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Richard Bendis, president and chief executive officer of the Kansas Technology Enterprise Corporation (KTEC), has accepted an offer to lead the newly created Innovation Philadelphia Corporation. Mr. Bendis has been involved with KTEC since the organization was created in 1987. He was appointed to the KTEC board of directors by the Governor and served as the board’s first chairman. Mr. Bendis served as interim president in 1994 before being named president in 1995.

The Australian Government has enacted new rules to attract international private equity investment in the country’s venture capital community. The rules introduce tax concessions for international investors, including university endowment funds and venture capital fund-to-fund vehicles. The rules will treat these investors in the same way as pension funds, exempting them from capital gains tax on their Australian investments.

The National Science Foundation has launched the new, online Industrial Research and Development Information System (IRIS) to provide easy access to information on industrial R&D performance across a broad range of years and criteria.

Alabama

A Letter from Bozeman, Montana

Citing the input of participants in a series of public hearings among other reasons, U.S. Department of Commerce Under Secretary of Technology Phil Bond announced in a conference call today that a systemwide recompetition for the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) would not be held “at this time.” Instead, MEP will use a re-application process that will be integrated into the current review process.

The steady upward trend in venture capital (VC) investments continued in the second quarter of 2004, with $5.6 billion going to 761 companies, according to the latest PricewaterhouseCoopers/Thomson Venture Economics/National Venture Capital Association MoneyTree™ Survey. The Q2 2004 figure compares to $5 billion invested in the year's first quarter and $5.4 billion in the fourth quarter of 2003..

With the President's signature on the fiscal year 2005 Defense Appropriations Bill last week, the Pentagon received nearly $70 billion for research and development spending, a $4.3 billion increase over that of last year.

Capturing students’ interest in science and mathematics during the middle school years is crucial to America’s future workforce and the nation’s security, according to U.S. Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham.

China is focusing on the newest and most promising areas of technology to expand economic growth through the development of high-tech industries, suggests a new report released by the nation's government. The report, 2004 Guidelines for Priority on Key Technology Areas, indicates China will channel investments to 134 key sectors and promote exports, according to an article in The Scientist.

Academic research and development expenditures grew 11 percent in fiscal year 2002, according to new data released by the National Science Foundation (NSF). An NSF report, Academic Research and Development Expenditures: Fiscal Year 2002, finds 625 institutions of higher education in the U.S. collectively spent $36.332 billion in FY 2002. The figure for FY 2001 was $32.723 billion.

The European Commission's 2001 European Innovation Scoreboard, characterizing the strengths and weaknesses in the capacity for innovation of the European Union (EU) and its member states, shows the EU continues to lag behind the U.S. and Japan. 

The Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) released State Government Initiatives in Biotechnology 2001, the results of the first comprehensive survey of state government efforts to attract and grow the biotechnology industry. The report, prepared by Battelle Memorial Institute and the State Science and Technology Institute (SSTI), contains information from 48 states and shows state governments becoming increasingly active in recruiting and supporting biotechnology companies. 

Nearly $43 million in grants were awarded October 1 to 74 non-profit organizations, including state and local governments, by the Commerce Department’s National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). 

As Congress and the Bush Administration look at national economic stimulus packages, debate is beginning in some states to enact similar measures to reverse the direction of their local economies. Various tax cuts for businesses invariably are included in the states’ discussions.

A Rhode Island Economic Strategy: 10 Ways to Succeed Without Losing Our Soul recently was released by the Rhode Island Economic Policy Council. The report outlines 10 economic development initiatives through four themes centered on places, people, clusters and connections. 

California 

SSTI's fifth annual conference, Creating Opportunity: Tools for Building Tech-based Economies, will take place December 3-4, 2001, at the Omni William Penn in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The conference agenda remains intact from the original mid-September dates with almost all speakers reconfirmed. (see the conference agenda on SSTI's webpage: http://www.ssti.org/Conf01/agenda.htm [expired] ) 

Gov. Don Sundquist has named Tony Grande to be the new Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development (ECD). Mr. Grande formerly was ECD Deputy Commissioner as well as its Assistant Commissioner of Tennessee business services and director of manufacturing services. 

Gov. Don Sundquist has named Tony Grande to be the new Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development (ECD). Mr. Grande formerly was ECD Deputy Commissioner as well as its Assistant Commissioner of Tennessee business services and director of manufacturing services.