The FY15 budget request for the Department of Education (ED) totals $68.6 billion (1.9 percent increase) in total discretionary funding. An overhaul of P-12 STEM education programs and a ConnectED initiative providing next-generation broadband and high-speed wireless network support to students and teachers are among the new proposals.
The administration’s FY15 budget request for the Department of the Interior (DOI) would provide $11.7 billion (0.3 percent increase) in discretionary funding. DOI would receive $888.7 million (7.3 percent increase) for research and development activities. Of the proposed R&D budget, $94.8 million (3.5 percent increase) would be allocated to DOI’s Powering Our Future initiative, which supports renewable energy projects on federal lands and waters.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) would receive $27.4 billion in FY15 discretionary funding under the president’s budget request, a 0.4 percent increase.
The president’s FY15 budget request for the Department of Transportation (DOT) totals $90.8 billion (25.7 percent increase), including the first installment of $73.6 billion for a $302.3 billion four-year surface transportation reauthorization proposal that would improve U.S. surface transportation systems. DOT would be allocated $865 million to support research and development (R&D) efforts across the department. Several administrations under DOT would see limited change in their R&D budgets. Funding for various research and development initiatives include:
The president’s FY15 budget request for the Department of Commerce (DOC) totals $8.8 billion in discretionary funding (6.9 percent increase over FY14 enacted), with increased funding for most agencies and programs related to research, technology transfer, advanced manufacturing and regional economic development. The department would play a key role in the administration’s Opportunity, Growth and Security Initiative (OGSI), managing the planned expansion of the National Network of Manufacturing Innovation (NNMI) to include 45 institutes over the next 10 years.
The administration’s FY15 budget request in discretionary funding for the Department of Energy (DOE) is $27.9 billion (1 percent decrease from FY14), of which $12.3 billion would support R&D (8.4 percent increase) and $4.2 billion would support investment in the Department’s applied energy sector programs to drive an “all-of-the-above” approach to energy sector innovation. The proposed budget would provide substantial increases for funding advanced manufacturing and clean energy R&D.
While President Obama’s FY15 budget request is unlikely to find much support in Congress this year, the document has traditionally served as a useful guide to the administration’s priorities and to federal programs related to research, regional economic development, manufacturing, entrepreneurship and STEM education.
John Sider has accepted a position with Pennsylvania State Senator Vincent Hughes and the PA Senate Democratic Caucus to work on economic development policy and projects, effective April 1. Currently, Sider is the managing director of statewide initiatives at Ben Franklin Technology Partners.
Vic Nole has joined the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus, Inc. as director of business development and entrepreneurial activity.
In keeping with the commitment made in his State of the Union address to reform the American patent system, President Obama announced a series of executive actions to improve the quality and accessibility of the patenting process. White House officials also reiterated the call for more sweeping changes to the system from Congress and provided an update on the previous series of executive orders related to intellectual property issued in June of last year. At the same time, the U.S.
U.S. patents continued their rapid pace of growth in 2013, according to statistics from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). USPTO granted 122,593 utility patents last year, a 10 percent increase over the previous year and a 72 percent increase over 2008.
University-focused initiatives that help bring new technologies and products to market help drive regional economic development and encourage an entrepreneurial culture on campuses. SSTI’s latest Trends in TBED report featured a number of commercialization efforts launched in 2013, including university-based funds to support ideas from faculty, staff and alumni. So far, 2014 also has proven active in this area with the announcement of several new initiatives to support university technology startups.
The latest Department of Defense-led manufacturing innovation institutes will support cutting-edge research and product development in lightweight and modern metals and digital manufacturing and design. A consortium of 73 companies, nonprofits and universities will help launch the Chicago-based institute. The Detroit-area based consortium involves 60 partners.
A proposal first announced during Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s 2013 State of the State address came to fruition earlier this month with a request for proposals (RFP) to fund clean energy projects through New York’s newly established green bank. A green bank is a state-sponsored nonprofit lender that provides long-term, low-cost financing support. Its purpose is to increase public-private investing in clean energy while offering consumers lower-cost energy solutions, according to the Green Bank Academy. Connecticut was the first state to establish a green bank in 2011, but several other states have demonstrated interest. Participants from at least 11 other states wanting to establish their own green banks recently attended the first Green Bank Academy in Washington, D.C.
