Before ending its 2003 session, the Rhode Island legislature signed off on nearly all of the technology-based economic development (TBED) initiatives at the core of Gov. Donald Carcieri's strategy to help the state rebound from the down economy. First outlined in his Feb. 4 State of the State Address (see the Feb. 14 Digest), the governor's multi-faceted approach includes many key pieces to building a stronger tech-based economy: business-university partnerships to advance and commercialize technology, entrepreneurial assistance for tech firms, increased investments in academic R&D capacity, incentives to encourage tech commercialization, access to early-stage capital, and the tech-skill competence of the workforce.