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Elizabeth Sellars is the new manager of Idaho Operations for the Department of Energy.

Michael Witt has been appointed Executive Director of MichBio, the state's bioscience industry association.

The Sacramento Area Regional Technology Alliance announced this week that Clare Emerson will replace Lewis Attardo as executive director.

The Sacramento Area Regional Technology Alliance announced this week that Clare Emerson will replace Lewis Attardo as executive director.

U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta has named Samuel G. Bonasso as Acting Administrator of the Research and Special Programs Administration following the departure of former Administrator Ellen G. Engleman, who left to become Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board.

South Dakota Governor Mike Rounds announced Friday that John Calvin has been named Secretary for the Department of Tourism and State Development. The newly formed department combines the Governor’s Office of Economic Development, Department of Tourism, Office of Tribal Relations, Division of Cultural Affairs, and the South Dakota Housing Development Authority.

Bill Duncan is the first president of the Kansas City Area Life Sciences Institute, which held its inaugural event at the end of March.

Christopher Foster has been named technology coordinator for the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development.

John Murray has been named executive director of the Maryland Economic Development Commission.

The business incubation industry has grown dramatically since 1998, both in the number of programs in operation and the depth and breadth of services they offer, according to 2002 State of the Business Incubation Industry, a recent report by the National Business Incubation Association (NBIA).

Corporate, community and independent foundations can be significant sources of funding for local and regional technology-based economic development initiatives. Unfortunately, the first look at growth and giving estimates for 2002 and 2003, suggests foundations may be less charitable than previous years to new and existing grantees.

A recent study released by the AeA reported a decline of 560,000 high-tech jobs in the U.S. over the period from January 2001 to December 2002. However, AeA’s Tech Employment Update may not show the true magnitude of the decrease in high-tech jobs, as the AeA definition of high-tech excludes many industrial sectors with significant R&D investments.

Two of SSTI's sister organizations for promoting technology-based economic development (TBED) had items of potential interest to the readers of the SSTI Weekly Digest in their e-newsletters this week. The highlights below include links for more information.

The Institute for Government Innovations has announced it is accepting applications for the 17th Annual Innovations in American Government Awards, ultimately to identify outstanding examples of creative problem solving in the public sector.

A recent $10 billion judgment against Philip Morris may have the tobacco giant filing bankruptcy. Philip Morris has claimed it cannot post a $12 billion bond to appeal a lawsuit in Illinois or even meet the $2.6 billion payment due mid-April for the 1998 settlement with the states.

Pennsylvania Governor Edward Rendell recently unveiled an economic stimulus program that will invest nearly $2 billion in bonds and loan guarantees. The stimulus program is intended to leverage at least $5 billion in private investment in economic development projects, creating jobs in Pennsylvania's small and mid-size cities and towns.

Key provisions of Plan for a New Pennsylvania include:

The past week has marked the beginning of two public initiatives in Washington State to increase the availability of financing for technology firms.

The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) has posted an online version of its 304-page analysis of the research and development portion of the President's FY04 budget request. After a five-chapter overview, which includes a brief look at declining industrial R&D expenditures, the report breaks down the $122.5 billion request for R&D for seven federal agencies.

An update to Louisiana: Vision 2020, a strategic plan to improve the Louisiana economy, calls for creating more quality jobs in the state's high growth sectors. First released by the Louisiana Economic Development Council in 1998, the newly revised plan also stresses the need to place increased importance on early childhood education, teacher quality and math and reading performance among high school students as keys to boosting student achievement.

As off-year elections go, the Nov. 8, 2005, election was pretty quiet across the country if you weren't running for mayor in one of 300-plus municipalities up for grabs or governor of New Jersey or Virginia.

New Jersey and Virginia were the only two states to choose governors in November 2005, with both states having open races. Below is a description of each governor-elect's position on TBED.

Last Tuesday's election included a major bond package in Maine, a constitutional amendment in Ohio to complete the Third Frontier initiative, budget reform in New York, and additional TBED items in Iowa and Texas. Following are the results from some of the major ballot and bond issues within the states.

As states have wrestled with budget constraints in recent years, many have adopted or are contemplating spending-limit measures, such as Colorado's Taypayer's Bill of Rights (TABOR), or similar fiscal limitations that restrain growth of government spending. In the recent November elections, California voters rejected a spending-limit proposal and Colorado voters suspended their state's restrictive TABOR amendment, allowing the state to keep funds for the next five years.

Southern Growth Policies Board, a regional public policy think tank, is accepting nominations for its Innovator Awards.

The Ontario Ministry of Enterprise, Opportunity and Innovation has launched a two-phase, $30 million program intended to accelerate the development of Ontario's biotechnology cluster. The Biotechnology Cluster Innovation Program (BCIP) will support biotechnology infrastructure projects that will help create new companies.