SSTI Digest

Yesterday proved a big day for supporters of stem cell research as measures advanced in both Connecticut and Massachusetts. The Massachusetts law described in the May 16 issue of the Digest became law immediately after the state Senate voted 35-2 and the House voted 112-42 to override Gov. Mitt Romney's veto. In Connecticut, the House voted 113-27 to pass Senate Bill 934, leaving the measure to Gov Jodi Rell for her signature. While the Massachusetts battle was fairly partisan between the Republican governor and the Democratic controlled legislature, the story in neighboring Connecticut suggests the conflict over embryonic stem cell research is more ideological than partisan. Connecticut Gov Rell, a Republican, included a request of $20 million over two years for stem cell research in her 2006 budget request. The state Senate, controlled by Democrats, agreed with the proposal but extended the commitment to $10 million per year for ten years. The $100 million proposal endorses and funds embryonic and adult stem cell research. A new advisory board and peer…

The Administration's proposal to replace 18 federal programs targeting different elements of community and economic development with a single, smaller program called the Strengthening America's Communities Initiative (SACI) received another blow last week (see the Feb. 14 issue of the Digest for more information on SACI). The House Appropriations subcommittee markup of the appropriations bill for Science, Departments of State, Justice, and Commerce, and related Agencies excluded the President's request of $3.7 billion for SACI from the Commerce section of the bill. The highlights of the markup released by the House Appropriations Committee on the topic could be interpreted many ways: summarily squashing the issue for the budget year, merely a matter of procedure, or cryptically open-ended. "The [Administration's] budget request assumed enactment of a legislative proposal transferring several economic development programs to the Department of Commerce. The relevant authorizing committees have taken no action to date on this proposal…

New York's lead agency for promoting tech-based economic development (TBED) in the state soon will have a new name, if not a complete makeover. Under enacted budget legislation, the New York Office of Science, Technology and Academic Research (NYSTAR) will become the New York State Foundation for Science, Technology and Innovation by Jan. 1, 2006. Assembly Bill 6843, the state's 2006 budget, provides $250 million for the new public authority "to fulfill the public purposes of furthering job creation and economic growth and advances in the fields of science, technology and innovation and to facilitate the commercialization of scientific and other innovations in New York State." A 13-member board comprised of public and private representatives will oversee the foundation, directing all existing NYSTAR programs, a new regional partnership program, and two new funds. An additional $90 million in capital appropriations is included in the budget for the regional partnership program. The foundation will be responsible for selecting 10 partnerships - one for each of New…

Louisiana State University's Business and Technology Center (LBTC) recently received the National Business Incubation Association's (NBIA) 2005 Randall M. Whaley Incubator of the Year award, recognizing overall excellence in business incubation programs. The award is NBIA's most prestigious honor, presented as a tribute to NBIA's first chairman. As a measure of LBTC's success, an economic analysis released this month by the Louisiana Technology Park reveals steady progress in the local economy and start-up companies in the Baton Rouge area. LBTC is the innovating hub for the Louisiana Technology Park, which will help create an additional 443 new jobs in 2005. The total is up from 272 jobs projected in 2004, according to the analysis. LSU Economics Professor James Richardson, who conducted the analysis, said the jump in numbers is directly related to the nearly 50 percent increase in incubator tenants at LBTC. The park's comprehensive business accelerator grows early-stage companies in the Internet and high-tech sectors. Services include low rent for tenants,…

The U.S. is currently the global leader in nanotechnology R&D, number of nanotechnology start-up companies, and research output as measured by patents and publications. However, that role is under increasing competitive pressure from other nations, according to an assessment of the multi-agency National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI), which organizes federal nanotechnology research. The NNI report defines nanotech as "encompassing the science, engineering, and technology related to the understanding and control of matter at the length scale of approximately 1 to 100 nanometeres." Nanotech touches upon a broad array of disciplines including chemistry, biology, physics, computational science and engineering and holds tremendous potential for stimulating innovation, the report adds. Under the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act of 2003, President Bush designated the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) as the National Nanotechnology Advisory Panel (NNAP). The panel is charged with assessing the NNI every two years…

Recognizing the benefits of a skilled workforce to match the new manufacturing and high-tech jobs of the 21st Century, states are turning to worker training and retraining programs in order to remain economically competitive. During the past month, Tennessee, Nebraska and Connecticut committed a combined total of $37 million for worker training initiatives. The Tennessee legislature approved Gov. Phil Bredesen's 2005 jobs package, which includes $20 million to expand job training across the state and develop a statewide broadband strategy. House Bill 2287 establishes the FastTrack infrastructure development and job training assistance fund within the Department of Economic and Community Development. Funds will be used for infrastructure development and job training assistance grants and loans. Lawmakers in Nebraska agreed to authorize $15 million from the rainy day fund to provide job training under the Nebraska Customized Job Training Advantage. Gov. Dave Heineman referred to the initiative as a "vital recruitment tool" for broader job…

