Reps. Ebli, Spade, Robert Jones, Byrum, Dean, Lemmons, Angerer, Donigan, McDowell, Clemente, Warren, Polidori, Vagnozzi, Constan, Bauer, Brown, Simpson, Accavitti, Bennett, Bieda, Byrnes, Clack, Gonzales, Hammel, Hammon, Hansen, Hopgood, Johnson, Rick Jones, LeBlanc, Mayes, Sak, Shaffer, Sheltrown, Tobocman, Valentine, Wojno, Elsenheimer, Farrah, Green, Knollenberg, Leland, Marleau, Meisner, Miller, Opsommer, Palmer, Proos, Melton, Lahti, and Alma Smith offered the following resolution:

House Resolution No. 58.

            A resolution recognizing April 2007 as Autism Awareness Month in the state of Michigan.

            Whereas, Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is an umbrella term used to cover a variety of developmental disabilities including autism, Asperger Syndrome and Pervasive Developmental Disorder; and

            Whereas, Autism is a neurobiological disorder that impacts an individual’s communication skills, social interaction and behavior; and

            Whereas, ASD occurs across all racial, ethnic and socioeconomic groups and is four times more likely to occur in boys than in girls; and

            Whereas, Individuals with ASD often have difficulty understanding verbal and  nonverbal communication and learning appropriate ways of relating to other people, objects and events; and

            Whereas, Current research indicates that up to one of every 150 children born today will be diagnosed with ASD; and

            Whereas, Over 1.5 million families in the United States are currently affected by autism; and

            Whereas, The Autism Society of America estimates that the annual cost associated with autism is over $90 billion and projects that these costs could be reduced by two-thirds or more with early diagnosis and intervention; and

            Whereas, The number of children with autism in Michigan public schools increased by over 100 percent (from 5,680 to 11,366) between 2001 and 2006; and

            Whereas, It is likely that due to misdiagnosis and cases not yet diagnosed that the number of individuals actually touched by autism is considerably higher than currently believed; and

            Whereas, Education about autism is a critical part of increasing early diagnosis and intervention for individuals with autism; now, therefore, be it

            Resolved by the House of Representatives, That the members of this legislative body recognize April 2007 as Autism Awareness Month in Michigan; and be it further

            Resolved, That we urge all Michiganians to use this month as an opportunity to educate themselves about autism and reach out to support members of their communities with ASD.