SSTI Digest

Package Isn't All Governor Expected; Veto Possible Changing mindsets within a state to embrace making significant public investments toward building an innovation economy can be a daunting task, particularly with the fiscal environment all state goverments are currently facing. With an aggressive series of town meetings and web forums, and strong vision and top-level leadership, Iowa succeeded to make its first big steps toward that goal with late-night votes by the State Legislature this week during a special session. Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack began his second term in January with a call for the state to spend a record $500 million over five years for economic development <see http://www.ssti.org/Digest/2003/011703.htm#Govs>. With the passage of two bills at 2:00 a.m. Wednesday morning, the Republican-controled state legislature gave the Democratic Governor what he asked for — intertwined with several tax changes that he was much less inclined to support. Calling for creation of a five-year, $503 million Iowa Values Fund to support economic development opportunities in the specific…

Breaking new technologies into traditional markets can be challenging, particularly in the energy field it seems. To help overcome that hurdle, the State of Pennsylvania has undertaken a $5 million initiative to help finance the implementation of clean and renewable energy technologies such as biomass and wind power. The initiative, Pennsylvania Energy Harvest, will help improve air quality, preserve land and protect local watersheds while providing economic opportunities for the state’s agricultural community. Pennsylvania Energy Harvest mixes money from the state's Clean Air Fund, Growing Greener Program, and U.S. Department of Energy grant funding. The initiative is designed to encourage clean and renewable energy demonstration projects that will have real and measurable impacts on pollution reduction, environmental quality and energy generation, rather than projects that focus solely on public outreach and communication. Among some of the projects that could qualify for funding: Using biomass, which includes any organic and renewable material such as agricultural byproducts,…

Since her inauguration in January, Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano has pushed legislation intended to increase university tech transfer and commercialization (see related item in this issue). But will it work? Do economic incentives really encourage university researchers to pursue commercialization goals? Or are academics "pure" scientists, truly beyond monetary motives as many would argue? A new econometric model that looked at the tech transfer policies of 102 U.S. research universities and their licensing/royalty incomes during the 1990s finds that, yes, even academic researchers have their price. Economic incentives, such as royalty sharing arrangements, do affect the number of inventions produced and the licensing income generated by universities, according to Incentives and Invention in Universities. The recent National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper by Saul Lach and Mark Schankerman posits that, controlling for other factors such as institution size, quality, research funding and technology licensing inputs, universities that provide higher royalty shares to researchers…

With a combined annual research budget totaling $4.8 billion, New Mexico's 12 largest research facilities signed a Memorandum of Agreement on May 30 to help turn intellectual property into jobs for New Mexicans. Members of the newly formed New Mexico Technology Research Corridor (TRC) include: Air Force Research Laboratory's Directed Energy and Space Vehicles Directorates; Los Alamos National Laboratory, a government-operated facility that contributes to meeting the nation's nuclear and security needs; National Center for Genome Resources, a Santa Fe-based nonprofit research organization involved in bioinformatics. New Mexico State University; New Mexico Tech, a state engineering university; Sandia National Laboratories, a government-owned/contractor operated facility involved with national security research and development projects; Santa Fe Institute, a private, nonprofit, multidisciplinary research and education center; The MIND Institute, an Albuquerque-based partnership that explores functional brain imaging; University of New Mexico and…

While the nation’s manufacturing sector continues to face major challenges, the National Coalition for Advanced Manufacturing (NACFAM) suggests in a new white paper that the U.S. can compete successfully with low-wage countries if industry and government rally around two basic goals — increase labor productivity by greatly accelerating the use of advanced technologies and leverage national resources through a major expansion of public-private partnerships. In Industrial Transformation: Key to Sustaining the Productivity Boom, unveiled June 4 at the Washington Productivity Forum, NACFAM calls for 1) moving global competitiveness higher on the national agenda, 2) developing and deploying “next generation” process technologies, 3) “incentivizing” American workers to keep pace with technological change, and 4) reducing supply chain vulnerability. These central elements contain numerous specific policy recommendations designed to enable U.S. manufacturers to be competitive in any industry sector, including: Move global competitiveness higher on the national agenda: A sustained, stronger…

Arizona Legislation to Encourage Tech Transfer Awaits Voters' Approval House Bill 2403, a measure that ultimately would encourage technology transfer, has been signed by Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano and now awaits approval by voters. Passing the Arizona State Legislature in late May, the legislation provides that Arizona's universities may partner with private companies in business ventures. State agencies and organizations would be able to take equity investments in firms wanting to market products developed at the universities. Arizona voters will decide at the next general election whether to approve the change in the state's Constitution. The complete text of HB 2403 is available at: http://www.azleg.state.az.us/ Shreveport, LA Receives $1.05 million for TBED The Biomedical Research Foundation of Northwest Louisiana has secured $1.05 million in federal funding to jumpstart tech-based economic development in Shreveport, The Times recently reported. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Economic Development Initiative Program is providing…

