SSTI Digest

A fourth annual review of career and technical education (CTE) and career-readiness policies, found an increase in policy action carried out by states in 2016 with several states – including California, Idaho, Indiana and Virginia – passing packages of legislation that impacted multiple elements of CTE programming. State Policies Impacting CTE: 2016 Year in Review was produced by Advance CTE, formerly known as the National Association of State Directors of Career Technical Education Consortium (NASDCTEc), and the Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE). They found that funding remains the most pursued approach, with 28 states taking action to financially support CTE activities in 2016. The second most popular CTE action pursued by states is policy related to industry partnerships and work-based learning (26 states) according to the report, followed by policies related to dual and concurrent enrollment, articulation and early college (21 states) and policies supporting the attainment of industry-recognized credentials (20 states). Rounding out the top five policy paths in 2016 was an increase in policies related to data, reporting and accountability,…

While states implement policies to spur innovation, manufacturing and other priorities related to clean energy, there was no single source serving as a collection of all such policies across the 50 states. The recently released Clean Energy-Related Economic Development Policy across the States: Establishing a 2016 Baseline by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) aims to establish a baseline of existing policy as “a critical first step in determining the potential holistic impact of these policies on driving economic growth in a state.” It focuses on the policies most directly related to expanding new and existing manufacturing. The report covers over 900 existing clean energy-related economic development laws, financial incentives, and other policies such as agency-directed programs and initiatives as they relate to expanding new and existing manufacturing. The policies are distributed across three categories: state financial incentive programs (including manufacturing recruitment); other policy, generally spurred from executive action or previously existing authority; and enacted legislation that may generate long-term impacts on economic…

On Feb. 1, SSTI staff, members and The Sheridan Group participated in a Capitol Hill Day for SSTI’s Innovation Advocacy Council. Groups visited more than two dozen congressional offices, including appropriations committee members and freshman Senate offices, and the White House Office of Management and Budget. The message for these visits was to increase federal funding for the Regional Innovation program and to protect science and innovation spending during any broad budget reform or sequestration that may be forthcoming. The Hill staff was receptive to the message of continuing federal support for innovation and welcomed an ongoing conversation. Members of Congress will be making FY 2018 appropriations requests soon, and SSTI will be contacting members in key states to petition for SSTI’s priorities. To get involved in this process, or to learn about an upcoming Capitol Hill Day, contact Jason Rittenberg (rittenberg@ssti.org | 614-901-1690).

SSTI continues to review state budget proposals as they are released, combing through them for TBED-related initiatives. This week, education and research and development programs are revealed as we examine the budget proposals from governors in Ohio, Tennessee and Texas. Ohio Gov. John Kasich’s $144 billion FY 2018-2019 biennial budget proposal would reduce the income tax while raising other taxes such as sales, tobacco, alcohol, and natural gas. The Governor also emphasizes making Ohio’s economy more technology-focused, according to the Dayton Business Journal. Notably, Kasich’s budget would provide $750,000 to create The Ohio Institute of Technology (OIT), a new office that would focus on technology development across several industries where the state has strengths: aerospace, biomedical, engineering, robotics and smart mobility. Located in the Governor’s Office, the OIT would be led by a new Chief Innovation Officer. Kasich proposes investing $20 million in state funds for the Phase 1 expansion of the Transportation Research Center's (TRC) new 540-acre Smart Mobility Advanced Research and Test (SMART) Center, which…

More than half of the country’s governors have delivered their state of the state addresses. Last week’s addresses tended to relate to the national election and the incoming administration, with some governors heralding the change and others pledging to try to reach a bipartisan understanding while standing firm on issues they believe in, like climate change in California. Although TBED issues may not have been at the forefront of the addresses, science, technology and especially innovation and higher education continue to receive attention. This week we zero in on comments delivered by governors in California, Hawaii, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana and Utah. California Gov. Jerry Brown thanked those that were gathered to hear his address for their enthusiasm, noting that, “It is just what we need for the battle ahead. So keep it up and don't ever falter.” Instead of the usual address laying out his plan for the state, Brown used his address to focus on the state within the broader context of the country and its challenges. While he did not focus on technology issues, he did stress the science behind climate change and…

  The U.S. Department of Energy recently released the State of the Department of Energy National Laboratories Report, which reads like a user manual for the National Labs. For readers with questions about what the labs are, what they are trying to achieve, and how they work with other institutions, the report is an excellent resource. As depicted in the visual accompanying this article, DOE’s labs cover a variety of purposes, enabling the report to provide more generalizable information on the labs than might be possible from another agency. Sections detail DOE’s strategic plan for the labs, scientific objectives, partnership structures and tech transfer initiatives, among others. Each section includes case studies or anecdotes of lab activities and numerous appendices provide additional background. Section 4, on tech transfer, provides detailed output metrics for the labs over a multi-year period through FY 2015. Trends show that licensing deals are increasing since FY 2012 but revenue has fallen fairly steadily since at least FY 2008. The combined numbers of cooperative research and development agreements (CRADAs), strategic partnership…