While many regions, states and countries are lamenting a drain of talent from their area, the Pakistan Higher Education Commission is taking an opposite strategy to strengthen the nation's science and research capacity: sending up to 15,000 of its brightest students to study selected disciplines abroad through its Foreign Ph.D. Scholarship Program. Students may choose from selected programs in science, engineering and technology at universities in Austria, China, France, Germany, Netherlands or Sweden. In return, scholarship recipients must commit to serve in Pakistan for a minimum of five years after completion of study, preferably in an institution of higher education. To make the offer even more attractive for young scholars, the Pakistan national government increased spending on research, science and technology by 6,000 percent in recent years and now offers several research grant programs through the Higher Education Commission to support young researchers, new faculty and university-industry research. More information on Pakistan's strategy to…

In the opening ceremony of the 2005 FORTUNE Global Forum, held in Beijing on May 16, Chinese President Hu Jintao broadly outlined the course his country is taking to reach a goal of quadrupling its 2000 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by the year 2020. Science, technology and innovation figure prominently in the strategy. President Hu discussed the recent historical rise in the nation's economic performance, saying, "In a short span of 26 years from 1978 to 2004, China's GDP increased from $147.3 billion to $1.6494 trillion with an average annual growth rate of 9.4 percent. Its foreign trade rose from $20.6 billion to $1.1548 trillion, averaging an annual growth rate of over 16 percent. China's foreign exchange reserve increased from 167m to 609.9bn." (Note: All amounts are in U.S. Dollars.) Quadrupling China's GDP by 2020 would result in a per capita income level of only, $3,000 for its current 1.3 billion citizens. "We are deeply aware that China, for a considerably long period of time to come, will remain a developing country," President Hu said…

Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire last week signed a bill creating the Life Sciences Discovery Fund (see the Feb. 7 issue of the Digest). The fund will support life sciences research using $350 million in strategic "bonus" payments Washington will receive beginning in 2008 for its leadership role in the tobacco settlement. The state will receive the funds over a 10-year period. By leveraging funds from private and federal sources, the fund's total impact is expected to exceed $1 billion and is anticipated to drive important health care innovations, new company formation and job creation across the state. The newly created Life Sciences Discovery Fund Authority, consisting of seven members to be appointed by the Governor and four members of the state legislature, will manage the fund and oversee the grant-making process. Criteria to be used by the authority in evaluating applications include: the potential to positively impact health care outcomes; evidence of public and private collaboration; the…

One starts up. Another bites the dust. The Certified Capital Company (CAPCO) Program, a complicated and controversial tool used by some states to encourage venture capital investments, finds its beginnings in one region while seeing its demise in yet another. The D.C. CAPCO program, officially launched today after being enacted in 2004 by the D.C. Council, will afford insurance companies with a tax credit against their premium taxes in exchange for making $50 million in equity investments over 10 years. The program's three fund managers - Wilshire D.C. Partners, Advantage Capital Partners and Enhanced Capital Partners - will look to invest in small and emerging businesses, including manufacturing centers and technology companies, through three initial funds. The CAPCO model combines private sector expertise in identifying, evaluating and financing businesses with the public sector's interest in encouraging equity investment. Companies…

Arizona's investment and technology communities are the anticipated winners from the state legislature's recent passage of a tax credit encouraging angel capital investments in start-up Arizona tech firms. Senate Bill 1335 provides individual investors, limited partnerships or "S" corporations a 10 percent state tax credit per year for three years for investments in qualified technology companies. For investments in qualified biotech firms or for technology businesses located in rural areas, the credit climbs to 12 percent per year for two years and 11 percent the third year. Investments must be a minimum of $25,000 and only the first $250,000 of any investment is eligible for the tax credit. The Arizona Department of Commerce will administer the angel investment tax program, capped at $20 million over five years, and will qualify eligible companies and investors. Qualifying technology firms must employ at least two individuals and…

As expected, Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney rejected last week Senate Bill 2039, the bill supporting stem cell research. Exercising a power not enjoyed by all governors, Gov. Romney sent the measure back to the legislature with four amendments for consideration, rather than vetoing the measure. According to a May 12, 2005 article in the Boston Globe, one amendment would prohibit somatic cell nuclear transfer, or therapeutic cloning, while the other three ask the legislature to reconsider the bill's position on when life begins, to clarify monetary compensation for women who donate eggs for research, and to define the circumstances appropriate for researchers to create human life. Gov. Romney also sent a letter to lawmakers stating the bill would change the definition of an unborn child that dates back to 1974, the article states. The legislature, however, does not seem likely to adopt the governor's amendments as the bill was…