SSTI Digest

Breaking a two-year impasse, legislators in Illinois were able to pass a state budget that reinstitutes an R&D tax credit and implements workforce development programs. In California, the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (Go-Biz) will see a 28 percent increase in funding, while other innovation initiative are receiving level funding. In other states whose budgets SSTI analyzed this week for TBED-related funding, we found that Innovate Mississippi was able to maintain state funding and new funding was appropriated for workforce development at the state’s community and junior colleges; a variety of programs were cut in North Carolina; and, Ohio will not get funding for a state office focused on commercializing research across key industries that the governor had proposed. More findings from California, Illinois, Mississippi, North Carolina and Ohio are detailed below.   California Go-Biz, the Governor’s Office of Business & Economic Development, received a 28 percent increase for the new fiscal year, growing to $6.531 million. The agency’s staff will grow from 22.0 full time equivalent positions to 33…

As new and supplemental state budgets are being proposed, SSTI is monitoring the proposals and will report on developments impacting prosperity through science, technology, innovation and entrepreneurship. The first budgets released – from Colorado, Mississippi, Oregon and Wyoming – represent a mixed bag with new initiatives proposed in three states and program elimination in the fourth.   Colorado Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper’s proposed budget includes an overall 3.3 percent increase in spending but requires legislative changes to Taxpayer's Bill of Rights (TABOR) rebates and reductions relative to inflation on K-12 education spending, in addition to other measures, to close a potential $500 million gap. Approximately $160 million in new funding is proposed for an Aerospace Engineering Science Building at University of Colorado-Boulder and an Institute for Biological and Translational Therapies at Colorado State University. An economic development policy proposed in the budget would require regions to incorporate succession plans into their state-supported strategic plans - a best practice known to be…

The Delta Regional Authority  (DRA) released the Regional Development Plan III (RDPIII) – an economic development strategy to help guide DRA’s 252-county region’s economic growth over the next five years. In RDPIII, DRA identifies three goals and related action items to guide its economic development efforts in the Delta region: Improved Workforce Competitiveness – Advance the productivity and economic competitiveness of the Delta workforce; Strengthened Infrastructure – Strengthen the Delta region’s physical, digital, and capital connections to the global economy; and, Increased Community Capacity – Facilitate local capacity building within Delta communities, organizations, businesses, and individuals. In addition to the overall strategy, DRA also published eight state strategies for Alabama; Arkansas; Illinois; Kentucky; Louisiana; Mississippi; Missouri; and, Tennessee. Each state strategic plan includes state specific action items for DRA and a SWOT analysis as well as a profile of existing economic development efforts and key state demographics. 

To drive state competitiveness and job creation, Indiana and Mississippi announced new efforts to engage regional institutions of higher education and other organizations to provide workers with the skills that match the needs of existing industry as well as attract new business and industry to their state. Through the Indiana Department of Workforce Development (DWD), the state will commit $22 million to fund industry-led regional partnerships aimed at aligning education and workforce needs. Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant announced the creation of a new workforce training fund to allow state leaders to allocate dollars toward workforce training with a focus on recruiting new business to the state.  Indiana Over the last two months, the state announced the winners of the first round of Skill UP Indiana! and is now accepting applications for the second round of the program. Via these two rounds of funding, the state will commit up to $22 million to encourage the development of sector-focused training and education programs for in-demand occupations as well as teach necessary workforce skills and competencies as identified by local employers. In the first…

As the Federal Aviation Administration continues to propose regulations around the fledging unmanned aircraft system (UAS) industry in order to ensure that it integrates into the current system as well as possible, states are beginning to act in order to improve their own competitiveness. The FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 directed the FAA to establish a test sites program for the UAS, taking into account geographic and climatic diversity, location of ground infrastructure, and research needs in choosing the sites. In December 2013, the FAA announced the selection of six public entities in Alaska, Nevada, New York, North Dakota, Texas, and Virginia for test sites, all of which became operational in 2014. With test site operations allowed to continue until February 2017 under current law, state agencies, in conjunction with universities and the private sector, are attempting to take advantage of the industry’s vast potential: more than 100,000 jobs created through the year 2025, with an expected economic impact of $82 billion, according to a report by the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International. North DakotaNorth Dakota Gov. Jack…

The Delta Regional Authority (DRA) announced the establishment of a consortium for research and innovation that is intended to have a long-term positive economic impact on the region. The 35-member consortium will be comprised of universities and other private and public institutions in eight states – Alabama, Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and Tennessee. DRA selected Arkansas State University to lead the consortium and bring together university research officers and local economic development leadership to support the commercialization efforts and economic impacts of research universities in the DRA's footprint. Founding members of the consortium include Delta State University, Louisiana State University, Mississippi State University, Southeast Missouri State University, University of Memphis and University of Tennessee at Martin. Read the announcement…

