U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary William Daley has labeled as Amisleading@ a press release issued by the House Science Committee regarding the proposal review and selection criteria of the Advanced Technology Program (ATP). [See August 27, 1999 issue of SSTI Weekly Digest.] In the release, Rep. Sensenbrenner, the Chairman of the Committee, questioned the program's commitment to ensuring federal grants were not displacing private capital.
The Kentucky Science and Technology Corp. (KSTC) has released Kentucky's Science and Technology Strategy, a plan outlining ten specific recommendations in four strategic areas to guide the Commonwealth's future R&D investments. If implemented, the recommendations are expected to have significant impact in just a few years.
NASA has announced the selection of 103 R&D projects to share approximately $62 million as Phase II recipients under the agency's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program. The 103 awards were chosen from 319 proposals submitted by promising NASA 1998 SBIR Phase I recipients.
Ninety firms in 27 states won the 103 Phase II awards. Each project may receive up to $600,000 over two years to support their Phase II efforts.
The U.S. Department of Education's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program has announced approximately $3.2 million has been awarded through the 1999 SBIR solicitation. The agency funded 40 Phase I projects, totaling nearly $2 million, from 208 proposals received from companies across 40 states. An additional $1.2 million was awarded to ten Phase II projects selected from a pool of 34 proposals. The accompanying table presents the distribution of proposals and awards by state.
Before Congress left for its August break, the House voted 217-210 to pass the Commerce-State-Justice Appropriation Bill. Among other items, the Bill (H.R. 2670) eliminates all funding for the Advanced Technology Program (ATP). With this zeroing-out of funding for ATP, NIST’s total appropriation would be $436.7 million, $300.3 million below the request of $735.0 million, and $210.5 million below FY1999 funding of $647.2 million.
This year’s second attempt to pass legislation establishing a state-funded seed capital program in Missouri was successful during the waning hours of the 1999 session of the Missouri General Assembly. SB 518, the Missouri New Enterprise Creation Act, authorizes the creation of up to four seed capital funds at the state’s innovation centers to support new technology-based companies in the state.
NASA has named 20 companies from 13 states as recipients of the agency’s 1999 Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Program Phase I solicitation. NASA received 82 proposals from 59 companies in this year’s competition.
Each selected project will receive a fixed-price, one-year contract with NASA for up to $100,000. Successful Phase I recipients may compete for two-year Phase II contracts of up to $500,000 next year.
Vice President Gore has announced the creation of an interagency task force to recommend ways to strengthen the U.S. manufacturing sector for the 21st century. Gene Sperling, director of the National Economic Council, will lead the group, charged with presenting specific recommendations on how government policies and programs can preserve and enhance American manufacturing.
The National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Committee on Technology has called for issue papers to identify top priorities and outline ideas for reforming federal support of science and technology. The agency is seeking papers as a contribution to the development of a long-term action plan for improving federal policies, regulations, and programs to foster science and technology innovation.
President Clinton has issued an Executive Order to develop and promote biobased products and bioenergy as economically viable alternatives to fossil fuel-based production and energy generation. The order calls for the development of a national strategy that includes research, development, and private sector incentives to stimulate the creation and early adoption of technologies needed to make biobased products and bioenergy cost competitive.
The Markle Foundation has announced plans to give away $100 million -- more than half of the Foundation's current endowment -- over the next five years for projects and programs to improve public benefit from the Internet. Recipients will include non-profit organizations as well as for-profit companies.
Awards are concentrated in four areas:
The following people in the S&T field have announced or made career changes over the past few months:
Phil Singerman, the head of the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Adminstration, has been named president of the new Maryland Technology Economic Development Corporation.
Catherine Renault, managing director of Virginia's Center for Innovative Technology, has accepted a position with Advantage Consulting.
Phil Singerman, the head of the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Adminstration, was named president of the new Maryland Technology Economic Development Corporation.
Catherine Renault, managing director of Virginia's Center for Innovative Technology, has accepted a position with Advantage Consulting.
Cary Nourie has been named Vice President of Policy and Planning for the Illinois Coalition; he previously was with the North Carolina Governor's Washington Office.
Brent Gregory has announced his resignation as Vice President for Technology Development with Enterprise Florida to accept a position in the private sector.
Douglas Goodall has been appointed CEO of Innovation Works, the successor to the Ben Franklin Technology Center of Western Pennsylvania.
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.
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:
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:
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 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.
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.
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:
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.)