The current fiscal pressures on regional technology-based economic development initiatives have been never greater than they are now. And, as the article above points out, things are going to get worse over 2010 and 2011 before they get better.

Additionally, since local communities became proactive partners with their universities, businesses, tech councils, civic organizations, and states to support economic growth through innovation, the need for local TBED never has been greater. Economists and policy wonks agree: the next economy is being built on innovation and technology.

The U.S. will not be able to achieve its goals for human space flight unless substantial changes are made to NASA's plans for the next decade, according to a report from the U.S. Human Space Flight Plans Committee. The report's conclusions and recommendations, if they are adopted by the Obama Administration, would have significant impacts on those state and local TBED initiatives focused on NASA installations, space science, and the aerospace industry.

This year as states were wrestling with significant deficits, several proposals to consolidate TBED initiatives with other units of government emerged. The most recently decided was in Connecticut, where the General Assembly did not move forward with a plan to merge the state's two primary financing agencies, Connecticut Innovations and the Connecticut Development Authority to form a new Connecticut Economic Innovations Authority. Gov. Jodi Rell had proposed the consolidation.

Halfway through its money and its first decade, Ohio's Third Frontier Initiative has helped generate a $6.6 billion impact for the state, according to an independent assessment released by the Ohio Department of Development (ODOD) on Tuesday. The report also credits the initiative's investments for creating 41,300 jobs within Ohio over the past five years.

The Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E), housed at the U.S. Department of Energy, has released a Request for Information (RFI) to assist the development of its future funding opportunities and initiatives. Public and stakeholder ideas are needed in two categories:

Once again, SSTI's annual conference continues to be the most affordable professional development event of the year for the state, local, and university-based TBED community. Early registration discounts, which knock off $100 from the lowest prices already in the field, will expire Sept 29. Make the smart investment for your TBED program and your career by registering today. More information, including a registration form, is available at: http://www.ssticonference.org

Earlier this month, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) approved $750 million in financing over the next five years to Argentina's federal government for the country's Technology Innovation Program.

Argentina's R&D intensity as gauged by the ratio of R&D expenditures to GDP has increased in recent years, from 0.4 in 2003 to 0.51 in 2007. However, compared to a R&D intensity of 2.3 percent of GDP for OCED countries, Argentina lags considerably behind.

The United States Army has unveiled a new competition to foster the development of software and services that will be of use to the military. Apps for the Army would help speed the development process for Defense IT projects by providing an incentive for the military community to participate in creating innovative applications. Officials say that the program will help tap into the work already being done by military personnel to design software that is tailored to the demands of the battlefield.

President Obama has named Ron Bloom as the administration's senior counselor for manufacturing policy. Since, February, Bloom has been a senior adviser to Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, and he sits on the president's automotive industry task force.

The national recession that began at the end of 2007 is "very likely over," according to Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke. Recovery, however, may be a long way off. Because states were affected differently by the economic downturn in both timing and impact, recovery for state and local economies is likely to occur at different times. Moody's Economy.com predicts, according to an MSNBC article, that job growth will return first in five states: Colorado, Idaho, Oregon, Texas, and Washington.

The Obama administration's interest in directing more federal support to innovation and research was evident very early in the President's first weeks in office with more than $100 billion of the Recovery Act funding going toward innovation, education and research infrastructure. Earlier this week, the National Economic Council and Office of Science & Technology Policy released a brief report presenting the guiding principles and priorities for the administration's innovation agenda.

Companies backed by venture capital grew their revenue and employment numbers at a much higher rate than other businesses in recent years, according to a report from the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA). Between 2006 and 2008, revenue at U.S. venture-backed companies increased by 5.3 percent, while total U.S. business revenues grew by only 3.5 percent. Employment at venture-backed companies grew by 1.6 percent during that same period, compared to 0.2 percent in the overall U.S. private sector. Last year, venture-backed companies accounted for 11 percent of U.S.

