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In 2016, approximately 46.7 percent of small- and medium-sized manufacturing firms (SMMs) receiving services from Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) centers expect challenges in the next three years related to employee recruitment, up from 19.1 percent in 2009, according to a recent survey of MEP client companies. While employee recruitment needs have grown over the last seven years, the top two challenges remained the same – cost reduction (70 percent of all respondents in 2016) and growth (53.5 percent). The findings come from an annual NIST MEP survey of their clients – small manufacturers across the United States.

Before, during, and since the 2016 presidential election, there has been considerable discussion on whether trade or automation is responsible for America’s long-term loss in manufacturing employment. A December New York Times article highlights several examples of studies finding automation has been the key perpetrator. Recent research from Adams Nager of the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF), however, pins the problem on trade and competition. ITIF suggests that roughly two-thirds of the 5.7 million U.S. manufacturing jobs lost between 2000 and 2010 were a result of international trade pressure and wavering U.S. competitiveness. As economist Paul Krugman recently noted, accounts stating that either trade or automation are the cause can both be accurate and are not necessarily contradictory.

Entrepreneurship is on the rebound following a “Great Recession hangover,” according to a new study by the Kauffman Foundation, but turbulent shifts will affect its shape in the coming years. During its eighth annual State of Entrepreneurship address in Washington D.C. this morning, Wendy Guillies, Kauffman president and CEO, outlined how, despite the resurgence, new firm formation remains in a long-term deficit and called for a “national wakeup call.”

Leadership in the data economy should be a target for the state of North Carolina, according to a new report by the North Carolina Board of Science, Technology and Innovation (BSTI). As more economic value is placed on the ability to successfully collect and manipulate data for insight and profit, the state needs to focus on closer collaboration, proactive branding and a greater focus on data science education and talent development, according to the report, NC in the Next Tech Tsunami: Navigating the Data Economy.

C2ER is sharing a letter to Congress that describes the value of federal data collection and publication, including the census, employment information, R&D spending and much more, for private- and public-sector decision making, individual choice and democratic institutions.

While economic dynamism has powered U.S. prosperity for generations, it is now declining in nearly every definition of the term, according to new research from the D.C.-based think-tank and advocacy organization Economic Innovation Group (EIG). In Dynamism in Collapse, an analysis of economic conditions from 1977 to 2014, EIG finds that dynamism has decreased substantially, as seen in diminishing rates of job turnover, the share of employment in new companies, and the percentage of the population moving across state lines. This eroding dynamism, the report finds, has led to considerable challenges for regions, markets, and workers.

A multi-decade study shows a 12 percent increase on the math and science ACT for high school students in Wisconsin whose parents were provided with information on how to effectively convey the importance of STEM to their children, according to the UChicago News. The report also finds that the same students were more likely to take high school STEM classes. The researchers highlight that the increased STEM coursework in high school led to increases in college STEM class enrollment and careers.

In the latest round of state budget proposals, TBED initiatives receive mixed reviews. Some governors are boosting funding while others in cash-strapped states are proposing cuts.

With the latest round of state of the state or budget addresses, the states’ governors focused on their states’ financial situation. Education and economic development were still on the minds of leaders in Maine, Maryland, and Texas. With this fifth installment, less than 10 governors have yet to deliver their addresses in the coming weeks or months.

Canada is targeting innovation to drive economic prosperity through several recently announced investments. These investments are intended to unlock the potential of Canadian universities and entrepreneurs as well as capital for startups. The provincial government of Ontario has also unveiled several tech-based economic development efforts. In addition to these newly announced efforts, the Trudeau administration released a series of economic development-related policy recommendations to support economic growth across the country.

While states implement policies to spur innovation, manufacturing and other priorities related to clean energy, there was no single source serving as a collection of all such policies across the 50 states. The recently released Clean Energy-Related Economic Development Policy across the States: Establishing a 2016 Baseline by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) aims to establish a baseline of existing policy as “a critical first step in determining the potential holistic impact of these policies on driving economic growth in a state.” It focuses on the policies most directly related to expanding new and existing manufacturing.

