SSTI Digest

Three of the major thrusts for the research investments of many states –  hydrogen energy technologies, nanomanufacturing, and intelligent and integrated manufacturing – are the focus of a new report by a federal Interagency Working Group on Manufacturing R&D. Manufacturing the Future: Federal Priorities for Manufacturing R&D describes the significance of each of the three critical manufacturing R&D areas, details the challenges essential for progress, discusses existing interagency collaborations and provides recommendations for future research.   The report provides academic and state policymakers the opportunity to compare how well their research investments in the critical sectors match the needs identified by the federal agencies. As the Interagency Working Group was comprised of 15 departments, agencies and organizations in the federal government, future federal research funding opportunities could be influenced by the report. The group worked under the auspices of the National Science and Technology Council’s Committee on Technology.  

By now, you've probably seen many of the articles covering the record number of earmarks academic institutions secured in the federal FY 2008 budget. The Chronicle of Higher Education identified more than 2,300 individual projects distributed across 920 institutions - mostly for research. The figure is 25 percent higher than the previous record and totals at least $2.25 billion. The wealth, though, is also more distributed this year than previously. The Chronicle released a table of the top 843 institutions at: http://chronicle.com/free/v54/i29/4529nonshared_earmarks.htm

As a service to the public, the esteemed publication has made available a free searchable database of all of the earmarks it identified. Records, searchable by state and agency, include the institution's name, the federal agency involved, the specific dollar amount of the noncompetitive award, a description of the project, and the congressional sponsors.

The database is available at http://chronicle.com/stats/pork/.

Every year, the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) releases its U.S. Licensing Activity Survey. The most recent version provides information on fiscal year 2006 (see the Dec. 5, 2007 issue of the Digest) and contains data for 189 universities, hospitals and research institutions. SSTI has prepared a table sorting the survey respondents by state and aggregating a number of key metrics such as the number of full-time employees in licensing staffs; research expenditures; number of patents or options executed; cumulative active licenses; startup companies; U.S. patents issued; new patent applications; and, licensing income.   Eight of this year's survey respondents were not identified by name, so SSTI was not able to align the data for these institutions with their respective states. As a result, while the table illustrates the relative amount of licensing activity in each state, it may not reflect the exact totals as self-reported by the responding institutions.  

A brief two-year reauthorization, bigger award sizes, VC eligibility clarification, and a $10 million grant program for state/local outreach assistance are included in the draft SBIR reauthorization bill circulated by the House Committee on Small Business Chairwoman Nydia Velazquez during the third hearing on the topic, held March 13.   The SBIR program will sunset Sept. 30, 2008, if reauthorization legislation is not passed by Congress and signed by the president before then.   Bigger Awards, Fewer Winners The draft legislation doubles the award sizes for both Phase I and Phase II, authorizing awards of $200,000 for Phase I and $1.5 million for Phase II. In addition, the committee draft authorizes agencies to award “sequential Phase II awards” for testing and evaluation of promising technologies. The award sizes have not been increased since 1992, although some agencies have exceeded the current limits, as needed, for particular projects.  

Witnessing the success experienced by its neighbor, West Virginia is creating a university R&D matching endowment program similar to Kentucky’s. The legislature approved $50 million for Gov. Joe Manchin’s “Bucks for Brains” initiative to be allocated from lottery surplus funds (see the Jan. 16, 2008 issue of the Digest). The West Virginia Research Trust Fund will receive $50 million to match research endowments at the state’s two research universities, West Virginia University (WVU) and Marshall University. Another $30 million will fund the “Training Bucks” program establishing two community-college affiliated training centers throughout the state.   Lawmakers appropriated more than $200 million in budget surplus funds during a special legislative session that adjourned Sunday, including $10 million for economic development loans and $7.1 million for expansion of allied health programs recommended by the governor.  