A portfolio company of JumpStart Inc., an Ohio venture development organization, is to be purchased for $1.1 billion. The proposed acquisition of Ohio startup CoverMyMeds by McKesson Corp. marks Ohio’s first tech startup unicorn. JumpStart Evergreen, the non-profit fund that invested in CoverMyMeds, was funded in part by Ohio Third Frontier. CoverMyMeds was started in Ohio in 2008 and is now headquartered in Columbus. It provides electronic prior authorization solutions to pharmacies, providers, payers and pharmaceutical manufacturers. The deal is expected to close in the first half of FY 2018 and its workforce, in both Cleveland and Columbus offices, is expected to grow. Following the close of the transaction, CoverMyMeds will operate as an independent business unit under its existing leadership team. The deal was covered in a Columbus Business First story. Both Ohio Third Frontier and JumpStart Inc. are SSTI members.

The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) announced $26 million in awards to expand and diversify the economy in coal-impacted communities in five states. This adds to the $47 million ARC has invested since 2015 through the Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization (POWER) Initiative. The 31 awards that were announced in late January are projected to create or retain more than 2,500 jobs and leverage an additional $32 million from public and private investors. The POWER Initiative is a congressionally funded, multi-state strategy to bring federal resources to coal-impacted regions that have been negatively affected by changes in America’s energy production. The awards are intended to better equip workers and students in the Appalachian region with skills and opportunities in manufacturing, technology, entrepreneurship, agriculture, and other emerging sectors. A sampling of the 31 grantees include: $3.5 million to Big Sandy Community and Technical College in Prestonsburg, KY, for the Eastern Kentucky Coal County Transformation project. The award will enable three eastern Kentucky education institutions — Big Sandy, Hazard Community…

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration and the National Science Foundation have released The National Broadband Research Agenda, a report detailing key priorities for broadband research and data. Despite significant advances in broadband connectivity, disparities remain in access, adoption and choice. For example, 10 percent of Americans lack access to the FCC’s prescribed benchmark speeds for downloads and uploads, less than 40 percent of Americans have the choice of more than one internet service provider and approximately 19 percent of schools lack the speed connectivity goals of the FCC.  A 2015 Broadband Opportunity Council report recommended further study to improve data collection, analysis and research; the topics covered in the new report. Stakeholders contributing to the report include academia, the public, and federal staff. The National Broadband Research Agenda provides a synthesis of their input and a conceptual framework for potential research proposals and data requirements in four key areas related to U.S. R&D in broadband: technology, deployment, adoption, and socioeconomic impacts.

While equity crowdfunding has received widespread attention since the 2012 JOBS Act, another SEC rule change (named Regulation A+) that allowed companies to offer “mini-IPOs” has flown largely under the radar. However, it has shown early promise as a new method for startup financing since it was passed in 2015. In this feature, SSTI addresses three important questions related to Regulation A+ (Reg A+) including: What is Reg A+? What are the benefits and drawbacks of the offering? What impact has it made so far? What is Reg A+? At its core, Reg A+ allows U.S.-based companies to gauge their offerings’ appeal in the marketplace and raise up to $50 million over a 12-month period in growth capital from both accredited and non-accredited investors with significantly less regulatory red tape than the traditional initial public offering (IPO) allows. Sometimes called a mini-IPO, due to the relaxed regulatory burden, with Reg A+, a company can ‘test the water’ prior to filing with the SEC. During the testing period, the startup can “solicit interest from the public to determine if there is sufficient investor interest…

  NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo delivered his state of the state address over three days and six different speeches, and released his proposed FY 2018 budget following the talks. Some of his major proposals affecting the technology-based economic development field include proposals he had revealed earlier and have previously been covered in the Digest, including his proposal for free tuition as well as a major investment in the life sciences.  In keeping with our Tech Talkin’ Govs series and budget reviews, some excerpts from his various speeches are detailed here, as well as a closer analysis of his proposed budget. From his Mid-Hudson address: “We flipped that whole equation. And that’s what we call our Regional Economic Development Councils. We put together business leaders, academic leaders in every region, and we said to them ‘you come up with the business plans for your region and we will fund your vision.’ And it is working, and it is working very well. $4.6 billion invested in the REDC’s since 2011. And it’s created 210,000 jobs, 5,200 projects all across the Mid-Hudson area. 476 million, in 600 hundred…

SSTI has reviewed another mix of state budgets as governors across the country continue to release their proposals. Some states, like California and North Dakota, are seeing cuts in the amount of money designated for TBED-related work, while others like Minnesota are in a more favorable fiscal situation and continue to fund such initiatives. Still others, like Rhode Island, are proposing new initiatives. California Gov. Jerry Brown’s proposed FY 2018 budget includes a phase out of the Middle Class Scholarship program, which the budget indicates would save the state almost $116 million by FY 2021. The program provides financial assistance for college students from families with incomes and assets up to $156,000. The governor’s recommendation is based on “the state’s overall financial condition,” the desire to provide “long-term stable growth in funding for the [University of California] and [California State University], and to maintain the broad Cal Grant entitlement for the state’s neediest students.” While the new budget notes that the 2016 budget included $22 million for UC for innovation and entrepreneurship, it…