SSTI Digest

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. 

Illinois and Michigan are among the few states that support regular comprehensive examinations of the role higher education plays in the overall innovation economy. Organizations in both states recently completed studies on university-generated entrepreneurship, licensing, investment and employment, finding a steady rise in university economic impact over the past five years.  In both cases, the increase in university impact was linked to an expanding university role in supporting entrepreneurs and researchers. However, while the Illinois Science and Technology Coalition (ISTC) focuses on the creation of startups directly supported by university programs, the Michigan University Research Corridor (URC) takes a more expansive view, encompassing alumni entrepreneurs as a key pillar of university impact. In the most recent edition of the Illinois Innovation Index, ISTC reports that the state’s universities more than doubled their annual rate of startup creation between 2011 and 2015. More than 600 companies were launched during that period, with about 80 percent still active as of 2016. About 73 percent of the surviving firms were still based in Illinois. …

Governors around the country continue to lay out priorities for the next legislative session. In the coming weeks, SSTI will review gubernatorial addresses and budget proposals related to economic development. This week, we highlight developments in Illinois, Michigan and New Jersey. Illinois Illinois is now in its eighth month without an annual budget bill for the current fiscal year, but Gov. Bruce Rauner presented his spending plan for fiscal year 2017 last week. The state faces a $6.6 billion deficit, which the governor said would have to be bridged with drastic spending reductions, or a mix of tax increases and program reductions along with the governor’s larger legislative agenda. About $1.5 billion is proposed for the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity in FY 2017. This would include about $4.8 million for Regional Economic Development, $5.3 million for the Emerging Technology Program and $1.7 million for job training for economic development. No funding is provided for the Invest Illinois Venture Fund, which was also true in FY16. Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder recently unveiled a $54.9 billion budget request for FY 2017…

At his State of the State address last week, Gov. Bruce Rauner announced that Illinois’ principal economic development organization, the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity, as well as some of the state’s business leaders will collaborate to organize a newly formed private, nonprofit organization exclusively focused on increasing Illinois’ competitiveness for job creation and investment. A key recommendation of the governor's bipartisan transition committee last year, the Illinois Business and Economic Development Corporation (ILBEDC) is modeled from other successful state and local economic development organizations and will focus on sales, marketing and customer service. According to the press release announcing the group’s formation, ILBEDC will maintain strict standards of transparency and accountability, including robust conflict of interest policies, public disclosure of donors, and application of other transparency laws. A 2013 report by the nonprofit think tank Good Jobs First found that a lack of transparency at privatized state economic development agencies, among other things, has led to a misuse of taxpayer…

This week, leaders in Illinois and New Mexico announced new investments to help seed and early stage technology startups access equity capital. The Illinois Treasurer will launch the Illinois Growth and Innovation Fund, which would invest $220 million over the next three years in 15-20 funds across the state. No more than 15 percent of the money will be placed with any particular fund. The state’s investment will target emerging tech companies, beginning later this quarter. New Mexico plans to launch a $40 million fund-of-funds, dubbed the Catalyst Fund. The state will target micro-funds in New Mexico, which must be able to match the state’s investment. The State Investment Council hopes the effort will double the amount of seed and early stage funding available in the state, according to the Albuquerque Journal.    

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…

Even after equity crowdfunding reached a milestone earlier this month with new Securities Exchange Commission proposed rule changes, state legislatures across the country continue to pass intrastate crowdfunding bills. In April, governors from Arizona (HB 2591) and Colorado (HB 1246) signed bills that will allow startups and other businesses in their respective states to raise capital via equity crowdfunding exemptions. Arizona and Colorado joined Massachusetts (Read more in the SSTI Digest) as states that have passed exemptions since the start of the year. The next state most likely to pass crowdfunding legislation is Minnesota – once they are able to finalize compromise between lawmakers and state regulators. In March, new legislation (HB 3429) was officially filed by Illinois State Rep. Carol Senate. The North Carolina state legislature once again is attempting to pass intrastate crowdfunding legislation. 

