February 23, 2001 -- SSTI Weekly Digest

In the February 23, 2001 Issue:

New Governors Out of the Gate Fast on S&T

West Virginia

Wisconsin

More Reports Indicate President to Recommend S&T Budget Cuts

ED Groups Lay Out Agenda for Feds

Funding Opportunities from DOE

Copyright State Science & Technology Institute 2002. Information in this issue of 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.

Subscription to the SSTI Weekly Digest is free. If you are reading a forwarded copy of this issue and would like to receive your own copy each week directly, please subscribe at: http://www.ssti.org/Digest/digform.htm Requests to unsubscribe should be sent to sstiwd@ssti.org

New Governors Out of the Gate Fast On S&T
Two new Governors, Bob Wise of West Virginia and Wisconsin's Scott McCallum, have put tech-based economic development in the forefront of their respective economic agendas.

West Virginia
In his first State of the State Address, delivered February 14, and the Economic Development Plan released during his campaign for office, Governor Bob Wise outlined several tech-based economic development and education initiatives for the state to pursue immediately. He followed up the address by giving the state assembly several specific legislative proposals.

Governor Wise's proposals include:

retain the state's brightest high school graduates, fund the state's Promise Scholarship program to provide funancial support for every qualified student to attend the state's colleges, universities and technical training centers

create a State Science Camp for high school graduates, modeled on
the month-long National Youth Science Camp <http://www.sciencecamp.org/>

reform the West Virginia Capital Company Act to restrict use of the funds to new job creation

create a Sunny Day Fund for the state to use as incentives in attracting company investment into West Virginia

create job training partnerships with colleges and universities

establish business opportunity zones

create a partnership between higher education and businesses to create manufacturing jobs through joint research and a stronger state commitment to the NIST Manufacturing Extension Partnership and West Virginia Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR)

strengthen the role of local economic development councils in the state's ED efforts

expand access to capital for small and emerging businesses through a Mountaineer Opportunity Fund ($15 million in state monies matched with $30 million in private investment and $90 million leveraged from the Small Business Administration's Small Business Investment Corp. program)

create the West Virginia Funds Access Network to increase start-up investment opportunities in the state

create a Virtual Entrepreneur Institute to provide on-line training, on-line access to entrepreneurship resources and encourage entrepreneurship in public schools and higher education as well

create a network of small business accelerators and virtual technology incubators for emerging business growth

develop a cluster-based plan for technology-based economic development

create technology-training programs, utlizing virtual learning centers whenever possible

identify staff in the West Virginia Development Office to work exclusively in emerging biotechnology and genetic industries

The Governor's economic development plan and State of the State Address are available at http://www.state.wv.us/governor/

Wisconsin
Governor Scott McCallum, who took office February 1 with Gov. Thompson's appointment as Secretary of Health and Human Services, included a $35 million tax credit for high tech companies in his FY 01-02 budget request, released Tuesday. The credits, to be available to businesses that expand or locate in seven targeted technology zones throughout the state, are the first phase of a program that McCallum hopes will grow to include 20 zones and $100 million in credits. Each zone would have a maximum credit eligibility of $5 million. The Wisconsin Department of Commerce will certify business eligibility for the credit. More information on the Technology Development Zone Program is available at: http://www.wisgov.state.wi.us under February 12 Press Releases.

Return to the top of this page

More Reports Indicate President to Recommend S&T Budget Cuts
The latest word in the national press regarding the FY 2002 budget President Bush will present to Congress next week suggests President Bush may propose significant cuts in investment in research and tech-based economic development. Many of the programs potentially under fire are instrumental to state and local efforts to promote stronger economic growth through science and technology.

A Feb. 15 story in the Wall Street Journal, "White House Is Planning Broad Cuts in U.S. Firm's Government Subsidies" reports the Office of Management and Budget has called business loan and grant programs for technology and economic development "corporate subsidies" that are "unjustified" and "low priority." The article singles out the International Trade Administration, the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, and parts of the Agriculture Department.

After last year's historic 17 percent increase for the National Science Foundation, an article by David Rogers in last Friday's Wall Street Journal, "Bush, Seeking Room for Tax Cuts, Chops Budgets for Science Agencies," reports NSF could see less than 1 percent growth in the President's FY 2002 request.

In "Seed Corn, Anyone?" a Feb. 20 Boston Globe column, David Warsh reports the cuts to be more severe for some science programs --- the U.S. Geological Survey would see a 22 percent cut in the President's budget request. The only bright spot for the research community would be a possible $3.4 billion increase for the National Institutes of Health, Warsh says.

Buried in a February 13 story in USA Today was the suggestion that the Advanced Technology Program will be zeroed out in the President's request. This year's twist to the program's perennial budget fight finds opponents and proponents reversed. For the past few years, the Clinton Administration's support for the program created under President George H.W. Bush was tempered by strong opposition from House Republicans. ATP supporters were breathing a little easier at the beginning of this session with the ascension of Congressman Sherwood Boehlert to the House Science chairmanship. Rep. Boehlert has been supportive of the program in the past and an aide recently reiterated the Congressman's qualified support in the January 11 issue of Federal Technology Report. In that issue, the aide said "[Rep. Boehlert has] always been supportive of ATP, but now with a new administration and a new Congress, it may be a good time to look into it and see how it might be strengthened, and made more useful and less of a lightning rod."

