In the January 21, 2000 Issue:

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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Tech Initiatives Proposed for New Jersey
Governor Christie Whitman has announced New Jersey Jobs for a New Economy, a multi-million dollar package of technology-related initiatives to make New Jersey more competitive in the creation of high technology jobs. 

Among the plan's proposals are the following technology-related investments: 

The plan was conceived by The Edison Partnership, a high technology think tank created by Whitman in 1998. The group is co-chaired by the director of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority and the presidents of Lucent Technologies and Princeton University.

For more details on the proposal, visit: http://www.state.nj.us/sos2k/initiatives.html  

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$3.5 M Offered for Rural Business Opportunity Grants
Effective Monday, January 24, the U.S. Department of Agriculture will begin accepting funding applications under the new Rural Business Opportunity Grants Program (RBOG). The program was authorized in the 1996 Farm Bill to fund sustainable economic development in rural communities with exceptional needs. RBOG funding may be used to support the following types of technical assistance for business development and economic development planning:

Proposals that replace or substitute support for existing services are not eligible for funding consideration under RBOG. 

Congress appropriated $3.5 million for RBOG awards this year with the following restrictions: $1 million is set aside for projects submitted by the four Rural Economic Area Partnership districts (REAPs) located in North Dakota and New York. An additional $1 million is earmarked for projects submitted by the REAPs and the Enterprise Community/Enterprise Zones.

Eligible entities for RBOG funding include public bodies, nonprofit corporations, Indian tribes, and cooperatives. Applications are to be submitted to the USDA Rural Development Field office in each state. There is no deadline for submitting applications, however, interested parties are encouraged to submit applications quickly. The rural development office in each state will score and prioritize their applications before sending them to the USDA for consideration in two pools of applications. Any balance of funds left over in the two earmarks after June 1 will be made available for applications from the general public. 

For further information, contact your local USDA Rural Development Field office (a list of the offices may be found at http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/recd_map.html) or Wayne Stansberry, USDA Specialized Loan Specialist, at 202/720-6819.

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State Legislative Round Up
With the start of the new year, a number of state legislatures are reconvening. Quite a few states have significant research, science, and technology issues on their legislative calendar, including the following:

Nebraska
Governor Mike Johanns has proposed the creation of a tax credit for a variety of industries, including R&D firms, to encourage job creation, higher wages and investment in rural Nebraska. The plan would offer an income tax credit equal to five percent of the compensation paid for new employment and an additional income tax credit equal to ten percent of the new investment. While development projects in the entire state are eligible, those projects in the most distressed areas would have to meet lower investment or job creation thresholds to receive the credit.

New York
Governor George Pataki has proposed the establishment of Upstate High Technology Enterprise Zones to encourage technology-based economic development in those areas where job growth is below the state average. The plan includes a series of tax credits for research and development, job creation, and business investment. Companies expanding their employment in the zones beyond 25 people would be eligible for $500-$1,000 credits per job, based on the wages paid.

Tennessee
The legislature appears to be likely to approve a $28.3 million sales tax exemption for construction costs associated with federal research facilities.  Proponents say the exemption will secure Oak Ridge National Laboratory as the site for the proposed $1.3 billion, federal Spallation Neutron Source. According to an article in The Tennessean, federal officials have threatened to relocate the facility to New York or New Mexico if construction costs for the federal project is subject to the sales tax. The state is currently facing a budget shortfall of almost $400 million.

Virginia
As part of his biennial budget proposal, Governor Gilmore has requested a 150 percent increase for Virginia’ Center for Innovative Technology. If approved, CIT would receive more than $32 million in FY 2002 to support its existing portfolio of programs and the Technology Competitiveness Fund, a proposed $20 million higher education research initiative. The Fund would have three components: matching funds to leverage public and private dollars, a program to upgrade national ranking of universities, and an industry inducement program.

Washington
Governor Gary Locke has proposed the creation of a Skills Gap Fund, a $1.2 million on-the-job training program for high tech worker training. The program would partner local businesses with community colleges for technical training .  Governor Locke also proposed a business-and-occupation tax credit for company’s workforce development costs equal to 50 percent of the cost of the training, provided the training is done under contract with one of the state’s community colleges or private schools.

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Federal R&D Solicitations Released
Several solicitations for research and development projects have been released by federal agencies. They include:

The National Energy Technology Laboratory requests applications for innovative research and development of Advanced Concepts Pertinent to Fossil Resource Conversion and Utilization. Eligible applicants must be affiliated with historically black colleges and universities or other minority institutions. Awards will range from $20,000-$200,000 with an estimated $900,000 available in total funding. The deadline for proposals is February 18, 2000. More information is available at http://www.netl.doe.gov/business/solicit  

Proposals are requested for research on Carbon Sequestration in the Terrestrial Biosphere and the Oceans through the Office of Biological and Environmental Research (OBER). Colleges and universities, non-profit organizations, for-profit commercial organizations, state and local governments, and unaffiliated individuals may submit grant applications. Awards will range from $100,000-$300,000 with eight projects receiving funding. A total of $2 million in funding is expected. Pre-applications are encouraged; the formal application deadline is March 2, 2000. More information can be obtained at http://www.sc.doe.gov/production/grants/grants.html

The Department of Energy is soliciting proposals for Biobased Products and Bioenergy Technologies. Proposals must focus on advancing market opportunities for biobased products and bioenergy systems or on the development of existing and new markets. Eligible applicants include private companies whose business benefits the United States economy. Project funding is expected to be $4.3 million with two to four awards granted. Awards will be cooperative in nature. The deadline for applications is March 7, 2000. For more information, contact: http://www.eren.doe.gov/golden/solicitations.html  

The Science to Achieve Results (STAR) Program requests proposals to identify and evaluate biomarkers that can be used to determine pesticide exposure and/or toxicity in children. Eligible applicants include academic institutions, non-profit institutions located in the United States, and state and local governments. Awards are expected to range from $150,000-$250,000 per project with total funding of $5-$6 million. The application deadline is March 9, 2000. For further information, contact: http://es.epa.gov/ncerqa/rfa/kids2000.html  

The National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are seeking proposals in Environmental Statistics. The three areas of interest are statistical models and methods for environmental social science research, environmental statistics research to improve risk assessment, and physical environmental statistics research. Academic and non-profit institutions located in the United States as well as state and local governments are eligible to apply. Funding of $2 million is anticipated with awards ranging from $60,000 to $150,000. The deadline for proposals is March 10, 2000. For more information, contact: http://es.epa.gov/ncerqa/rfa/nsf0020.html  

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is requesting proposals for Hazardous Substances Research Centers. These centers will address priority hazardous substance research and training, technology transfer, and technical assistance. Up to five centers will be funded in Fiscal Year 2000. The deadline for receipt of applications is Tuesday, March 14, 2000. For complete application information, contact http://www.epa.gov/ncerqa and click on “announcements.”

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