The Illinois Accelerator Research Center (IARC) is a new research facility for scientists and engineers from Fermilab, Argonne, and Illinois universities to work alongside industrial partners to develop breakthroughs in accelerator science and apply them to areas such as computing, health, industry, and homeland security. Using electromagnetic fields to propel charged particles at high speeds and to contain them in well-defined beams, accelerator technology allows for the investigation of many aspects of particle physics and application in a variety of industries. As an economic development tool, the IARC intends to attract private industry partners to create new high-tech jobs, while simultaneously providing state-of-the-art training and education to researchers and practitioners. The facility also provides Fermilab with an increased opportunity to pursue future proposed particle accelerators, placing Illinois in a position to become a world leader in accelerator research, development, and industrialization, according to the IARC website. On Tuesday, April 28, 2015, the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory will present the Midwest Launch…

This week, governors in Connecticut, Illinois, New Hampshire, and Texas revealed their budget proposals, with commonalities around STEM education, workforce development, and university research initiatives. Governors in two states, New Hampshire and Texas, made growth in the innovation economy a specific priority area of their proposed budgets. New Hampshire“Supporting a more innovative economic future” is highlighted as a priority in Gov. Maggie Hassan’s proposed $11.5 billion 2016-2017 biennial budget. Included within this goal are a variety of proposed education, workforce, and economic development proposals such as: an increase of $13 million over the biennium compared to FY 2015 for the University System of New Hampshire; a $6.5 million increase over the biennium compared to FY 2015 for the state’s community college system; increased funding for Small Business Development Centers; additional funding for education and accelerator programs at business incubators; funding for a STEM specialist at the Department of Education to modernize the state’s STEM education efforts; and, the expansion of a pilot program between the Bureau of…

SSTI's Tech Talkin' Govs series has returned as governors across the country formally convene 2015 legislative sessions. The series highlights new and expanded TBED proposals from governors' State of the State, Budget and Inaugural addresses. The fifth installment of this year’s series includes excerpts from speeches delivered in Illinois, North Carolina, Oklahoma and Tennessee. Read the first, second, third and fourth installments of this year’s series. IllinoisGov. Bruce Rauner, State of the State Address, Feb. 4, 2015"... Too many people in our communities must overcome not only hurdles that state government has put in place, but also decades of hidden barriers that have caused their communities to suffer. Approximately 80% of individuals in Illinois apprenticeship programs are white even though Caucasians make up fewer than 63% of our population. ..." "... We should require unions that contract with the state to have their apprenticeship programs reflect the demographics of Illinois communities, and to have their membership on public construction projects reflect the diversity in the surrounding area.…

With Gov. Pat Quinn, Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Sen. Mark Kirk, and University of Chicago President Robert Zimmer in attendance, the Chicago Innovation Exchange (CIE), a new startup incubator in Chicago’s Hyde Park neighborhood, had its grand opening last Thursday. The CIE is comprised of 32,000 square feet divided among three buildings across the city’s South Side: the central hub, with incubation and event space, the “CIE Skydeck” an 11th floor conference space, and a third location, set to open in 2015, with fabrication and prototyping lab space and equipment such as 3-D printers, mini-mills, and laser cutters. At the event, Gov. Quinn announced that the state would invest $1 million into the new center to support infrastructure and build-out of the space.   Funded by the University of Chicago, the CIE brings the success of the University’s Booth School of Business’ Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation across the campus, not just the business school, better connecting its resources to the entire innovation landscape, according to John Flavin, CIE’s director and a speaker at the 2014 SSTI Annual Conference. The CIE…

Mayor Rahm Emanuel and a coalition of Chicago organizations and private businesses have announced plans to place at least 1,000 workers in manufacturing jobs. The mayor’s 2015 budget proposal, presented this week, includes $200,000 for the effort, with another $750,000 in funds and in-kind contributions from partners. Recent growth in the region’s manufacturing sector has created an urgent need for workers with specific training and apprenticeships, according to the mayor’s announcement. Existing training programs would be leveraged to train participating workers and six local organizations have been tapped to aid in jobs placements. Learn more…