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Patrick Quinlan, a former staffer for Rep. George Brown, has been selected as the ASME Fellow in the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.
House Decimates R&D, Lane Says
Appropriation bills approved by the U.S. House of Representatives have “decimated the President’s R&D budget,” according to Neal Lane, the President’s Science Advisor and director of the White House’s Office of Science and Technology Policy.
Dr. Lane issued a scathing statement earlier this week that condemned the House R&D budget appropriations, which include, according to the statement, the following:
Challenges of the New Economy Focus of SSTI’s 3rd Annual Conference
The State Science and Technology Institute’s (SSTI) third annual conference will focus on how to meet the challenge of the New Economy through science and technology programs.
The conference will focus on some of the largest issues facing policy makers and practitioners, including:
- communicating the importance of science and technology in today’s economy,
- meeting the demand for a skilled workforce,
- encouraging the formation of early-stage capital for commercializing locally-developed new technologies in a globally aggressive economy, and
- understanding the implications and opportunities of e-commerce.
The conference program includes the following sessions:
Wednesday, October 6
Two optional, concurrent preconference workshops (seating is limited)
Texas Passes R&D Tax Credit
On October 1, Texas will begin offering a tax credit for business research and development expenditures. The new law, Texas Senate Bill 441, provides Texas corporations with a franchise tax credit equal to five percent of eligible R&D expenses for up to 50 percent of a company’s total franchise tax liability. Unused portions may be carried forward for up to 20 years.
To be eligible for the credit, R&D expenditures must occur within a Texas Strategic Investment Area, which include: counties with unemployment rates above the state average and per capita income below the state average; or federally designated urban enterprise communities or urban enhanced enterprise communities.
Senate Bill 441 requires the state comptroller to prepare a biennial report on the impact of the R&D tax credit.
A copy of the bill can be viewed on the Texas Legislature website: http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/
Bingaman Introduces Bill to Create MEP-like Program for E-Commerce
To help small businesses participate fully in the expected e-commerce revolution, Senator Bingaman (D-NM) has introduced legislation to create a national e-commerce extension program. Senators Rockefeller (D-WVa), Snowe (R-ME) and Mikulski (D-MD) are co-sponsors of the bill, S. 1494.
E-commerce sales are expected to grow from the 1998 level of $100 billion to $1.3 trillion in 2003 -- less than four years from now. The opportunities for businesses prepared to compete in the electronic commerce market are significant. The challenges and implications for others, particularly in areas, populations, and companies underserved by the Internet, are enormous.
Federal R&D Funding Out of Sync with Economy, MTC Finds
There is potential trouble ahead for R&D and those states with relatively low levels of federal support will be impacted most severely, according to the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative's Analysis of the Impact of FY 2000 Federal R&D Investment Scenarios on Economic Growth.
This report, the second conducted by MTC, looks at five funding scenarios currently under consideration by Congress and their effect on the economies of states receiving varying levels of federal R&D support.
Among the reports' conclusions are:
Study Looks at High-Tech Metro Areas
Technology-based economic growth can be extremely beneficial to metropolitan areas, but comes with risks, according to America's High Tech Economy: Growth, Development, and Risks for Metropolitan Areas. The report was prepared by the Milken Institute, a non-profit economic think tank founded by Michael Milken.
Among the report's findings are:
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A concentration of high-tech output does not guarantee continuing high-tech growth,
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Technology-based economic growth is causing greater income disparity, reducing job security and job tenure, and increasing the risk of unemployment for workers in their 50s,
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High-tech manufacturing industries are among the most volatile in the economy, and
Five NSF S&T Centers Funded
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has committed almost $94 million over the next five years in matching funds for five new Science & Technology Centers (STC). The new centers join 23 existing centers that were selected in 1989 and 1991. (Two more original STCs cease to exist.)
The STC program funds academic-industry-government partnerships in specific technology areas for fundamental research activities that create educational opportunities. The centers also encourage technology transfer and innovative approaches to interdisciplinary research projects.
The five new centers are:
Science and Technology Center on Nanobiotechnology (Lead institution: Cornell University)
New Economy Benchmarking Report Card Available
Innovation indices or "S&T report cards" have grown increasingly popular over the past few years on both state and local levels. The trend has now reached the national level with the release last week of the Progressive Policy Institute's, The State New Economy Index.
An effort funded by the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Technology (EPSCoT) of the U.S. Department of Commerce is expected to be released this fall.
The State New Economy Index is the first collection of 17 indicators of states' relative positions in the changing economy. The indicators are classified into five categories:
NRC Sees Industry-Govt. Partnerships Critical To U.S. Economic Growth
Serious deficiencies in pre-college education and wavering support for basic research may erode the nation's ability to convert science and technology into new products, jobs, and profits and decrease the prospects of better lives for U.S. citizens, according to a new book from the National Research Council (NRC).
Harnessing Science and Technology for America's Economic Future: National & Regional Priorities identifies goals and actions to guide the science and engineering community and government policy-makers in meeting the nation's future economic needs. The book presents the findings, recommendations and papers of the National Forum on Harnessing Science and Technology for America's Economic Future and an NRC committee co-chaired by former governor and SSTI Board chairman Dick Thornburgh and William Spencer, CEO of Sematech.
The goals and recommendations outlined by the committee include:
DOE SBIR Phase I Awards Announced
The Department of Energy has announced the selection of 204 Phase I awards under the 1999 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program. The grants were made to companies in the 31 states listed in the accompanying table. More detailed information for each award can be found on the newly redesigned DOE SBIR website: http://www.sbir.er.doe.gov/sbir
State
Awards
State
Awards
CA
44
Local Technology Benchmarking Study Released
Preparation of S&T indicators on a local or regional level continues to increase. The Institute of Advanced Manufacturing Sciences, located in Cincinnati, Ohio, has released Cincinnati's Technology Benchmarking Study. The report compares the technology assets and performance of 24 urban areas across the U.S. using 17 indicators, then makes recommendations for strengthening Cincinnati's technology base. The report is on the Internet at www.iams.org