I am pleased to report that Louisiana is open for business and ready to offer visitors an authentic experience that cannot be replicated anywhere else in the world.

Louisiana's story is like a tale of two cities. If you visit our state, you will find that our tourism infrastructure is internationally competitive - with newly renovated and state of the art facilities along with world class restaurants, hotels and cultural attractions. At the same time, our neighborhoods and our people are still recovering from hurricanes Katrina and Rita. We are addressing major challenges related to housing, healthcare, education, job training, and other important issues.

In the aftermath of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, we worked with national experts and stakeholders from across the state to develop a strategic plan to guide the recovery of Louisiana's tourism industry and cultural economy. The strategic plan is called, Louisiana Rebirth: Restoring the Soul of America.

We are proud to report that we have worked that plan, spoken with one voice and applied the business principals of innovation and entrepreneurship to help lead the economic recovery of our state.

Louisiana's renowned fairs and festivals are drawing record crowds. Shreveport's film industry is booming and has been named one of the top three places in country for filmmakers. The music of Acadiana is earning international recognition, as the Grammy's launched a new Cajun/Zydeco Category. Our State Parks have strong visitation numbers, showing why Louisiana is known as "a Sportsman's Paradise."

In addition, Louisiana is hosting major events with great success - including the NBA All-Star Game, the BCS Championship Game, the Independence Bowl, the Essence Festival, Mardi Gras, the Jazz and Heritage Festival and a slew of major conventions.

Louisiana is a national leader in citizen service. More than 1,000,000 people have volunteered along the Gulf Coast since Katrina and Rita. Major conventions and organizations, like the NBA and State of the Black Union, are adding "Days of Service" to their visits. We have created to the Louisiana Office of Social Entrepreneurship, the first of its kind in the nation, making Louisiana the most habitable place in the nation of people testing new models to solve old social problems.

As we work to grow jobs through tourism and the cultural economy, we believe that taxpayers and citizens have a right to know what their tax dollars are being spent and what they are getting in return. To set the standard for accountability, we developed a Louisiana Rebirth Accountability Panel by executive order.

We have also developed the Louisiana Rebirth Scorecard to track progress on indicators of our recovery related to our four key objectives:

1. Position Louisiana as a top Tourism destination worldwide
2. Make Louisiana's Cultural Economy the engine of economic growth and social engagement
3. Strengthen the Learning, Lives and Livelihoods for all of Louisiana's people
4. Set the standard for High Performance, Accountability and Ethical Behavior

Sincerely,

Mitchell J. Landrieu Lieutenant Governor