According to Warsh, moderate GOP legislators "were quick to make their disapproval known" after a briefing by Mitch Daniels, White House budget director last Wednesday. Rogers reports Rep. Boehlert "is agitated by the budget outlook and raised his concerns" at the meeting.

Our thanks to the George Lipper, editor of NASVF NetNews, for background assistance on this article

Return to the top of this page

ED Groups Lay Out Agenda for Feds
Stressing partnerships and flexibility, seven regional and national organizations have drafted an action agenda for the federal government to use to strengthen local and regional economic development efforts. After a brief introduction to the New Economy and its implications for local economic development, Partnership for Prosperity: A Federal Economic Development Policy Agenda includes several specific recommendations of interest to Digest readers:

Stimulate markets in underserved areas by improving the Empowerment Zone/Enterprise Communities program and the American Private Investment Companies, and by reauthorizing the Community Development Financial Institutions.

Partnering with the private sector to close the Digital Divide through new tax incentives, preserving the 1996 Telecommunications Act, and increasing funding for the Technology Opportunities Program, the Economic Development Administration and the Rural Utilities Service in the Department of Agriculture.

Removing regulatory barriers in small business by improving the 504 loan program administered by the Small Business Administration.

Increasing coordination among federal economic development programs

Stimulating investment in research and development and its commercialization by

broadening the R&D tax credit and making it permanent

increasing federal investment in R&D

preserving the Advanced Technology Program

investing more than $1 Billion annually in information technologies

allowing federal funds to be used for research park development

ensuring the integrity of the Bayh-Dole Act

Facilitating small and traditional business investment in competitiveness by

ensuring small business access to e-commerce

fostering technology deployment by increasing funding for and flexibility in the Manufacturing Extension Partnership

expanding commercialization opportunities

facilitating export promotion

Aggressively encourage innovation and reform within the Workforce Investment Act including allowing regions to leverage private investment for workforce training

Stimulate investment in talent development and support the findings of the 21st Century Workforce Commission

Partnership for Prosperity, developed by the Council for Urban Economic Development (CUED), the American Economic Development Council, the National Association of Installation Developers, and several regional organizations, was released at the beginning of CUED's 2001 Economic Development Summit and will soon be available on CUED's web site: http://www.cued.org

Return to the top of this page

Funding Opportunities from DOE
The Department of Energy has announced the following four funding opportunities:

DOE’s Golden Field Office, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy recently released Supplemental Announcement 04 Biomass Research and Development: Innovative/Crosscutting Technologies for Conversion of Biomass to Fuels and Chemicals. This is a supplement to the Broad Based Solicitation DE-PS36-01G090000 dated November 27, 2000. Applications are being solicited to support innovative technologies that will increase the efficiency and/or lower the cost of producing and converting biomass to transportation fuels and chemicals. Three specific areas of interest for this solicitation are: pretreatment fundamentals; biomass sugars technologies; and microbial strain development. Awards will be cooperative agreements with a term of up to 12 months; there are some cost-share requirements. University-led efforts with industry and other non-federal research organizations are strongly encouraged. Anticipated total funding is $2 million and five to eight applications will be selected for negotiation. Applications should be submitted by March 27, 2001. All details regarding this solicitation are available at http://www.golden.doe.gov/businessopportunities.html then click on “Solicitations”

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy also released Supplemental Announcement 05 Superconductivity Partnership Initiative. Under this Supplemental Announcement, DOE is soliciting applications to develop High Temperature Superconductive systems that are in either the research and development stage (Phase I), the pre-commercialization stage (Phase II), or the commercial entry stage (Phase III). Total DOE funding available will be approximately $5.5 million for the first year and no more than $9 million per year for the next three years. Approximately five to eight applications will be selected for negotiation. A minimum cost share of at least 50% of total Phase II and III project costs by the applicant is required to receive consideration for an award. The closing date is April 16, 2001. All information regarding this opportunity is available at http://www.golden.doe.gov/businessopportunities.html then click on “Solicitations”

In Supplemental Announcement 06, the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy is soliciting applications for technical analysis in two specific areas that can advance hydrogen production, storage, and utilization technologies in the areas of gasification of certain materials followed by hydrogen production, and hydrogen infrastructure development that may be enabled by the installation of fuel cells in federal buildings and in vehicles. A minimum cost share of 20% is required. DOE anticipates available funding of $200,000 in Fiscal Year 2001, $400,000 in FY02, and $200,000 in FY03, with a maximum DOE cost share of $150,000 per award per year. The closing date is March 21, 2001. All details regarding this solicitation are available at http://www.golden.doe.gov/businessopportunities.html then click on “Solicitations”

DOE’s Office of Biological and Environmental Research Science has issued Notice 01-23 inviting new grant applications and renewals for experimental and theoretical studies of radiation and clouds in conjunction with the Atmospheric Radiation Measurement Program as part of the U.S. Global Change Research Program. Preapplications are encouraged but not required and are due by April 16, 2001. Approximately $3,000,000 is anticipated to be available for awards in FY 2002; multiple year funding of awards is expected. Collaboration with researchers in universities, industry, non-profit organizations, federal laboratories and Federally Funded Research and Development Centers is strongly encouraged. The closing date for full applications is May 15, 2001. Full-text of Notice 01-23 is available on-line at http://www.sc.doe.gov click on “Grants & Contracts.”

Return to the top of this page

State Science & Technology Institute
5015 Pine Creek Drive
Westerville, OH 43081
Phone: (614) 901-1690
Fax: (614) 901-1696
Email: ssti@ssti.org