Over the past few months, SSTI has followed proposals issued by governors in their budget requests, State of the State Addresses, Inaugural Speeches and other events. Now that many state legislatures have begun approving budgets, the Digest will check on the status of these proposals, and examine the state of technology-based economic development funding in the states. This week, we review actions in Arkansas, Mississippi and New York. ArkansasGov. Asa Hutchinson signed off on $8.5 million in FY16 funding for the operation of the Arkansas Science and Technology Authority (ASTA) (SB 31). Beyond operations, $1.9 million was appropriated for ASTA's seed capital investments and another $18.7 million was allotted for the Arkansas Acceleration Fund. Up to $5 million of the Acceleration Fund dollars will be available for use by Innovation Arkansas. The Acceleration Fund received another $30 million through a separate operations budget (SB 111) for the Arkansas Economic Development Commission. ASTA's MEP office, Arkansas Manufacturing Solutions, will receive $2.6 million, including $941,110 in federal funds, $257,182 in state funds and $1.5 million from the…

Over the last couple weeks, governors in Arkansas and Mississippi presented budgets to their stage legislature. In Arkansas, term-limited Gov. Mike Beebe presented two budget proposals for the 2015-17 biennial budget to state lawmakers. However, Gov.-elect Asa Hutchison also will present a budget to the legislature that may differ from Gov. Beebe’s proposal and potentially impact funding for state agencies due to a proposed $100 million individual income tax cut. Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant released his fiscal year 2016 (FY16) executive budget recommendations highlighted by a $52 million increase in funding for public education including a $3 million commitment for the Mississippi Works Scholarship Program. ArkansasOutgoing Gov. Beebe presented two FY16 budget proposals to the Arkansas General Assembly. Although the term-limited governor will be no longer hold office when the budget is approved, he is required by state law to submit a budget. Gov. Beebe presented two budgets to assembly members: one including almost $26 million in scheduled tax cuts and one that would delay those cuts. The two budgets provide Gov. Beebe’s insight on how delaying, or…

Several common themes surrounding higher education have emerged as governors across the country unveil investment priorities for the upcoming fiscal year or biennium. In many states, governors have proposed more funding to increase affordability by freezing tuition or creating new scholarship funds. Support for expanding research capacity, technology-related infrastructure and job training in high-demand industries are some of the proposed measures aimed at competitiveness.   College Affordability Governors in several states are requesting additional funds for higher education in exchange for holding tuition steady. The FY15 budget outlined by Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal proposes new funding streams to encourage more students to attend technical schools. For example, $5 million in new lottery funds would provide additional financial assistance above what is covered by the state’s HOPE scholarship for students pursuing in-demand certificates or training programs. A new Zell Miller grant also would be established to provide full tuition for students in technical schools who maintain a 3.5 grade point average, and the state’s traditional HOPE…

While public debate rages over the role of surveillance in our society, one particularly infamous government surveillance technology, drones, is being prepared for private sector deployment in the U.S. Drone-related technologies are predicted to revolutionize commerce in the U.S., with industry projections valuing their initial deployment as an $82 billion boost to the national economy. In preparation for Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rollout of drone-use regulations in 2015, entrepreneurs, multinational corporations and state governments are scrambling to be in a competitive position to benefit. While drones have been scrutinized in the press for their extensive use in overseas counter-terrorism operations, entrepreneurs at universities and startups across the country are experimenting with hundreds of potential civilian uses for the technology. State-by-state projections for the economic impacts of drone technology are widespread and robust. California is expected to win big because of its drone manufacturing base while Midwestern states like Kansas are expected to capitalize from the industry's agricultural applications. One of the key selling…

In an era of tightening fiscal constraints, states have to make tough decisions, establish clear economic development funding priorities and transform their economic development models to take advantage of immediate opportunities and position their state for long-term economic growth. Mississippi, Oklahoma and Washington have released state-specific strategic plans that make those tough decisions by focusing their resources on key science & technology (S&T) areas to address the economic impacts of the Great Recession and position the state for future prosperity. Each strategic plan also calls for state government to engage the private sector to build partnerships that will help reduce costs and increase impacts. Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant of Mississippi unveiled a comprehensive plan to capitalize on Mississippi's energy strengths and bring more energy jobs and research to the state. Endowed with diverse energy resources and a strong energy sector, the plan highlights energy-related activities possess tremendous opportunity for job growth and economic development in Mississippi. Developed in partnership with more than 50 private sector energy leaders…

New energy plans unveiled by governors in Connecticut and Mississippi promise to capitalize on current strengths, build capacity for future projects, and encourage public-private partnerships to scale up clean energy projects and create jobs by attracting more R&D investment to the states. Connecticut's draft strategy proposes economic incentives to drive down costs of new technology and maximize the use of clean energy finance banks — an approach that is heralded as a model for other states in a recent policy report. At the same time, a new roadmap for energy opportunities in Mississippi focuses on using available resources to attract businesses while expanding research and training more high-tech workers. ConnecticutA draft comprehensive energy strategy unveiled by Connecticut Gov. Dan Malloy emphasizes a flexible finance model to leverage private capital and encourage entrepreneurship to deploy renewable energy on a large scale but with less government funding. Connecticut's model, called the Clean Energy Finance Investment Authority, was established last year as the nation's first state-based clean energy finance bank. Also called the…