The differences in economic performance among the metropolitan areas with the largest populations are vast, as a few metros already are emerging from the recession and others are in danger of being left behind, according to a recent brief by the Brookings Institution. To be issued every quarter, last week's MetroMonitor: Tracking Economic Recession and Recovery in America's 100 Largest Metropolitan Areas examines changes in employment, unemployment rate, gross metro product (GMP), housing prices and foreclosed properties through the end of June 2009.

Each year, Southern Growth Policies Board honors Southern initiatives that are improving economic opportunities and quality of life in the region. The 2010 Innovator Awards will be chosen from creative initiatives in the region that aim to help communities recover from the recession. Innovator Awards are presented annually to one organization in each of Southern Growth's 13 member states, and winners are recognized at Southern Growth's Annual Conference. The deadline for nominations is Nov 6.

The number of U.S. patents per employee decreased in 43 states from 2003 to 2007, as patents per employee for the U.S. as a whole declined by 10.3 percent over the same five-year period. To track this metric, SSTI has prepared a table calculating the number of patents issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) per 100,000 employees for each state. The table also displays the relative ranking of each state from 2003 to 2007, as well as each state's five-year percent change.

Complete descriptions of these opportunities are available at: http://www.ssti.org/posting.htm.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke announced Thursday his plans to create a new Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship within the Department of Commerce and launch a National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Both new initiatives will help leverage the entire federal government on behalf of promoting entrepreneurship in America. The new office is expected to announce additional initiatives in the coming months.

The U.S. will need to shift from a national S&T strategy predicated on the 1950s paradigm of "control and isolation" to a global innovation environment focused on "engagement and partnerships," according to a new National Academies report. S&T Strategies of Six Countries: Implications for the United States provides an overview of national science and technology strategies in Japan, Singapore, Brazil, China, India and Russia, and concludes that the U.S. should focus on improving its balance of "top-down" and "bottom-up" innovation.

U.S. patent activity increased in 2009, after two years of reduced activity, according to statistics from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). U.S. applicants were awarded 95,037 patents in 2009, up from 92,001 in 2008. Last year marked a return to the patenting levels of the early part of the decade, though in 2006 the country had hit an anomalous all-time high with 102,267 patents.

The Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) is seeking an enterprising, energetic and experienced executive director for Innovation and Commercialization. The executive director will be charged to accelerate and strengthen the university's "Innovation Eco-system" that will be recognized and emulated globally by industry, academia and governments. In its vision to become the "Innovation University" RIT is investing heavily in a unique set of academic, research and technological initiatives, programs, and resources.

This week 37 states held gubernatorial elections. In many states, technology-based economic development took on a central role in the campaign as candidates put forth their ideas on how to create jobs in a difficult economy. SSTI has collected some highlights from proposals put forth by new governors-elect that address topics related to TBED.California

Voters disapproved of several tax-cutting measures appearing on statewide ballots across the nation — a good sign for states facing huge budget deficits. A proposal to roll back the sales tax from 6.25 percent to 3 percent failed to garner support in Massachusetts, saving the state's projected deficit from doubling in the next year, according to Stateline.org. Colorado voters also rejected tax-cutting measures, including an amendment to prohibit the state from borrowing.

Often credited with contributing significant revenue to states' economies, research parks also house facilities for workforce training and provide resources for tech-based industries, which is especially important as the nation's employment begins to pick up steam. In West Virginia, officials are building a $15 million advanced technology-training center at the state-owned research and technology park, and in Utah, officials recently broke ground on a building that will house engineers and analysts working on the nation's Intercontinental Ballistic Missile program.

The Board of Directors of the Oklahoma Manufacturing Alliance is seeking a new president who will play a leading role in developing strategy for modernizing Oklahoma's industrial base. The successful candidate will possess strong leadership skills, demonstrated administrative ability, entrepreneurial management skills, organizational awareness, political sensitivity, and the ability to establish rapport with numerous constituencies.

Legislative control will shift from Democratic to Republican majority in eleven states and Republicans now control the legislature and governor's office of 20 states, up from nine, after adding more than 675 seats in last week's midterm elections, reports the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL). The GOP gained control in one or both chambers in the following states: Alabama, Colorado, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.