SSTI Digest

Kentucky and New Hampshire recently have announced job training initiatives to address the needs of key industries at both the local and state levels. The Kentucky Work Ready Skills Initiative, a $100 million statewide bond program, is intended to meet “the needs of employers and promote sustainable incomes for Kentuckians.” Meanwhile, the launch of New Hampshire’s Manufacturing Sector Partnership, a statewide collaboration for industries to address their workforce needs, was announced. The effort will build a network that includes manufacturing professionals, educators and state economic development officials to develop a cross-collaborative career pathway for future workers. In Kentucky, Gov. Matt Bevin announced the launch of the Kentucky Work Ready Skills Initiative, an attempt to address the state’s shortage of workers with proper skills and credentials. The funding will infuse resources to expand career and technical education facilities and allow those facilities to upgrade equipment to current and future industry standards through local partnerships between private industry and educational institutions.  The…

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. 

Many governors around the country have begun laying 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 Delaware, Kentucky and Massachusetts. DelawareOn Thursday, Gov. Jack Markell offered a $4.1 billion budget plan for fiscal year 2017 a week after delivering his final State of the State address. At last year’s address, Gov. Markell introduced the Delaware Promise Initiative, a decade-long initiative to ensure that 65 percent of all Delaware residents had a college degree or professional certificate by 2025. This year, he reviewed the steps already taken to accomplish that goal, including the launch of Delaware’s TechHire IT training initiative, the Accelerated Career Pathways program for high school-level manufacturing training and his $1 million commitment to the Pathways to Prosperity program. He pledged to continue those efforts, as well as to invest in the entrepreneurship support programs and reforming the corporate tax code. The Delaware Competes Act, which would reduce corporate income tax for…

For many states, broadband connectivity is becoming an increasingly important tool used to improve the economic well-being of residents, especially in rural areas. While some have paved the way for publicly funded municipal broadband providers, others, such as North Carolina and Tennessee, have filed suit with the Federal Communications Commission and joined the telecommunications industry in their opposition. Over the course of the summer, several states announced their own measures to improve broadband adoption as a means to support economic development and improve the quality of life in rural areas. Recent research has explored the economic value of rural broadband adoption. Sponsored by the National Agricultural and Rural Development Policy Center (NARDeP), a study released last year found that, between 2001 and 2010,  rural counties where more than 60 percent of households adopted broadband experienced higher income growth and smaller unemployment growth than those counties that did not. The study, Broadband׳s contribution to economic growth in rural areas: Moving towards a causal relationship, also finds that rural counties where fewer than 40 percent of…

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…

AdvanceKentucky continues to demonstrate its ability in Kentucky schools to dramatically increase access to and accelerate successful learning in rigorous math, science and English (MSE) courses, as shown by qualifying scores on Advanced Placement exams, according to a new research reported undertaken in 2014 by the Kentucky Center for Education and Workforce Statistics. AdvanceKentucky was particularly effective for students from underrepresented populations. The researchers found that AdvancedKentucky students: scored better on their ACTs by 1.5-points; achieved a 10 percentage-point advantage in earning college or career ready status; and, have higher college persistence rates while earning higher GPAs and graduate from college in four years from college at twice the rate of non-AdvanceKentucky students. They also are significantly less likely to attend remedial courses – only 10 percent of AdvancedKentucky students took at least one remedial course compared to 50 percent for the control group. Currently 101 schools across Kentucky use the AdvanceKentucky program. Read the release…  

Now in its 15th year, SSTI's Tech Talkin' Govs series has returned as governors across the country formally convene the 2014 legislative sessions. The series highlights new and expanded TBED proposals from governors' State of the State, Budget and Inaugural addresses. The first edition includes excerpts from speeches delivered in California, Kentucky, and Vermont.  This year, several governors have combined their inaugural addresses with the traditional address to the state legislature. Remarks from these speeches related to technology, innovation and economic development will be included in the roundups. CaliforniaGov. Jerry Brown, Inaugural Address, Jan. 5, 2015 “… I propose three ambitious goals to be accomplished within the next 15 years: increase from one-third to 50 percent our electricity derived from renewable sources; reduce today's petroleum use in cars and trucks by up to 50 percent; and, double the efficiency of existing buildings and make heating fuels cleaner. “We must also reduce the relentless release of methane, black carbon and other potent pollutants across industries. And we must…

Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear announced the creation a new public-private partnership to support the development of a statewide, fiber broadband infrastructure with a focus on supporting economic and social prosperity across the commonwealth. The ambitious initiative would provide the entire state with high-speed internet – with the first components scheduled to be operational in less than two years. When completed, the more than 3,000 miles of fiber will be in place across the state. Overall, the project is estimated to cost between $250 million to $350 million over the next 30 years, and will be supported by approximately $30 million in state bonds and $15 million to $20 million in federal grants. The first two years of the plan will focus on the underserved eastern Kentucky region. In addition to infrastructure development, partners also will provide education to residents and business on the benefits and use of broadband. In addition to the economic benefits, the plan also will assist in K-12 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education, academic research and distance education.  Read the announcement… Iowa Gov. Terry…

Maria Contreras-Sweet has been confirmed as the administrator of the Small Business Administration. Larry Ferguson has been chosen as the vice chancellor for economic development and workforce solutions at Kentucky Community College and Technical System. Rebecca Lovell has been selected as the startup liaison for the City of Seattle’s Office of Economic Development.  

Investments and policy to support innovation-focused agendas have flourished with the close of the 2014 legislative sessions in several states. Crowdfunding legislation, incentives for attracting talent, higher education affordability, punishing patent trolls, and encouraging greater accountability are some of the areas where lawmakers focused their efforts. States Support Crowdfunding LawsTwo states passed legislation to amend state securities laws in order to allow entrepreneurs to raise capital through crowdfunding platforms. Maine passed LD 1512 last month (see related Digest article) and more recently, a measure (HB 2023) was passed in Washington that enables businesses to raise up to $1 million through crowdfunding websites. The law stipulates that contributions must come from residents and businesses in the state. At least five other states have passed similar laws, and a related bill is making its way through the Alabama legislature. Enhancing Incentives for Job CreationNebraska lawmakers passed LB 1114, a measure that extends for another five years the Business Innovation Act, a program that offers technical assistance and R&D grants to…

Recent court decisions regarding high-speed Internet competition and net neutrality have put U.S. broadband competitiveness on uncertain terrain. Despite two decades of publically supported high-speed data infrastructure efforts, many rural areas still lack access and even densely populated areas remain underserved.  New statewide efforts in Kentucky, Minnesota and Iowa have been announced to improve broadband services and boost economic competitiveness. In addition, Google has announced that it will expand its ultra-fast fiber services to nine more cities across the country. Last month, a court challenge to Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) net neutrality rules ended with the rules sent back to the FCC for revision, according to a report by Ars Technica. Net neutrality rules had been put in place to prevent anti-competitive actions by communications companies, such as blocking or slowing down particular sites. Yesterday, the FCC announced that it will not challenge the decision, but will regulate anti-competitive behavior on a case-by-case basis. At the same time, Comcast’s proposed acquisition of Time Warner Cable, if approved, could…

Angel capital has long played a vital role in state and regional innovation economies, but recent trends in investment capital have pushed angel investment to the fore. As the supply of seed stage venture capital declines in many parts of the country, angels have stepped in to bridge early stage funding gaps for technology startups. The proliferation of angel investors and groups over the last few years has outpaced the recovery of the venture capital industry since early 2009, according to data from the PricewaterhouseCoopers/National Venture Capital Association Moneytree Survey and the University of New Hampshire Center for Venture Research. In the midst of these changes, many states have stepped up their efforts to attract and incentivize angel investment. Recent initiatives in Minnesota, Florida, Kentucky and West Virginia seek to book seed and early stage capital by working with angel investors. Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton recently announced the creation of a new $6.7 million Angel Loan Fund to augment the state’s Angel Tax Credit. Both initiatives operate with federal support through the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI). The new loan program will…