Aiming to resolve the state’s projected $935 million deficit in its current two-year budget, Gov. Tim Pawlenty introduced a plan that closes Minnesota's budget gap and invests additional funding in rural entrepreneurship and teacher training initiatives for K-12 math and science educators.    Under the governor’s plan, state spending would be cut by $341 million and the state would tap into the budget reserve and surplus funds within the Health Care Access Fund for another $500 million.   The fiscal year 2008 supplemental budget recommends $12 million in FY09 for the Strategic Entrepreneurial Economic Development (SEED) initiative, focusing on rural areas of the state by facilitating business development through support of new and existing programs (see the Oct. 3, 2007 issue of the Digest). The following are among the governor’s recommendations for the SEED initiative:

An overwhelming majority of residents in Georgia see higher education as vital to the state’s economic growth and quality of life, as more educational attainment is aligned with higher incomes, higher levels of entrepreneurship and less government spending. These conclusions are proclaimed in two reports – one poll-based and the other created from econometric data – by the Atlanta Regional Council for Higher Education (ARCHE) titled Georgians’ Perceptions of Higher Education and What Does Georgia Gain by Investing in Its Colleges and Universities? For example, 75 percent of Georgians believe higher education is “very important” for the state’s economic growth, compared to 21 percent stating it is “somewhat important” and 3 percent deeming it “not important”.  

Though Silicon Valley and New England still dominate the U.S. venture capital landscape, several other regions - whether through local initiatives or the natural evolution of the economy - have emerged as respectable national hubs of investment over the last decade. Some areas, like San Diego, have seen greatly expanded investments and have joined the top tier of venture markets as VC firms turned their attention toward biotech.   A new report from the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) and PricewaterhouseCoopers highlights five regions – New Mexico, Pittsburgh, Seattle, Los Angeles and the Washington DC metroplex – that are not typically counted among the country's venture capital hotspots, but which have experienced remarkable growth in venture investment since 1997.  

On the heels of SSTI’s successful inaugural year awards program, recognizing exceptional achievements in approaches to improving state and regional economies through science, technology and innovation, we are pleased to invite applications for the 2008 awards cycle.   The purpose of the awards program is to showcase best practices across a broad spectrum of categories encompassing several elements that have been found in successful technology-based economies. The categories are: Expanding the Research Infrastructure; Commercializing Research; Building Entrepreneurial Capacity; Increasing Access to Capital; Enhancing the Science & Technology Workforce; and, Improving Competitiveness of Existing Industries.

Publisher's Note: SSTI notes with much sadness the March 5 passing of Indiana State Sen. David Ford, following a battle with pancreatic cancer. David was a good friend not only of SSTI's, but also of the tech-based economic development community across the nation. In addition to being a tireless and cheerful advocate for investing in science and technology, he was also a gentleman in the true sense of the word, and we miss him greatly.

David Abbott, executive director of the George Gund Foundation, was elected the new chairman of the Northeast Ohio-based Fund for Our Economic Future. Abbott replaces Robert Briggs of the GAR Foundation, who had served as chairman since the Fund was formed in 2004.

Birgitte Ahring has joined Washington State University as the director of the Center for Bioproducts and Bioenergy and as the Battelle Distinguished Professor, based at WSU Tri-Cities.

The Canadian Government this week released its budget for the 2008-2009 fiscal year, which includes several new TBED-related initiatives and increases in funding for a few existing programs. The government plans to leverage its relatively strong fiscal position by providing tax relief and paying down the national debt, while providing $606 million for workforce development and $440 for research over the next two years. Major science and technology (S&T) initiatives in the 2008 budget include: $140 million for Genome Canada to develop the country's genetic research and workforce; $250 million over five years for research in the automotive sector, including greener and more fuel-efficient vehicles; $250 million to research and commercialize carbon capture and storage technologies;

Three states recently wrapped up their 2008 legislative sessions, resulting in the passage of operating and capital budgets for the upcoming fiscal year. State lawmakers approved funding for new and existing TBED initiatives aimed at diversifying the states' economies through increased investments in energy programs, higher education research initiatives and science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields.  South Dakota Lawmakers agreed to Gov. Mike Rounds’ recommendation of a one-time appropriation of $3.8 million for construction-related expenditures and $887,000 in operating costs to supplement an $8 million grant for a high speed data network connecting universities and research centers across the state (see the Dec. 12, 2007 issue of the Digest).