"Let's put out the welcome mat and exempt them from Michigan's state business tax," he said, also noting these other state achievements:

* Record cuts in property taxes were combined with record increases in school funding--full funding for every child.

* With the creation of nearly 900,000 new jobs, unemployment went down from 9.3% in 1991 to 3.4% in 2000.

* The state is No. 1 for new factories, expansion projects and capital investment.

* The legislature has authorized a joint headquarters to house the departments of Michigan State Police and Military and Veterans Affairs is nearing completion.

* Michigan gained nearly 650,000 new residents, the fastest growth since the 1960s and an increase almost 20 times the growth in the previous decade.

* Conserving Michigan's land resources has also been a focus. During the past decade, more than 46,000 acres were acquired by the Department of Natural Resources and local governments for public use. Much of that land was paid for by the Natural Resources Trust Fund.

* The web-focused Covisint will revolutionize business-to-business transactions among the auto companies and their suppliers, including government. Successfully locating Covisint in Michigan will establish Michigan overnight as the world leader in business-to-business e-commerce, Engler said.

"We will not rest until they make Michigan their permanent home," he noted. "I am also pleased to announce that this year, we will honor Detroit's founder when we name the state's newly renovated office complex in the old General Motors Building. It will be called Cadillac Place. Also, in Lansing, on the site of the old Civic Center, we will recognize the truly historic work of Michigan's last Constitutional Convention. The new office building on that site will be called Constitution Hall."

Both Cadillac Place and Constitution Hall will feature permanent exhibits depicting key people and events in Michigan's history.