WHEREAS,  autism is a spectrum disorder, which means no 2 people with autism are affected the same way, and it is a complex developmental disability that usually appears during the first 3 years of life and results in a neurological disorder that affects the functioning of the brain; and

WHEREAS,  autism affects social interaction and communication skills, and an average of 1 in 88 children are diagnosed with this spectrum disorder, and prevalence has increased 78% since the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's first study in 2007; and

WHEREAS,  autism knows no racial, ethnic or social boundaries and neither income, lifestyle nor education affects the occurrence, and it is estimated that 1,500,000 people live with autism spectrum disorder in the United States; and

WHEREAS,  autism costs the United States $90,000,000,000 in annual health care costs; 90% of the costs are in adult services. These costs are estimated to increase in 10 years to $200,000,000,000 to $400,000,000,000; and

WHEREAS,  a single specific cause of autism is not known, but current research links it to biological or neurological differences in the brain, and outdated theories and myths, such as autism being a mental illness, have been proven to be false; and

WHEREAS,  with support, people with autism can live full lives and make meaningful contributions to society; now, therefore, be it