Los Angeles County (CA), New York County (NY) and Cook County (IL) topped the list of places where people older than 25 with graduate or professional degrees moved to between 2007 and 2011, according to the latest data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s County-to-County Migration Flows Tables. Middlesex County (MA) and Fairfax County (VA) also ranked among the top destinations for highly educated transplants. The Census report provides data on domestic migration at the county level, including data on income and educational attainment.
Recent court decisions regarding high-speed Internet competition and net neutrality have put U.S. broadband competitiveness on uncertain terrain. Despite two decades of publically supported high-speed data infrastructure efforts, many rural areas still lack access and even densely populated areas remain underserved. New statewide efforts in Kentucky, Minnesota and Iowa have been announced to improve broadband services and boost economic competitiveness. In addition, Google has announced that it will expand its ultra-fast fiber services to nine more cities across the country.
A bill to consolidate several organizations and entrepreneurship efforts into one office led by the lieutenant governor passed in the Indiana General Assembly with unanimous support from both chambers. HB 1332 combines the Young Entrepreneurs Program, the Small Business Development Center and the Small Business Ombudsman into a single entity know as the Office of Small Business and Entrepreneurship.
Several bills aimed at supporting startups, advancing research and improving the workforce have been introduced with the start of the 2014 sessions. Some of the proposed legislation offers a glimpse into the investment priorities of governors and lawmakers in the wake of economic recovery. Providing innovative companies with access to startup funds is a continued theme from previous years. Some states are seeking to expand tax credits for angel investors or offer new tax credits to encourage emerging industries. Other bills focus on generating more skilled workers quickly and positioning universities to enhance regional economic competitiveness.
Patrick Gallagher has been named the 18th chancellor and chief executive officer of the University of Pittsburgh. Gallagher currently serves as acting deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce and director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
The U.S. remains the global leader in research and development (R&D) spending, but its share of global research is on the decline, according to the National Science Board’s (NSB) Science and Engineering Indicators 2014 report. U.S. R&D expenditures, including government, private and academic spending, reached about $428 billion in 2011 (see our previous Digest article on U.S. R&D spending), representing a 21.4 percent increase over 2006.
In the U.S. there is strong bi-partisan consensus that immigration is a key driver for entrepreneurship and regional competitiveness. With federal immigration reform essentially shelved for 2014, cities and states are searching for their own solutions to attract and retain high-skilled immigrants. Proposals by Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder and other policymakers represent new approaches to immigration reform that can support local entrepreneurship and regional economic development.
The sixth installment of SSTI’s Tech Talkin’ Govs series includes excerpts from speeches delivered in New Hampshire and Wyoming.
The United Kingdom (UK) recently announced that it will petition the European Commission, the European Union’s executive body, for permission to increase the size of tax relief for social investments that address significant social issues. In the U.S., Georgetown University and Portland State University recently announced new initiatives to promote innovation that will address social issues. These universities join a growing number of institutions of higher education that are working to grow domestic social innovation, train a generation of social entrepreneurship and spur social impact investing.
In response to public comments on SBIR/STTR rule changes resulting from the National Defense Authorization Act for FY12, the Small Business Administration (SBA) amended its policy directives for the programs, including changes to eligibility and the award process. The amendments also involve minor clarifying changes to ensure participants better understand certain program requirements.
Having world-class facilities to train workers or support research in fields most likely to benefit the state is a draw for many reasons. Attracting outside investment, retaining talent and generating buzz are just a few of the benefits. Last year, Connecticut lawmakers dedicated more than $2 billion to expand science and technology education on the campuses of the University of Connecticut, including construction of new STEM facilities and for building research and teaching labs. Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder is the latest state leader to announce funding proposals aimed at either constructing new facilities or making capital improvements for training students in high-wage, high-demand fields. Similar announcements were made earlier this year in Florida, Georgia, Rhode Island and Wyoming.
Rich Luank, President & CEO of Innovation Works, recently was elected to the State Science and Technology (SSTI) Board of Trustees. Lunak will assist in providing strategic guidance and oversight of SSTI’s operations as the group works to encourage economic growth through science, technology and innovation.