policy recommendations

Tom McDonnell, President and CEO of the Kauffman Foundation, on Tuesday presented the organization's outlook on the current level of entrepreneurial activity in the U.S.. He began with news that there was growing national consensus that entrepreneurs can help promote growth in the sluggish economy, but cited challenges in capital financing and regulations. He directed many of his recommendations towards federal agencies, including the Federal Reserve and the SEC, urging better data collection efforts, improved metrics, and consideration of innovation in developing regulatory policy. Small Business Administrator Karen Mills then outlined three distinct agency strategies to promote entrepreneurial ecosystems before the session concluded with a panel discussion. Watch the address...

The Brookings Institute, in partnership with the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF), released three bold policy proposals intended to bolster the competitiveness of the U.S. manufacturing and advanced industries sector by improving innovation, workforce, and higher education connections. Each proposal paper provides a compelling argument for the federal government to make a strategic investment that will help to renew the national, state and local manufacturing bases to address poor U.S. economic performance since the Great Recession including sagging gross domestic product (less than 2 percent annually growth), skyrocketing numbers of individuals living in/near poverty and wage stagnation. Proposals include 20 U.S. manufacturing universities, a network of advanced industries innovation HUBs and a competition for states and a Race to the Shop competition.

In a new report, the National Academies' Institute of Medicine (IOM) praises the remarkable research output of California's Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) during its first seven years, but recommends several changes in oversight that could improve the quality and defensibility of its work. IOM suggests that external scientific reviews and independent oversight of the institute's management could help ameliorate concerns about conflicts of interest and increase transparency.

In a report, the President's Council of Advisors on Science & Technology recommends that the federal government should launch a coordinated effort to boost American agricultural science by increasing public investments.

Two organizations have in recent weeks called on the United States to create a national federal office of innovation to help focus and concentrate innovation across the country.

The National Research Council has released a report that establishes key indicators for measuring improvement to the U.S. K-12 science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education system. The report lays out three key goals for national K-12 STEM education: expand the number of students who pursue advanced degrees and careers in STEM fields, and broaden sector participation for women and minorities; expand the STEM workforce and broaden the participation of women and minorities; and, increase science literacy for all students in the U.S. education system. The authors point out that progress has been made during the past decade; national common core standards in STEM education have already been adopted by 45 states.

While Washington remains in political gridlock and the national economy continues sluggish growth, one key trend for political and economic success is apparent: U.S. metro regions experiencing high economic growth have invested federal, state, and private funds in high-speed broadband access.

In the aftermath of an election cycle in which manufacturing emerged as a key point of contention in many races, several groups are taking stock of the state of U.S. manufacturing competitiveness. The 2012 edition of the Global Manufacturing Competitiveness Index, based on a survey of senior manufacturing executives, projects that the U.S. will fall from third most competitive nation to fifth over the next five years. In order to stave off declining competitiveness, authors of a McKinsey Global Institute report suggest that manufacturing be viewed as a critical driver of U.S. innovation, requiring flexible federal intervention as the lines between manufacturing and services become blurred.

Fostering regional innovation is imperative to strengthening our national economy and crafting public-private partnerships (PPPs) are a key strategy for catalyzing regional economic growth. While states should continue to lead regional innovation efforts, the federal government can play a critical supporting role. The Brookings Institution proposes the establishment of a PPP unit within the White House to coordinate Federal assistance. Examples of effective federal-regional PPP units already are active within the Department of Transportation and the White House Startup America Initiative.

Two recent academic research articles found that innovation at institutions of higher education and domestic firms are significantly impacted by an increase in the immigration of skilled and qualified immigrants. An article from Stuen et al. found the quality of immigrant students was the determining factor in their contribution to the production of knowledge at academic science and engineering laboratories. In an unpublished article from Kerr et al., the authors examined the impact of skilled immigrants on the employment structures and innovation rates of U.S. firms. The authors of these articles also provide several recommendations to increase the number skilled immigrants that include making student quality the key criterion for receiving a visa, repealing 2001 legislation that limited the number of student visas and business taking a more active role in advocating for immigrations polices (e.g., H-1B visa reform) that attracted skilled workers to the United States.