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Just days after the White House proposed eliminating EDA’s and SBA’s innovation programs, SSTI’s Innovation Advocacy Council held more than two dozen meetings on Capitol Hill. Teams of universities, venture development organizations and statewide entities talked with congressional staff about the importance of the Regional Innovation Strategies (now “Build to Scale”), the Regional Innovation Clusters, and Federal and State Technology Partnership (FAST) programs. Offices were largely interested in, and supportive of, the message.

With nearly 40 of the state governors now having given a state of the state or budget address, innovation themes continue to echo in their reviews of past accomplishments and plans for the coming year.

In 2015, state and local business incentives across the nation combined for a total annual cost of roughly $45 billion, according to Timothy Bartik's 2017 report for the Upjohn Institute for Employee Research. New research suggests states and regions trying to attract business through the use of firm-specific tax incentives may want to try another tactic.

Uncommon innovation is more likely to be found in high density areas, according to recent research. An article by Enrico Berkes of The Ohio State University and Ruben Gaetani of the University of Toronto, found that high-density areas boast more unusual combinations of prior knowledge, often across technologically distant fields. Their results indicate that geography affects innovation, as high-density areas produce more diverse, original research (i.e. unconventionality) while low-density areas are more likely to produce research within specific clusters.

Education, infrastructure and budgets are all on the minds of the governors in this latest review of state of the state addresses. With more than half the governors having completed their outlooks by the end of January, this week we review the speeches through the end of month and find repeated attention to education, energy and budgeting issues, with a statewide lottery being introduced in Alaska, new energy legislation in Illinois, and South Carolina also proposed a funding increase for state universities that do not raise in-state tuition rates.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced last week that it has approved the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund which will provide $20.4 billion over two phases to help expand broadband networks throughout rural communities. Phase one will provide $16 billion for use in communities that are currently unserved by broadband services with minimal download speeds of 25 megabits per second (Mbps) and 3 Mbps upload speeds.

What holds people back from starting a business? How does lifting financial constraints help promote entrepreneurship?

The Federal and State Technology Partnership (FAST) is intended to increase innovation-based small business awareness and participation in the SBIR and STTR programs in places and populations that are underrepresented in the programs’ award portfolios.  Through FAST, the Small Business Administration (SBA) makes small, matching one-year awards to state programs on a competitive basis.

More states are employing different efforts to boost their workforce and to seek the best solutions to workforce dilemmas. The National Governors Association (NGA) recognized that governors are exploring ways to guide development and expansion of youth apprenticeship programs and has issued a white paper that explores three strategies governors can use to expand on such programs.

On Monday, Maine Gov. Janet Mills and Mayor Kate Snyder gathered on Portland’s waterfront for the unveiling of a $100 million research institute designed to drive innovation, talent and economic growth in Portland, the region and the state of Maine.

The National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) has set out to address the core risks that currently threaten the United States' bioeconomy with the release of their report Safeguarding the Bioeconomy. While the U.S.

North Carolina is gaining ground nationally in its innovation capacity and the number of innovation-oriented establishments in the state has increased by twice the national rate, according to a new report from the North Carolina Board of Science, Technology and Innovation.