Senators Bill Frist (R-TN) and Joe Lieberman (D-CT), Co-chairs of the Science & Technology Caucus, issued a joint statement reacting to the Clinton Administration’s FY 2000 budget request for R&D. Calling the President’s request a "mixed blessing," the senators praised the commitment to civilian R&D, while disagreeing with proposed cuts for defense research of nearly six percent.
Investment capital to develop and commercialize new technologies may soon be easier to find in Missouri. The Commerce Committee of the Missouri House of Representatives last week endorsed House Bill 753, a proposal to create a $40 million seed capital fund supported by Governor Mel Carnahan. The fund would be capitalized at $10 million each year for four years. Additionally, private investors would get a 100-percent tax credit for all money they contributed to the new seed capital fund.
A review of State of the State speeches, inaugural addresses, and budget messages delivered by 48 governors over the last six weeks indicates a high level of interest in science and technology based economic development. Governors discussed research and development tax incentives, education, and new initiatives to encourage technology-based economic development.
The Department of Defense's Dual Use Science and Technology (DUS&T) Program, now in its fourth year of operation, is seeking participation from companies that are developing commercial technologies that could be used in military applications.
DOD has issued a Broad Agency Announcement and is seeking proposals in eight areas of technology:
Affordable Sensors
On Monday, Chicago Mayor Richard Daley announced a series of initiatives to promote technology development for the city, including an information technology incubator, formation of a Mayor’s Council of Technology Advisors, and a Civic Network to support capacity needs for Internet commerce by Chicago businesses.
The President announced his intent to nominate Dr. Joseph Bordogna as Deputy Director of the National Science Foundation (NSF). Dr. Bordogna has served as Acting Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer of the National Science Foundation since 1996. For the four years prior to this service, he was the Assistant Director for Engineering at the National Science Foundation.
The Clinton Administration FY2000 budget proposal, submitted to Congress on Monday, calls for a 2.5% increase in civilian R&D spending. Total R&D spending, however, would decline by 1.3% to $78.24 billion, due to a proposed 5.8% drop in defense-related R&D. For comparison, the Consumer Price Index for last year was approximately 1.6%.
Representative George Brown, Jr.
The accompanying table on the SSTI website http://www.ssti.org/Digest/Tables/NSFfy98_SBIR1.htm presents the results of the 1998 SBIR Phase I competition held by the National Science Foundation in rank order by total dollars awards in each state. The award figures were compiled from the NSF Fast Lane website. (There were no Phase I awards reported within the 13 states omitted from the table.
The Engineering Workforce Commission (EWC) of the American Association of Engineering Societies (AAES) has released its latest survey on engineering degrees, which reveals that the number of students receiving bachelor’s of science degrees in engineering in the United States has fallen to a 17-year low.
The Technology Administration of the Department of Commerce has announced the selection of seven awards under the first round of funding for the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Technology (EPSCoT). Matching grants, totaling $1.6 million, will be made to the following seven lead organizations and their partners:
Last Friday, President Clinton announced his intent to nominate Dr. Cheryl L. Shavers as Under Secretary for Technology at the Department of Commerce. Dr. Shavers is currently a senior manager at Intel Corporation and has more than 20 years of experience within the technology industry, holding various engineering and managerial positions at several Fortune 500 companies such as Motorola, Varian Associates, and Hewlett-Packard. She has a B.S. degree in Chemistry and a Ph.D.
The Alaska Science and Technology Foundation (ASTF) seeks a Group Projects Administrator to work with industry on R&D projects to benefit the Alaska economy and to track project results. The position requires training and experience in project management with sufficient technical and/or business background to work productively with scientists or engineers to identify economically feasible projects.
Dr. Phillips Bradford the Executive Director of the Colorado Advanced Technology Institute has resigned his position. Lenie Roos-Gabridge has been appointed Interim Chief Operating Officer. Bradford’s resignation is the latest in an unprecedented turnover of state technology-based economic development officials. In the last year alone, the leaders of 14 states’ technology efforts have left their positions.
NASA announced the selection of 125 Phase II awards, totaling approximately $73 million, for its FY 1997 SBIR Program. The agency funded 40 percent of the 312 Phase II proposals received from small businesses completing Phase I NASA research.
The Kansas Technology Enterprise Corporation (KTEC) has released the Kansas Innovation Index 1999. The major finding of the report is that "Kansas has a realistic opportunity to create a competitive advantage for economic growth and high wage industries by supporting its emerging innovation economy."
Connecticut Innovations, Inc. (CII) is seeking a manager for its Renewable Energy Investment Fund. Responsibilities of the position include providing strategic planning and program direction for the Renewable Energy Investment Fund program. The full position description can be found on the SSTI website at http://www.ssti.org/posting.htm
The National Institutes of Health also released state award statistics for the FY 1998 Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR). The accompanying table presents the SBIR Phase I and Phase II results in rank order by total dollars awarded for each state in which awards were made: http://www.ssti.org/Digest/Tables/NIHfy98_SBIR.htm
State governments are reaping the benefits of the strong economy and sound fiscal leadership, according to the December, 1998 edition of Fiscal Survey of States. The semi-annual report, released last week by the National Governors’ Association (NGA) and the National Association of State Budget Officers (NASBO), indicates states are maintaining healthy reserves to help manage economic uncertainties.
Most of the press coverage on the ascension of the new Speaker of the House, Rep. Dennis Hastert (R-IL), has focused on his skills at building bridges among Republicans and with Democrats. Rep. Hastert’s ties to science and technology communities have not been as widely reported.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has released award statistics for the FY 1998 Small Business Technology Transfer Program (STTR). No awards were made in FY 1998 to companies in Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico, South Carolina or South Dakota. NIH reports awards by the location of the principal investigator’s company.
The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) and the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) have selected two of potentially six microelectronics research centers. The centers will focus on core chip technologies with long term technological payback.
The President’s Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) has issued the fourth in a series of inquiries into the state of critical technologies in the United States. New Forces at Work: Industry Views Critical Technologies presents an analysis of information gained from interviews with business and industry leaders.
The report:
The 1998 annual report of the Indiana Business Modernization and Technology Corporation (BMT) addresses various changes encountered by the organization this year.
The 1998 recipients of the nation's highest science and technology honors, the National Medal of Science and the National Medal of Technology, were announced last week.
The National Medal of Science, established by Congress in 1959 and administered by the National Science Foundation, honors individuals for contributions to the present state of knowledge in a variety of science frontiers.