SSTI Digest

The patterns of research and development (R&D) activities vary considerably among those states with the most R&D expenditures, the National Science Foundation's (NSF) latest InfoBrief reports. In 2000, 87 percent of the nation's total R&D investment of $265 billion occurred in 20 states. Only 4 percent of the U.S. R&D total was accounted for by the 20 lowest ranking states. California led all states with more than $55 billion in expenditures, a 14.9 percent increase over its 1999 total; the 2000 total equals more than one-fifth of the U.S. total.

Ontario is performing from a base of strength in its transition to a knowledge-based economy, according to the Ontario Innovation Index recently released by the Ontario Science and Innovation Council (OSIC). Using 30 indicators, the report measures all aspects of the province's innovation system, from community awareness and support for science and technology (S&T) to levels of investment to support its infrastructure. It also looks at Ontario's incentives for commercialization and growth, innovative performance and innovation outcomes.

"The purpose of the index is to provide us with an ongoing portrait of Ontario's innovation environment," Dr. Suzanne Fortier, chair of OSIC, said in a press statement. "This allows the province to compare itself to other jurisdictions that are also leaders in science and innovation. We hope this will be a useful tool for government, academia and the private sector to gauge Ontario's strengths and key areas for improvement."

The U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) has released a report describing its efforts to evaluate the New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) Program created by Congress in 2000. The NMTC program, which has total equity of $15 billion, permits taxpayers to receive a credit against federal income taxes for making qualified equity investments in designated Community Development Entities (CDEs). Substantially all of the taxpayer's investment must in turn be used by the CDE to provide investments in low-income communities. Credit to the taxpayer totals 39 percent of the investment and is claimed over a seven-year credit period.

Security analysts and policy makers have been concerned with information published in the open scientific literature since WWII and the Cold War. Recently the focus has shifted towards information and research in the biosciences because of the dramatic advances and potential application of this information to bioterrorism. The likelihood of government-imposed restraints on the dissemination of scientific information is of great concern to the academic research community and has become a delicate subject between national security officials and the academic community.

Some arguments for and against restricting publication of "sensitive" research were outlined at a recent conference hosted by the Monterey Institute’s Center for Nonproliferation Studies.

A new report, Just Clusters: Economic Development Strategies that Reach More People and Places, from Regional Technology Strategies, Inc. (RTS) finds that while cluster-based economic development strategies have the potential to expand opportunities for disadvantaged populations and rural regions, most current cluster strategies do not pay attention to equity issues. The project was made possible through a grant from the Ford Foundation.

Just Clusters stems from a question put to almost two dozen leading cluster experts: “Are clusters equitable and just tools for economic development or do they skew resources to those who are already better off?” Clusters refer to the competitive advantages that firms acquire when there are significant concentrations of other similar or related and interdependent businesses in a geographic region.

Participants of the Federal Biodefense Research FY 2003 Conference recently held in Washington D.C. were given the opportunity to see how the new Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will work. With its passage in November 2002 by congressional legislation, the Homeland Security Act that created DHS initiated the largest reorganization of the federal government since the 1950s. Now, several agencies and departments will be affected by DHS, and each figures to have an important role in the biodefense arena. Below are a few highlights of the conference, which was sponsored by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Research America, a nonprofit organization that promotes health and medical research, and The Scientist, an online news journal.

S&T Role

Indiana Governor Frank O'Bannon unveiled a plan earlier this week to "Energize Indiana" that relies heavily on tech-based economic development.  Gov. O'Bannon's Energize Indiana plan is a $1.25 billion, 10-year initiative that seeks to create high-skill, high-wage jobs in four industry sectors to which Indiana has a claim – advanced manufacturing, life sciences, information technology and 21st century logistics (high-tech distribution) – and to prepare the state's workforce to fill them.   Of the $1.25 billion, $610 million is directed toward supporting university research, university-industry partnerships, construction of university research facilities, and scholarships in targeted fields.

Gov.-elect Robert Ehrlich has officially put forth his first economic development initiative for Maryland, according to recent press reports. His initiative, the creation of the Commission on Development of High Technology Business, is designed to encourage more technology business in the state.

The reports state Gov.-elect Ehrlich hopes to receive recommendations from the panel by July 2002 "on whether the state can change regulations to cultivate technology jobs." By the second year of his term, he plans to use their feedback to present a complete technology agenda to the State Legislature.

In a press statement, Gov.-elect Ehrlich said his "administration will strengthen investments in biotech incubators, streamline its technology funding programs, and help Maryland schools turn out the workers our hi-tech economy needs to thrive."

The Oregon Council on Knowledge and Economic Development (OCKED) is set to present its official report to the governor and the 2003 State Legislature. Outlining several key economic development policy and funding recommendations, the council addresses several short-term and long-term strategies for enhancing Oregon’s economic competitiveness in a knowledge-based global economy.

In preparing its report, OCKED focused its efforts on three areas that drive quality job growth and economic development. These areas – research and technology transfer, capital and business formation, and knowledge and workforce development – entail additional specific initiatives:

Massachusetts' high tech economy was hammered by the economic equivalent of a nor’easter throughout much of 2002, according to a report released by the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative (MTC). The Index of the Massachusetts Innovation Economy tracks nine industry clusters and 30 economic indicators and documents the declines experienced in the Massachusetts Innovation Economy, which is responsible for one quarter of all jobs in the state.

The data show that compared to last year unemployment is up, the state’s consumer confidence index is down having dropped more than 14 percent, and Massachusetts had only one initial public offering in 2002. Venture capital investments in Massachusetts also fell 36 percent in the first six months of 2002 compared to the first six months of 2001, dropping from $2.2 billion to $1.4 billion.

A strategy to make Maryland's Harford County a competitive jurisdiction for attracting and expanding technology ventures has been unveiled by the Northeastern Maryland Technology Council (NMTC). Offering an analysis of the county's technology resources and assets, the Harford County Strategic Plan is expected to serve as a "road map" to help guide policy efforts for the next 5-15 years.

The plan is a culmination of a year-long effort of coordination with public and private sectors and the Harford County Economic Development Advisory Board's Technology Subcommittee. More than 80 interviews were held with area educators, business leaders and organizations, and the findings of these interviews were compared with industry data in Harford County. The effort resulted in eight categories under which 83 specific actions were named for positioning the county as a center for technology growth and development.

The Digital Divide may be an oft-discussed topic in today’s economic development world, but questions still remain on how to reduce the phenomenon. Two recently released reports offer possible solutions as to how distressed communities might overcome the Digital Divide.

The first report, America’s Inner Cities Wired to Compete: A Report on Inner City Broadband Readiness and E-Business Technology Adoption, analyzes the availability of broadband services to inner-city businesses and considers the adoption of e-business technologies.

Released in November 2002 by the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC), in partnership with the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), the report offers two major findings: