§ 1 — Findings and purpose

Section 1. It is hereby found (1) that throughout the history of Massachusetts, the economic development of the commonwealth and the prosperity and welfare of our people have depended, to a great degree, upon the continued ability of the commonwealth's fine colleges and universities to provide the most advanced education and practical training opportunities in emerging areas of science and technology, and that (2) this wealth of educational resources has attracted, to the commonwealth, some of the best minds from throughout the nation and from throughout the world, and that (3) great numbers of talented individuals, having furthered their education in the commonwealth, have been induced to concentrate their subsequent business and industrial operations in Massachusetts by the proximity of the same educational institutions with which they were familiar and which produced the similarly educated graduates so necessary to the successful growth and expansion of innovative business and industry in a variety of areas, including, historically, textiles, medical research and manufacturing and the provision of medical services, computers and manufacturing of solid-state electronics equipment employing semi-conductor and microelectronic technologies, and that (4) the ability of our colleges and universities to provide educational and practical training opportunities, coupled with the concentration of business and industry in the commonwealth, have engendered many new and rewarding employment opportunities for the citizens of the commonwealth, increased the tax base, avoided increased welfare and unemployment costs and furthered the general welfare of the commonwealth, but that (5) the burgeoning growth of the particularly dynamic field of semi-conductor and microelectronic technologies and the intense competition among participants in that field have also spawned a critical demand for a continuous supply of qualified engineers and technicians to occupy key positions in business and industry which require practical training and knowledge of the latest developments in that rapidly evolving area, and that (6) as a result of this demand, business and industry in the field of semi-conductor and microelectronic technologies are unable to obtain appropriately skilled employees to maintain and expand operations within the commonwealth, and our people are and will continue to be denied many significant employment opportunities, and that (7) the loss of economic and employment activity from the commonwealth erodes the tax base, leads to unemployment and underemployment of our people, increases welfare and unemployment costs and threatens the general welfare of the entire commonwealth, and that (8) both the basic training of new engineers and technicians and the retraining of existing personnel to meet the constantly changing requirements for effective and productive work in the field of semi-conductor and microelectronic technologies require an educational and training facility which contains design, fabrication and testing equipment to permit students to acquire essential practical experience.Such a facility is presently unavailable to our colleges and universities, and it is further found that (9) the commonwealth's post-secondary educational institutions are not able, even with the assistance provided through existing state and federal programs, to finance the establishment and operation of the type of facility necessary for the development of combined academic and practical training programs sufficient to satisfy employment needs. The buildings and equipment necessary for such a facility require capital expenditures which are prohibitive to the commonwealth's post-secondary educational institutions, particularly in this era of diminishing public support for higher education. Further, the costs associated with maintaining and replacing such facilities and equipment in a manner consistent with developing technology are often themselves beyond the means of those institutions.It is further found, however, that on the basis of satisfactory evidence that (10) many of the commonwealth's post-secondary institutions will participate in the use of such a facility if it is established and will commit themselves to continuing the facility's operations. Institutions which have expressed such an interest at present are Boston University, University of Lowell, Northeastern University, Southeastern Massachusetts University, Tufts University, University of Massachusetts, Worcester Polytechnic Institute and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and that (11) business and industry in the field of semi-conductor and microelectronic technologies are confronted with the competitive market pressures of a private enterprise system which prevent the use of their facilities in the initial and continuing training and education of technical personnel with respect to the latest developments in that area. There is, however, satisfactory evidence that business and industry in that field will participate in the programs of such a facility if it is established and will commit themselves to continuing the facility's operations.It is further found that (12) it is an important government function to increase opportunities for gainful employment for our people, to assist in promoting a productive and expanding industrial base within the commonwealth capable of meeting the needs and demands of a modern economy, to assist post-secondary educational institutions to assume an active role in achieving these goals, and otherwise to improve the prosperity and general welfare of the inhabitants of the commonwealth.Because it may reasonably be anticipated that the pattern of events which has given rise to the need for a partnership of government and industry and education to create a training facility for semi-conductor and microelectronic technologies will recur in other technologies, and because it is appropriate to utilize the skills and experience which will be developed in responding to the present need to meet such future needs, it is further found that (13) the The Massachusetts Technology Park Corporation, hereinafter referred to as the corporation, hereby created, be authorized, after having satisfied itself that the microelectronic facility is operational, to establish further similar centers to support those other technologies in which a need equal to that which has been found to exist in these findings is found to exist by the corporation.Therefore, it is found that it is in the public interest of the commonwealth to promote the prosperity and general welfare of its citizens, a public purpose for which public money may be expended, by creating the corporation to establish and operate one or more educational centers containing design, fabrication and testing facilities and equipment for post-secondary academic and practical training programs urgently required to satisfy the education and employment needs of business and industry and the people of the commonwealth.