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As federal immigration reform remains in gridlock, cities are leading a charge to make America more welcoming to immigrants. Driven by the potential economic growth, mayors and regional economic development organizations are moving ahead with the creation of new initiatives and entities to attract and retain high-skilled immigrants.

As the U.S. manufacturing sector continues to grow, so does the challenge for regions to find “middle-skill” workers who can fill job vacancies in advanced manufacturing. The Council on Foreign Relations has released a new report, Building the American Workforce, that suggests policymakers can fill this need by narrowing the skills gap for underserved, low-skilled workers.

In the second quarter (Q2) of 2013, venture investment totaled $6.7 billion over 913 deals, according to the quarterly survey by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) and the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA). Compared to the first quarter of 2013, the amount of venture capital investment increased 12 percent and the number of deals increased 2 percent. Although still well below venture capital investment highs in 2007, Q2 2013 had the largest total amount of investment in a year.

A recent report by Cleveland State University's Levin College of Urban Affairs details the economic impact of companies supported by JumpStart Inc. and the North Coast Angel Fund in the 2012 calendar year. The 127 companies included in the study created 2,140 jobs in Ohio (1,652 in Northeast Ohio), generated $269.7 million in economic benefits for the state, and produced $35.5 million in federal, state, and local taxes.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has conducted a Survey of Federal Funds for Research and Development for fiscal years 2010-12. In total, federal R&D obligations were $144.7 billion in FY10. The top state recipients, in absolute terms, are California ($28.3 billion, representing 19.6% of the national total), Maryland ($17.0 billion, 11.8%), Virginia ($9.3 billion, 6.4%), Massachusetts ($8.9 billion, 6.1%), and Texas ($7.3 billion, 5.0%).

Small businesses often are surrounded by a myriad resources and potential partners that could help leverage their products and services to innovate and grow, but they are not always aware of how to access them.

Green jobs have been at the center of a number of controversies in economic development circles over the past decade. Key among these debates is whether or not sufficient job opportunities exist to justify large public investments in green job-training programs. A recent report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) reveals that, at least at the federal level, a great deal of uncertainty remains about the green job labor market.

The city of Los Angeles is working with a consortium of public and private partners to redevelop unused docklands into space that will support new industry cluster development. The project highlights a trend of high-profile projects across the country, with cities like Brooklyn and Philadelphia repurposing dockside warehouse space to seed tech startups and advanced manufacturing.

The co-locating of researchers, donated equipment, and capital are recent examples of key elements provided by private-sector partners to help accelerate technology commercialization. In the past month, leaders from universities and nonprofit organizations across the country have announced new efforts to expand research capacity and bring more products to market by launching innovative centers in collaboration with corporate partners.

Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Ernest Moniz is leading a restructuring of the department's management, reorganizing programs and undersecretary positions to better align with the operational goals of supporting President Obama's Climate Action Plan, an "all of the above" energy strategy, and strengthening nuclear security. The move will create an Under Secretary for Management and Performance, merge the energy and science programs, and consolidate the department's defense waste cleanup efforts.

During this year’s legislative sessions, several states looked toward creating, providing support for or redesigning programs that help incentivize businesses to hire and mentor student interns. In an effort to spur rural internships, Minnesota lawmakers approved a new tax credit program to support internships for students in greater Minnesota. In North Dakota, lawmakers committed $1.5 million to their Operation Intern program, while Nebraska lawmakers updated their Intern Nebraska grant program to provide students with a high-quality internship experience. Rhode Island Gov.

A number of states recently have taken action to expand R&D tax credits and other legislation that would support innovation, commercialization and manufacturing. Hawaii, California, Maryland, Texas, and Florida have signed into law tax incentives and R&D tax credits and an R&D tax credit in New Hampshire went into effect.  The Maine legislature also passed a capital tax credit that will begin in 2014.

A continued trend toward improved fiscal conditions gave rise to targeted and riskier investments in research for several states this legislative session. In particular, lawmakers dedicated funds for life sciences research and for initiatives aimed at commercialization through partnerships with higher education and the private sector. Other states dedicated additional funds to expand promising research and technology-focused initiatives already underway.

As many state legislative sessions wind down, a clearer picture of the current direction of state innovation policies is emerging. This week’s SSTI Weekly Digest presents a few of the major trends in technology-based economic development initiatives approved by state legislatures during their most recent sessions. While this review is not meant to be comprehensive, it should illuminate the shifts states are making to refine their investments in the high-tech economy by providing smarter, more targeted support.

According to the Philadelphia Business Journal, Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett has signed off on the creation of a new program, InnovatePA, which will auction off $100 million in tax credits to generate state revenue that will be invested in the funding of tech and biotech startups.

Between FY03-11, the U.S. Department of Treasury's Community Development Finance Institutions (CDFI) Fund supported $26.4 billion in private investment through the New Market Tax Credits (NMTC) program, according to data released by the fund. The CDFI Fund helps economically distressed communities leverage private investment capital by offering investors a federal tax credit.

A central tenet in the understanding of regional economic clusters is the idea that the closer two actors are to one another, the more likely they are to collaborate. This belief is based on decades of research done to examine knowledge spillovers and the effect of spatial proximity on tacit knowledge sharing. In a recent article, however, Jasjit Singh of INSEAD and Matt Marx of MIT differentiate the varying effects of crude distance on knowledge sharing compared to the effects of geopolitical borders.

Oregon lawmakers unanimously approved a bill (HB 3472) that instructs the state's Higher Education Coordinating Commission to design a pilot program to evaluate a new college funding system known as "Pay It Forward." Under the proposed model, students would commit a percentage of their future incomes to repay the state, instead of paying tuition or taking out traditional loans to attend community colleges and universities. The bill currently awaits the signature of Gov. John Kitzhaber.

he Department of Defense (DOD) released funding announcements to help establish and sustain two new manufacturing innovation institutes in the areas of lightweight and modern metals manufacturing and digital manufacturing and design. DOD intends to commit up to $70 million for each institute, with at least a 1:1 cost share ($70 million over five years) of non-federal funds from the recipient organizations.

During a recent public hearing, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) adopted a new rule that moves equity-based crowdfunding one step closer to reality. As mandated by the JOBS Act (see the March 28, 2012 issue of the Digest), the new rule will allow companies to publicly advertise, market and disclose the fact that they are fundraising. However, the sale of securities is still restricted to accredited investors and the company must take reasonable steps to verify that all purchasers are accredited.

A three-year effort to implement an SBIR state matching funds program gained enough traction this legislative session to win support from Rhode Island lawmakers. The measure was spearheaded by a group of leaders from 24 life science companies who advocated for a statewide program to encourage small business R&D and commercialization. Lawmakers appropriated $500,000 for the effort in FY14. Adding a workforce development component to the measure, a new bioscience and engineering internship also will be established to enhance the state's talent pipeline.

The rapid proliferation of accelerators world-wide has raised questions about whether this model is viable and sustainable. Though many accelerators have been founded and funded by private investors, accelerators are now getting a public boost on both sides of the Atlantic. The European Commission and the U.S. Small Business Administration are both becoming involved in the accelerator phenomenon, perhaps representing an expanded role for national (and quasi-national) public support for accelerators.

During the campaign trail and in speeches delivered during their first few weeks in office, governors in Florida and Nevada announced plans to overhaul economic development efforts without providing many details on how the new systems would operate. Draft legislation recently was introduced in the respective states, providing some insight on the structure and governance of the proposed agencies.