SSTI Digest

Amid a national economic recovery, city officials report a recent and persistent skills gap that may signal structural challenges and present serious barriers to sustained growth for metros. Nearly nine in 10 city officials (88 percent) note that workforce alignment has not improved over the past year, according to a recent survey on city fiscal conditions from the National League of Cities (NLC). Meanwhile, new business growth, as represented by indicators of entrepreneurial activity and new business permits, is showing signs of improvement.

Unlike most other economic indicators, city officials report that workforce skills are not keeping pace with employer demand and more than half of city officials (53 percent) say that current local workforce skills are posing a problem for the economic health of their communities. Moreover, 82 percent of city officials responded that the percentage of the population with a post-secondary degree has not increased over the past year.

New nonprofit initiatives have been re-defined in Seattle and Atlanta to support their cities' startup communities. Startup Seattle and Startup Atlanta will work to serve, support, and link the regional innovation systems and startup ventures in their respective cities. Both entities previously were developed by and for the local entrepreneurial communities to support new companies but are restructuring as independent organizations.

Startup Seattle was established by StartupCity LLC in 2012 as a grassroots organization to aid local startups and unite and serve the regional innovation and startup systems in the city. It originally was funded by Startup Weekend, Microsoft BizSpark, TechStars, and Founders Co–op. It now will be a collaboration between the city of Seattle and local technology and business leaders since the City Council and the Seattle Office of Economic Development, with additional support from the Startup Seattle Advisory Group, will take over operations of Startup Seattle from StartupCity LLC.

London's Mayor Boris Johnson has announced an initiative to transform Olympic Park into a creative and digital business hub for the city. According to an article from startups.uk, the proposed redevelopment promises to boost the United Kingdom's (UK) GDP by $450 million ($692.5 million US) and create more than 6,500 new jobs. In partnership with the London Legacy Development Corporation, the city will make major investments in the areas surrounding the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, including the construction of three feature buildings:

Puerto Rico Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla recently issued three executive orders aimed at advancing the island's renewable energy industry. The orders will grant priority approvals to renewable energy projects and introduce two new councils that will coordinate energy initiatives. Gov. Garcia Padilla joins a growing list of governors who have used executive orders to quickly implement energy policies without going to the legislature. The National Governors Association (NGA)has published an issue brief on the use of executive orders in energy policy, along with an index of these orders since 2008.

Gov. Garcia Padilla's orders call for priority to be given to renewable energy projects under the condition that these projects conserve areas of high ecological and agricultural value. Projects also must have the infrastructure to connect to the island's Power Authority without increasing the cost of electricity to consumers.

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London's Mayor Boris Johnson has announced an initiative to transform Olympic Park into a creative and digital business hub for the city. According to an article from startups.uk, the proposed redevelopment promises to boost the United Kingdom's (UK) GDP by $450 million ($692.5 million US) and create more than 6,500 new jobs. In partnership with the London Legacy Development Corporation, the city will make major investments in the areas surrounding the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, including the construction of three feature buildings:

Threats to America's cybersecurity continue to make headlines, underscoring the growing importance of protecting our country's digital infrastructure. As national security experts continue to grapple with how to address the challenge, the federal government is stepping up to coordinate state cybersecurity efforts. In an effort to promote our country's economic security and boost innovation and competitiveness, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) is working with states and the private sector to develop a framework for national cybersecurity standards. States are capitalizing on the increased coordination to build public-private partnerships that seed industry growth.

As Congress considers comprehensive immigration reform, policymakers are debating the effect of high-skilled immigration on the U.S. economy. Amidst the fervent discussion, the question has been raised of whether or not there is a shortage of domestic high-skilled workers, especially those in the field of science, technology, engineering and math; a question that now is being fiercely debated by two renowned policy groups. Researchers from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI) recently made the claim that the U.S. has a sufficient supply of workers to fill the demand of STEM occupations. In response, researchers from the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) published a point-for-point rebuttal to the EPI's report, joining a chorus of others in staunch opposition of the EPI's interpretation of the statistics.

The budget agreement reached by Texas lawmakers earlier this week includes $50 million in new funds to provide grants to technology companies for research and commercialization activities under the Emerging Technology Fund (ETF). A bill to address accountability and transparency of the fund was passed in the House, but later removed from the Senate calendar despite controversy surrounding the decision-making authority of the grants. Lawmakers also passed a measure to reinstate an R&D tax incentive that was repealed in 2006, and set aside funding to lure a space transport company to the state.

Last week, the Obama administration announced that it would commit $200 million to establish three new manufacturing innovation institutions in 2013 (see the May 8, 2013 issue of the digest). The announcement was followed by the release of a funding announcement for the first of those proposed institutes — the Department of Energy-administered Clean Energy Manufacturing Innovation Institute. The Department of Defense released requests for information on the two proposed institutes focused on digital manufacturing and design and lightweight and modern metals manufacturing.

A new program that builds upon the successes of North Dakota's Centers of Excellence and Research Excellence programs will fund up to half of the cost of R&D and commercialization projects conducted by the state's research universities. Under Research North Dakota (RND), the development and commercialization of new products will be achieved on a project-by-project basis and state funds will be matched with private-sector cash investment.

Around the country, practitioners have gotten creative in their efforts to solve problems seen as barriers to economic growth. In Arizona, BioAccel has developed an innovative approach to funding and serves as a promising model for organizations dedicated to technology driven economic development by working with universities, medical centers and entrepreneurs to translate late stage discovery research into commercial products. Similarly, NorTech, located in northeast Ohio, has developed a Regional Innovation Cluster Model that puts theory into practice to overcome challenges and accelerate successful clusters to create jobs and attract capital. The goal of SSTI's Most Promising award category is to highlight programs that have demonstrated an innovative approach in design or implementation to serve as models for other states and regions. If your organization has a great story to share, please consider applying for the 2013 Excellence in TBED awards and capture national recognition for your efforts. Applications are due June 11.