SSTI Digest

During the course of each year, SSTI collects Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) award and proposal data as it becomes publicly available. For FY 2002, SSTI has aggregated Phase I award, proposal and award-to-proposal conversion percentages for all 50 states and the District of Columbia for eight of the 10 participating agencies. (The Department of Education and the Environmental Protection Agency were unable to provide proposal statistics.)

The Phase I award-to-proposal percentages vary greatly across the eight agencies reporting complete information:

Merideth Andreucci has succeeded Michael Wilton as president of the USA Niagara Development Corp. Wilton was nominated by Governor George Pataki to serve as President of the New York State Higher Education Services Corp.

Richard Baier has been appointed director of the Nebraska Department of Economic Development.

The Bullitt County Economic Development Authority of Kentucky has named Bob Fouts as interim director.

The Connecticut Technology Council has named Matthew Nemerson as its new President and CEO, replacing Michael Theodore.

Merideth Andreucci has succeeded Michael Wilton as president of the USA Niagara Development Corp. Wilton was nominated by Governor George Pataki to serve as President of the New York State Higher Education Services Corp.

Richard Baier has been appointed director of the Nebraska Department of Economic Development.

The Bullitt County Economic Development Authority of Kentucky has named Bob Fouts as interim director.

The Connecticut Technology Council has named Matthew Nemerson as its new President and CEO, replacing Michael Theodore.

Gwyn Riddick recently was named director of the new Piedmont Triad office of the North Carolina Biotechnology Center.

Gary Schneider is the new chairman of the Greater Columbia Chamber of Commerce (S.C.).

In signing his state's fiscal year 2003-04 budget on August 2, California Governor Gray Davis shaved General Fund expenditures by $7 billion in an effort to address a $38.2 billion budget shortfall. Among those cuts was funding for the California Technology, Trade and Commerce Agency (TTCA), the state's principal catalyst for innovation, investment and economic opportunity.

Gov. Davis stated in a press release that "neither party would embrace" his original budget request, which included funding for TTCA. The approved $71.1 billion spending plan is minus $17 million to $18 million per year for the agency, to be phased out by January 1, 2004. Some of the work performed by TTCA will be carried on by the Business, Transportation and Housing Agency, including management of the Small Business Loan Guarantee and Manufacturing Technology Programs.

In its second attempt to distribute $225 million across the state to local economic development projects, after a lawsuit successfully challenged the initial selection process, the West Virginia Development office is poised to award nearly $47.5 million to directly benefit several technology-specific initiatives.

A grant committee of the West Virginia Development Office announced the awards among the sum of those made — $225.86 million to 48 projects in 27 counties. Technology-related awards include:

North Carolina took another step toward improving technology-based economic opportunity for its citizens when Gov. Michael Easley signed into law House Bill 1194 earlier this month. The bill creates the e-NC Authority, which will continue the work of the existing Rural Internet Access Authority for three more years, beginning January 2004.

Since 2001, the current authority has led efforts to connect North Carolina, especially rural areas, to the Internet. The Rural Internet Access Authority estimates 2002 – a year when the authority helped drive a 20 percent increase in computer ownership – marked the biggest deployment year the state has ever had. High-speed Internet access was available to 75 percent of North Carolina households by the end of 2002, the authority states.

The Kansas Technology Enterprise Corporation (KTEC), the state's lead corporation to promote advanced technology economic development, has developed a new investment program to help early-stage technology companies get the capital boost they need.

KTEC's Technology Commercialization Seed Fund (TCSF) is intended for companies that have developed technology products or processes and are preparing for a venture investment. Established July 1, the new fund emphasizes technology commercialization and complements KTEC’s existing Applied Research Matching Fund, which is intended for companies still in the product development phase.

“TCSF allows us to help companies that are farther along than companies we’ve invested in in the past,” said Michael Peck, KTEC vice president of investments and portfolio management. “Companies that are eligible for a TCSF investment will have other investors ready to co-invest with KTEC.”