for supporting innovation, the management of intellectual property, and commercialization of technology in a variety of cutting‑edge fields including nanotechnology, bioscience, and materials science; and
Whereas, SASTC was incorporated as a nonprofit on October 24, 2003, with bylaws specifying that a plan be developed for financial self‑sufficiency through membership support and the commercialization of intellectual property; and
Whereas, Polk County, the Town of Tryon, and Advantage West have all provided support in the form of financial assistance or in‑kind services for SASTC's initial strategic planning efforts; and
Whereas, SASTC is uniquely positioned to coordinate interagency cooperation, and the geography of Polk County is very advantageous relative to universities in the eight State regions already conducting technology research, many of which already have a relationship with SASTC; and
Whereas, through its collaboration with Western Carolina University, the University of North Carolina at Asheville, the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, and other institutions from the Piedmont and Triad areas, Western North Carolina will benefit economically from SASTC's efforts; and
Whereas, SASTC has emerged as a leading scientific visualization entity in the southeast and through its efforts has created the premier applied visualization conference (AppliedVis 2005) in the southeast; and
Whereas, SASTC intends to establish a strategic alliance with the National High Performance Computing Center and work closely with participating community colleges and universities to create a Scientific Visualization High Performance Computing Center within the SASTC facility; and
Whereas, SASTC proposes to join with the Visualization Grid Initiative of the University of North Carolina at Asheville and the University of North Carolina at Charlotte research centers; and
Whereas, the special benefits of visualization are not currently available to small- and medium-size companies because of cost and system complexities; and
Whereas, SASTC plans to provide the expertise of visualization to small- and medium-size companies in the area to give these businesses the edge in a very competitive environment; and
Whereas, SASTC holds substantial and compelling promise for the economic reinvention and growth of North Carolina's mountain region; Now, therefore,
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  There is appropriated from the General Fund to The Southern Appalachian Science & Technology Center, Inc., a nonprofit organization located in Polk County, the sum of two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000) for the 2005‑2006 fiscal year for operating expenses. These funds shall serve as matching funds and leverage to secure targeted additional support from federal agencies and private foundations to advance the SASTC vision.
SECTION 2.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2005.