Copyright State Science & Technology Institute 2002. Information in this issue of the SSTI Weekly Digest was prepared under a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Commerce, Economic Development Administration. Redistribution to all others interested in tech-based economic development is strongly encouraged — please cite the State Science & Technology Institute whenever portions are reproduced or redirected. Any opinions expressed in the Digest do not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Commerce.
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FY1999 BUDGET INCLUDES $657 MILLION FOR COMMERCE'S TECHNOLOGY ADMINISTRATION
Congress has now passed the final appropriations bill for fiscal year 1999. This "omnibus" bill (H.R. 4328) incorporates eight of the thirteen annual appropriations measures: Agriculture, Commerce-Justice-State, District of Columbia, Foreign Operations, Interior, Labor-HHS-Education, Transportation, and Treasury-Postal.
The new law includes $656.6 million for Commerce's Technology Administration; however, specific provisions of the law call for a stop to the funding if a dispute over the use of statistical sampling for the Year 2000 Census is not resolved before June 15, 1999.
Highlights of the funding provisions follow:
Office of the Under Secretary for Technology/Office of Technology Policy
Appropriations of $9.5 million include $2.3 million for US/OTP to expand the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Technology. EPSCoT is the technology counterpart to the National Science Foundation's Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR). In addition to funding for EPSCoT, the FY 1999 budget provides $7.2 million for agency priorities including coordinating the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles, assisting in the development of a new National Space Policy; and administering the National Medal of Technology.National Institute of Standards and Technology
The FY 1999 appropriation for NIST is divided into three portions:
- $280.1 million for efforts under the Scientific and Technical Research Services (STRS) appropriation that includes funding for the NIST Measurement and Standards Laboratories and the Baldrige National Quality Program.
- $203.5 million for the Advanced Technology Program (ATP) with $66 million designated for new awards in FY 1999.
- $106.8 million for the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP). The conference report includes a waiver of the "sunset" clause in NIST MEP=s 1988 authorizing legislation that stipulated federal co-funding for centers could not be provided for more than six years. Now, after the sixth year, an MEP center may continue to receive funding from NIST following a positive evaluation through an independent review.
Since 1995, Congress has provided extensions for MEP centers that had reached their sixth year -- the Great Lakes Manufacturing Technology Center, the South Carolina Manufacturing Extension Partnership, the Mid-America Manufacturing Technology Center, the Michigan Manufacturing Technology Center, Minnesota Technology, Inc., and the California Manufacturing Technology Center.
RESEARCH AND EXPERIMENTATION TAX CREDIT EXTENDED
The omnibus spending bill signed into law last week also includes extensions of several tax credits, including the Research and Experimentation Tax Credit which expired on June 30 of this year. The R&E Tax Credit is now in effect, retroactively, for the period from July 1, 1998, to June 30, 1999.ELECTION `98 WRAP-UP: TECH ISSUES PASS, 13 NEW GOVERNORS ELECTED
Maine and Oklahoma voters both approved ballot initiatives designed to encourage technology-based economic development, while voters in other states elected 13 new governors. Eight legislative chambers also switched control.The Maine initiative authorizes a $20 million bond issue for research and development. The University of Maine system will receive $13.5 million for capital improvements; the Maine Science and Technology Foundation will receive $4.5 million in part for a Research Challenge Grants Program to enhance R&D capacity and productivity; and, the Department of Economic and Community Development will receive $2 million for a laboratory to support applied fishery and marine biotechnology research.
Oklahomans approved two initiatives that are intended to promote the commercialization of university research and support university innovation. State colleges and universities will now be able to let a business use its property to work on technology projects, and they will also be able to own technology and equity in private businesses.
On the national scene, Minnesota and Washington experienced the most dramatic political changes. In Minnesota, Jesse Ventura the Reform Party candidate was elected governor and the Republicans took control of the House; the Democrats retained the majority in the Senate. In Washington, the Democrats took over the House and the Senate; the Democratic governor is up for re-election in 2000.
Thirteen new governors were elected. The number of new governors is a result of two incumbents being defeated, term limits preventing some governors from running, and some incumbents deciding not to run for re-election.
In Alabama and South Carolina, support for a state lottery to fund education apparently played an important role in the election of two Democrats who defeated sitting governors. Those candidates modeled their proposals in part after Georgia's lottery which has resulted in significant new investments in education and technology-based economic development.
States with new governors are:
- Alabama- Don Siegelman (D) beat the incumbent Fob James (R)
- California- Gray Davis (D) replaces the term-limited Pete Wilson (R)
- Colorado- Bill Owens (R) replaces the retiring Roy Romer (D)
- Florida- Jeb Bush (R) replaces the term-limited Lawton Chiles (D)
- Georgia- Roy Barnes (D) replaces the term-limited Zell Miller(D)
- Idaho- Dirk Kempthorne (R) replaces the retiring Philip Batt (R)
- Illinois- George Ryan (R) replaces the retiring Jim Edgar (R)
- Iowa- Tom Vilsack (D) replaces the retiring Terry Branstad (R)
- Minnesota- Jesse Ventura (Reform Party) replaces the retiring Arne Carlson (R)
- Nebraska- Mike Johanns (R) replaces the term-limited Ben Nelson (D)
- Nevada- Kenny Guin (R) replaces the term-limited Bob Miller(D)
- Ohio- Bob Taft (R) replaces the term-limited George Voinovich (R)
- South Carolina- Jim Hodges (D) defeated the incumbent David Beasley (R)
Incumbents were re-elected in: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Connecticut, Hawaii, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
In the state legislatures, Democrats picked up control of the: Indiana House, the New Hampshire Senate, the North Carolina House, the Washington House and Senate, and the Wisconsin Senate. Meanwhile, Republicans took over the Michigan House and Minnesota House, according to the National Council of State Legislatures.
Republicans now control both chambers and the governorship in 14 states: Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Kansas, Michigan, Montana, New Jersey, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming. Democrats control both chambers and the governorship in 11 states: Alabama, California, Georgia, Hawaii, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Missouri, North Carolina, Vermont, and Washington.
November 17, 1998
The National Association of Seed Venture Funds is sponsoring a seminar entitled "Seed Investing as a Team Sport" to be held in Des Moines. The purpose of the seminar is to expand the attendees' understanding of business investing, help locate a team of like-minded investors in the region, and provide new tools to help optimize investment dollars. For more information, visit NASVF's website at http://www.nasvf.orgNovember 18-19, 1998
The Progressive Policy Institute is sponsoring a two-day conference "Understanding America's Transformation To a New Economy" in Washington, DC. Scheduled speakers include Vice President Al Gore and Sen. Tom Daschle. For more information, contact PPI at 202/608-1235.
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