A fourth annual review of career and technical education (CTE) and career-readiness policies, found an increase in policy action carried out by states in 2016 with several states – including California, Idaho, Indiana and Virginia – passing packages of legislation that impacted multiple elements of CTE programming. State Policies Impacting CTE: 2016 Year in Review was produced by Advance CTE, formerly known as the National Association of State Directors of Career Technical Education Consortium (NASDCTEc), and the Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE). They found that funding remains the most pursued approach, with 28 states taking action to financially support CTE activities in 2016.

On Feb. 1, SSTI staff, members and The Sheridan Group participated in a Capitol Hill Day for SSTI’s Innovation Advocacy Council. Groups visited more than two dozen congressional offices, including appropriations committee members and freshman Senate offices, and the White House Office of Management and Budget. The message for these visits was to increase federal funding for the Regional Innovation program and to protect science and innovation spending during any broad budget reform or sequestration that may be forthcoming.

The U.S. Department of Energy recently released the State of the Department of Energy National Laboratories Report, which reads like a user manual for the National Labs. For readers with questions about what the labs are, what they are trying to achieve, and how they work with other institutions, the report is an excellent resource. As depicted in the visual accompanying this article, DOE’s labs cover a variety of purposes, enabling the report to provide more generalizable information on the labs than might be possible from another agency. Sections detail DOE’s strategic plan for the labs, scientific objectives, partnership structures and tech transfer initiatives, among others. Each section includes case studies or anecdotes of lab activities and numerous appendices provide additional background.

A portfolio company of JumpStart Inc., an Ohio venture development organization, is to be purchased for $1.1 billion. The proposed acquisition of Ohio startup CoverMyMeds by McKesson Corp. marks Ohio’s first tech startup unicorn. JumpStart Evergreen, the non-profit fund that invested in CoverMyMeds, was funded in part by Ohio Third Frontier. CoverMyMeds was started in Ohio in 2008 and is now headquartered in Columbus.

While equity crowdfunding has received widespread attention since the 2012 JOBS Act, another SEC rule change (named Regulation A+) that allowed companies to offer “mini-IPOs” has flown largely under the radar. However, it has shown early promise as a new method for startup financing since it was passed in 2015. In this feature, SSTI addresses three important questions related to Regulation A+ (Reg A+) including:

What is Reg A+?
What are the benefits and drawbacks of the offering?
What impact has it made so far?

The National Telecommunications and Information Administration and the National Science Foundation have released The National Broadband Research Agenda, a report detailing key priorities for broadband research and data. Despite significant advances in broadband connectivity, disparities remain in access, adoption and choice.

NY Gov. Andrew Cuomo delivered his state of the state address over three days and six different speeches, and released his proposed FY 2018 budget following the talks. Some of his major proposals affecting the technology-based economic development field include proposals he had revealed earlier and have previously been covered in the Digest, including his proposal for free tuition as well as a major investment in the life sciences.  In keeping with our Tech Talkin’ Govs series and budget reviews, some excerpts from his various speeches are detailed here, as well as a closer analysis of his proposed budget.

Online-education provider Coursera has announced a new program that allows governments and nonprofits focused on workforce development to curate massive open online course (MOOCs) that align with labor market needs, and then make these courses instantly available to their constituents. Initial partners of Coursera for Governments & Nonprofits include the United States and six other nations:  Egypt, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Pakistan, and Singapore.

Approximately 6.2 percent of U.S. employment (nearly 8.6 million people) worked in STEM jobs in May 2015, according to STEM Occupations: Past, Present, And Future from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).  Of those nearly 8.6 million people, nearly half (45 percent) are employed in computer occupations. In addition, seven of the 10 largest STEM occupations were related to computers and information systems including the largest STEM occupation – applications software developers (750,000 people).  STEM occupations provide nearly double the wages of non-STEM occupations.

SSTI’s latest Tech Talkin’ Govs installment excerpts TBED highlights from governors’ speeches in Alaska, Indiana, Michigan, New Mexico, Nevada and Rhode Island. Education and workforce are focal points in this latest round of the state of the state addresses, as they have been in the two previous posts. Varying issues are factored into the speeches, from the $3 billion fiscal gap in Alaska to the proposed free college tuition in Rhode Island.

Alaska