On Wednesday, President Bush signed the Jobs and Growth Tax Reconciliation Act of 2003, providing $20 billion in fiscal relief to state governments. Half of the $20 billion will come through an increase in the federal share of Medicaid. The Federal Funds Information for States (FFIS), a joint subscription service of the National Governors' Association and the National Conference of State Legislatures, has published a table showing how the State Fiscal Relief Fund will be divided over fiscal years 2003-2004. The state-by-state table, available at http://www.ffis.org/ff/sfr052303.pdf, estimates fiscal relief allocations. An amendment to the budget reconciliation bill (S. 1054) providing the $20 billion in fiscal relief was adopted May 15 by the U.S. Senate on a 97-3 vote. The reconciliation bill itself passed the Senate the same day. Fiscal relief funds are expected to go toward education or job training, health care services, transportation or other infrastructure, law enforcement or public safety, and other essential government services. S. 1054 is available in its entirety…

A survey of 330 cities and towns by the National League of Cities (NLC) shows that cities are raising fees and taxes while cutting infrastructure spending and city staffs in order to deal with the worst fiscal conditions for municipalities since NLC began its annual survey of city finance managers in 1985. The survey's release follows House and Senate conferees' decision to ignore a 95-3-2 Senate vote that would have provided $4 billion to local governments as part of the President's Jobs and Growth bill. More cities are less able to meet their financial needs, according to NLC. Four out of five cities (79 percent) report they are less able to meet financial needs than they were during the previous year. This is a sharp rise compared to NLC’s 2002 survey, which listed 55 percent of cities as being less able to meet financial needs. Cities face a 4 percent gap between revenue and spending, NLC adds. The gap between revenues and spending is highest in more than a decade. Revenues are down 1 percent over the previous year while spending is up 2.9 percent, making for a 4…

A proposed Cybersecurity R&D Center is the centerpiece of the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) first research agenda for information analysis and infrastructure protection, according to recent testimony presented by Dr. Charles McQueary, Under Secretary for the DHS Science and Technology Directorate, before the House Science Committee. To be developed in partnership with the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the DHS Cybersecurity R&D Center will provide a DHS focus for the many cybersecurity research, development, test and evaluation activities underway in the defense and intelligence, academic and private laboratory communities. Dr. McQueary outlined four roles for the center: Promoting and coordinating cybersecurity research, innovation, invention and evaluation in support of the DHS mission needs. It will develop strategic research and development programs and create testing and evaluation programs to address specific gaps in U.S. cybersecurity capabilities. For example, a unique…

The National Business Incubation Association (NBIA) honored six top incubation programs, graduates and clients at its 17th International Conference on Incubation, held May 18-21 in Richmond, Va. Award winners are highlighted below: The Business Technology Center (BTC) of Columbus, Ohio, received the Randall M. Whaley Incubator of the Year Award, which honors NBIA's first chairman of the board. During fiscal year 2002, BTC client companies created more than 100 jobs and generated approximately $8.1 million in investments. The Toronto Business Development Centre was named Incubator of the Year in the mixed-use category. The 11 companies that graduated from the program in 2002 created 25 full-time and 150 part-time jobs and generated $1.8 million in annual sales last year — up from $170,000 when they entered the incubator. The Howard County Economic Development Authority's NeoTech Incubator of Columbia, Md., won the Innovation Award for Angels and Eggs, a program designed to bring together local angel investors and incubator clients to educate each other about their…

Innovation Philadelphia, a public-private partnership, the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, and the city of Philadelphia have developed a road map that identifies the future drivers of the Greater Philadelphia economy and provides a framework for developing these drivers. A Road Map for Regional Growth: Connecting the Greater Philadelphia Innovation Economy represents the broader interests and perspectives of the 11-county regional business community, nonprofit community, higher education, and local agencies and governments. It articulates regional competitive advantages and identifies target opportunities that, if developed in a focused and determined manner, will allow Greater Philadelphia to reclaim a role as a leading global innovator. The target areas include opportunities in evidence-based medicine; information technology and software; digital media and the arts; cancer research; chemicals, including polymers, coatings and advanced fibers; propellers, propulsion and rotorcraft; and advanced materials or nanotechnology. Identification of the targets involved data…

San Pablo, CA, College to Use $2.1M EDA Grant to Build Biotech Incubator Contra Costa College has secured a $2.1 million federal grant for a biotech startup center, the Contra Costa Times reported earlier this month. A matching requirement set up by the federal Economic Development Administration, the source of the $2.1 million, means the project will receive additional funding from nearby cities. San Pablo gave all of the amount asked of it, and Richmond contributed about half the match money, the Times states. Other cities putting up brief commitments will evaluate their support on a continuing basis. The 14,000-square-foot biotech incubator will allow space for eight tenants, once construction – expected to be done by next summer – is completed. Camden, AR, Celebrates Groundbreaking for Incubator The City of Camden, Ark., held a groundbreaking ceremony on Wednesday for its new business incubator, the Ouachita Valley Business and Technology Center, according to the Associated Press. Three years ago, the Environmental Protection Agency awarded Camden a $250,000 grant to…