SSTI Digest

As many states near the mid-point of their 2012 legislative sessions, we thought it would be a good time to take a look at some of the bills advancing in statehouses that could impact states' efforts to improve economic conditions. Several states are seeking to advance access to capital initiatives as they continue to struggle with declining revenue and tight credit restrictions. The following overview provides a sampling of TBED bills supporting access to capital, R&D enhancements and higher education standards.

Providing Access to Capital

The Arizona Senate approved last month a bill to empower the state to facilitate $250 million in loans to manufacturers and other businesses by allowing third parties to sell income and insurance premium tax credits to venture capital firms, banks and other lenders, reports The Arizona Capitol Times. Supporters say the program, which has been employed at the federal level over the last decade under the New Markets structure, has been adopted successfully by nine other states. The measure awaits action in the House.

The Abell Foundation and Maryland Technology Development Company (TEDCO) announced the Propel Baltimore Fund — a $3.3 million angel investment fund targeted at startups and entrepreneurs in Baltimore. The fund will invest in technology companies with innovation-focused business plans that are located in Baltimore or are willing to relocate to the city. Initial investments will be between $50,000 and $100,000 (maximum investment of $220,000 per company). Propel investments will require a 50 percent match from outside investors. Read the press release.

Over 181,900 international patents were filed in 2011, up 10.7 percent from 2010, according estimated data from the World International Patent Organization (WIPO). China, Japan and the U.S. accounted for 82% of the total growth, the highest since 2005. Estimated data was collected from the WIPO-administered Patent Cooperation Treat (PCT) system. The PCT system facilitates the process of seeking patent protection across its over 140-member countries by postponing the requirement to file a separate application in each country until after a centralized processing and initial patentability evaluation have taken place. The U.S. with an estimated 48,596 filings (26.7 percent of all patents filled worldwide in 2011) remained the largest user of the PCT system. The U.S. was followed by Japan (38,888 fillings; 21.4 percent of all patents filled), Germany (18,568 fillings; 10.2 percent of all patents filled) and China (16,406 fillings; 9.0 percent of all patents filled).

A contribution of $4.2 million CAN ($4.2 million USD) by FedDev Ontario will be used to place 320 recent graduates in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields with businesses in a competitive six-month internship and mentorship program. The idea is to provide graduates with real world opportunities to develop business skills and experience. The grads will be matched with small- and medium-sized enterprises in southern Ontario. Read the press release

Discovering the ideal conditions for entrepreneurs to succeed is a topic widely researched in today's economy. Most researchers will agree that having access to capital, a culture conducive for risk, and skilled workers are key components. A new report from the Technology CEO Council (TCC) adds that powerful and affordable new technologies, and companies that harness them, are at a greater advantage than ever before when it comes to driving job creation. The report points to new research from Catherine L. Mann of Brandeis University indicating companies that were intensive users of IT grew jobs at a rate of 5.1 percent from 2001-09, while overall employment shrank by 0.5 percent. And, although small IT-intensive service firms represent only 5 to 6 percent of all employment, they averaged 34 percent of new jobs created between 2002 and 2008.

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released a request for information (RFI) on the Reform of Federal Policies Relating to Grants and Cooperative Agreements. OMB intends to use these comments in its development of a whitepaper, to be published later this year, which may propose specific revisions to increase efficiency and effectiveness of federal grant programs by eliminating unnecessary and duplicative requirements. Comments should address possible reforms to one or more of four topics: Overarching Questions — reform ideas related to reducing the administrative burden of applicants; Single Audits — reform ideas related to the federal single audit framework; Cost Principles — reform ideas related to indirect cost rates and a flat rate framework; and, Administrative Requirements — reform ideas related to specific standards that should be considered in federal agencies' evaluation of merit. Comments are due March 29, 2012. Read the Request For Information.

With the goal of integrating STEM learning into schools and strengthening teacher effectiveness in STEM areas, Science Foundation Arizona (SFAz) is launching the Arizona STEM Network, which will be implemented over the next five years in school districts throughout the state. In Texas, officials are counting on a new $30 million fund to produce more STEM graduates by recruiting top-notch research faculty to the University of Houston (UH). The Arizona STEM Network builds on Gov. Jan Brewer's plan for STEM education announced in 2010. SFAz will serve as the operational management hub to provide focus, commitment and structure to achieve the goals outlined in the implementation plan. Four strategic concentrations will guide the work of the STEM Network over the next five years. These include: Integrating STEM into schools and districts by working with the governor's office, Department of Education and county superintendents to extend STEM expertise through Regional Education Service Centers.

The U.S. Department of Treasury recently announced the selection of 70 organizations from around the country to receive a total of $3.6 billion in New Markets Tax Credits awards. The awards may be used to provide individual and corporate taxpayers with a credit against federal income taxes for making equity investments in community development entities. Read the complete list of awardees...

The Michigan Economic Development Corporation announced the Tech Transfer Talent Network — a new $2.6 million initiative to increase the supply of seasoned entrepreneurs and innovators who can lend their expertise to member universities' tech transfer offices. The University of Michigan's (U-M) tech transfer office will lead the seven-university network and share its tech transfer resources with member institutions. In addition to U-M, the members are: Wayne State University, Michigan State University, Michigan Technological University, Western Michigan University, Grand Valley State University and Oakland University. The Tech Transfer Talent Network's primary purpose is to increase the supply of seasoned entrepreneurs and innovators who can lend their expertise to university tech transfer offices. The state hopes these connections will serve as important bridges to launch technology-based startups or license university inventions to established companies.

his week Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel released the first draft of a long-term plan for the city's economic growth and job creation. The plan provides ten over-arching strategies to guide Chicago's economic development efforts, the first of which is a focus on advanced manufacturing. The plan also calls on the city to support entrepreneurship and innovation in emerging technology sectors. Read the full announcement...

By reducing legal and regulatory barriers to startups, states can harness the power to encourage the formation and growth of new companies, find two recent reports from the Kauffman Foundation. The reports were issued in conjunction with Kaufmann's third annual State of the Entrepreneurship address and call for state level initiatives and policy recommendations that have shown preliminary success but have yet to be widely adopted. In Startup Act for the States, several proposals are put forth to act as a "menu of initiatives" at the state level, which policymakers can evaluate and adapt according to their needs. Ideas are organized by stage of the entrepreneurial process, which include encouraging the launch of new businesses, measures to facilitate the launch of new ventures, and nurturing the growth of new businesses.

Countries that put significant resources into supporting clean tech innovation are rewarded with more emerging and commercialized clean tech companies, according to Coming Clean: The Global Cleantech Innovation Index 2012 — a new report from the Clean Tech Group, LCC. The U.S. placed fifth out of 38 countries, with the top score for several indicators including research and development funding, general innovation drivers (i.e., Entrepreneurial culture and "general innovation inputs") and strong emerging clean tech innovation. However, in comparison to other top performers, the lack of strong government policies in support of clean tech hurt the overall health of the sector in the United States. Other indicators that the U.S. performed poorly in were renewable energy consumption and clean tech company revenues. Denmark ranked first due to its unique combination of a supportive environment for innovative clean tech startups, evidence of those startups emerging as well as a strong track record of companies commercializing their clean tech innovations and widespread market adoption.