Several bills from the 2008 legislative session were signed into law by Gov. Ed Rendell during the past two weeks, including the fiscal year 2008-09 budget, providing enhancements to K-12 programs encouraging science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) and a measure to significantly expand the Keystone Opportunity Zone (KOZ) tax incentive program.
 

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

Karl Fooks, a past managing director for J.P. Morgan & Co. in Asia, is the new president of the Hawaii Strategic Development Corporation. Fooks replaces John Chock who retired last year.

The  complete description of this opportunity and others are available at http://www.ssti.org/posting.htm.

As credit and early-stage investment capital become increasingly scarce, more state, regional and local governments and organizations are stepping in to help local entrepreneurs get their companies off the ground. In many cases, offering equity investments is not always an attractive option to the public organization.

As the Nevada Legislature concluded its biennial session last week, Gov. Jim Gibbons signed several bills relating to renewable energy.

Friday March 26, 2010 > Web Version   > Unsubscribe

SSTI's interview with Bob Starzynski of Innovation Works' Innovation Adoption Grant Fund, 2009 recipient of the Excellence in TBED Award in the category Improving Competitiveness of Existing Industries, provides an honest, in-depth account of best practices and lessons learned that earned this program national recognition. Click here to listen to the interview and learn more about the program.

TBED People
Michael Burcham has been named the first president of the Nashville Entrepreneur Center. Burcham currently serves as a clinical faculty member at Vanderbilt University's Owen Graduate School of Management.

Several states recently enacted spending plans for the upcoming fiscal year, which started July 1 for most states. In Louisiana, Gov. Bobby Jindal signed into law the LA GRAD Act, granting universities more flexibility to raise tuition in return for meeting certain performance goals. Lawmakers in Massachusetts allocated $10 million to continue the state's investment in life sciences, Pennsylvania Gov.

SSTI Board member Phillip Singerman has been named as the Associate Director for Innovation and Industry Services for the National Institute of Standards and Technology. He will assume this position on January 31.

Alabama Gov.-elect Robert Bentley named former house speaker Seth Hammett as the director of the Alabama Development Office.

Focusing on job growth and promoting the state for new business development, Gov. Brian Sandoval announced his plans to reorganize the Commission on Economic Development into a public-private partnership and increase funding for the state's economic development efforts by an additional $2.2 million in general fund appropriations each year. The governor also included in his 2011-13 biennial budget $10 million in FY12 for a proposed Nevada Catalyst Fund designed as a closing fund to bring new businesses to the state.

The fourth installment of SSTI's Tech Talkin' Govs series includes excerpts from speeches delivered in Alaska, Delaware, Hawaii, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, and Vermont. The first three installments are available in the Jan. 5, Jan. 12 and Jan. 19 issues of the Digest.

Gov. Tom Corbett's budget proposal for the upcoming fiscal year funds many of Pennsylvania's longstanding efforts to grow a technology-based economy, but at a reduced level. At the same time, the governor outlined new initiatives and investments centered on a restructured Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) that he says will eliminate duplicative programs and better position the state to attract businesses for job creation.

The seventh installment of SSTI's Tech Talkin' Govs series includes excerpts from speeches delivered in Alabama, Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island. The first six installments are available in the Jan. 5, Jan. 12, Jan. 19, Jan.

During the campaign trail and in speeches delivered during their first few weeks in office, governors in Florida and Nevada announced plans to overhaul economic development efforts without providing many details on how the new systems would operate. Draft legislation recently was introduced in the respective states, providing some insight on the structure and governance of the proposed agencies.

Southwestern Pennsylvania is on course to add 11,640 green jobs to its economy by 2015, according to a new report commissioned by two local organizations, the Green Building Alliance and Growing Technology through Energy and Community Health (GTECH) . The region’s green services sector is on the verge of a major boom and will be the driving force in the growth of the green economy, according to the report.

Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell dropped his previous nomination, Robert Sledd, as his secretary for Commerce and Trade and instead nominated businessman James Cheng. Cheng, whose nomination needs to be confirmed by the Democratic-controlled Senate, was sworn in on January 17.

In an effort to improve the percentage of city residents with college degrees, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter announced his administration will be opening an office within City Hall to help potential students considering higher education. The “PhillyGoes2College” office will direct residents to assistance with filling out financial aid forms and applications, preparing for standardized admission tests, and writing college essays.

The fourth installment of SSTI's Tech Talkin' Govs series includes excerpts from speeches delivered in Alaska, Connecticut, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, and Oklahoma. The first three installments are available in the Jan 13, Jan. 20 and Jan. 27 Digests.

Crafting a regional TBED strategy is a difficult proposition. First, you figure out where you are. You check the data, conduct surveys and talk to the right people. Then, you figure out where you need to go. You look at other regions, and, again, talk to the right people. Using that information, you try to chart a course from where you are to where you want to be. The path, however, is rarely a straight line.

Want to know more about the Obama Administration's innovation strategy? SSTI is pleased to welcome two key administration officials to this year's conference. Ginger Lew, Senior Counselor to the White House National Economic Council (NEC) and the Small Business Administration (SBA), and Brian McGowan, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Commerce and COO for the U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA), will discuss the administration's plans to support innovation.

Voters in more than 30 states will go to the polls to choose a governor later this year. For TBED professionals, gubernatorial elections can mean uncertainty. Will the next administration put economic development and technology on the agenda? Will the new governor support existing agencies and programs, or will he/she introduce new initiatives? What will happen to the budget for TBED programs?

What are the steps in building a successful regional alliance?

How can my region benefit from the Obama Administration's vision for innovation?

Where should I look for funding now with state budgets so tight?