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Gov. Jim Doyle announced two new initiatives focusing on investments in manufacturing R&D and increasing angel and venture capital investment to grow new businesses.

 

With rumors of recession building, several of the nation’s governors are announcing new TBED-focused initiatives in 2008 – many of which will be presented to lawmakers for funding in the coming months. In Illinois, Gov. Rod Blagojevich unveiled two new initiatives encouraging entrepreneurship to grow high-technology businesses throughout the state.

 

The average cost of bringing a Food and Drug Administration-approved drug to market could be cut by 25 percent to 48 percent by making targeted investments in the national biopharmaceutical R&D technology infrastructure, according to a recent report from the National Institutes of Standards and Technology. Economic Analysis of the Technological Infrastructure Needs of the U.S. Biopharmaceutical Industry cites current costs as averaging $560 million per drug, but could drop to between $289 million and $421 million.

While women are making strides in entrepreneurship, they still have a ways to go, particularly in science and technology (S&T) fields. This was the theme during the session, Encouraging Women Entrepreneurship, conducted during SSTI's 9th Annual Conference on Oct. 19-21, 2005.

Facing a projected budget deficit of more than $600 million, Gov. Tim Kaine told lawmakers the state must invest more money in research and commercialization efforts to accelerate Virginia’s progress in key areas.

 

Building on a successful legislative session in 2007, Gov. Lingle is requesting additional funds to supplement various ongoing TBED programs.

 

A long-delayed equity capital program in Montana is on its way to becoming a reality. Montana, which received no venture capital investment in 2006 according to the PricewaterhouseCoopers Moneytree survey, has struggled to attract the interest of venture capital firms. The Montana Equity Capital Investment Act, sponsored by State Sen. Jeff Mangan and signed by Gov. Brian Schweitzer in 2005, was intended to make the state more attractive to outside investors, but never seemed to get off the ground.

 

Policymakers and practitioners continually seek new ideas to integrate into their overall TBED strategies in order to capitalize on innovative approaches and remain a competitive force in the global marketplace. Over the last few months, two new concepts in TBED aimed at supporting higher education have surfaced in New York and Wisconsin with two distinct goals: achieving the status of a world-renowned research capital and increasing college graduates to raise per capita income.

 

Earlier this year, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) reported that the U.S. had fallen from fourth to 15th in broadband penetration among OECD countries (see the June 13, 2007 issue). This report came as little surprise to states that have been struggling to extend and improve high-speed Internet service, particularly in rural areas.

By creating Ontario’s Regional Innovation Networks (ORIN) three years ago, the provincial government experimented with how to establish customized systems-specific, but network-integrated approaches to strengthening and supporting regional innovation.

In the quest for a region to become more innovative or attain higher levels of degree attainment, expanding the size of existing education institutions or increasing the number of community colleges and universities seems to be a somewhat practical strategy. But how long after these institutions are created or expanded do they produce a measurable impact on a region’s innovation environment?