In the November 21, 2005 Issue:

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Iowa Governor Wants $50M for Advanced Manufacturing
On the heels of the release of two roadmaps calling for increased state support for advanced manufacturing and information technology (IT), Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack announced plans to spend $50 million "to attract leading scientists to Iowa and spark new research and product development," according to the Des Moines Register.

Gov. Vilsack, addressing those in attendance at a Nov. 17 economic development conference, said he would authorize $50 million to create chairs at the state's universities, the article states. The money would go toward attracting and retaining scientists and faculty and providing grants for businesses, entrepreneurs and others.

To fund the investment, the governor "proposed using money generated by bonds that were backed by the state's share of the multi-state tobacco settlement," the Associated Press reports. The money could also be taken from a pot of $100 million in savings expected to result from state debt-refinancing plans, the Des Moines Register adds.

Gov. Vilsack also proposed creating a statewide Lean Manufacturing Institute, per the recommendation of the Advanced Manufacturing Strategic Roadmap. Creation of the institute is one of 15 actions said to be a "critical" or "high" priority. Factory owners could look to the institute for new technologies or ways to save money, according to the governor.

The advanced manufacturing roadmap and a similar one highlighting Iowa's IT sector were released by the Iowa Department of Economic Development (IDED) just two days prior to the governor's announcement. The plans call for $300 million to go to the state's factory and technology industries -- an investment that would add 37,000 jobs over 10 years, the authors say.

Iowa had approximately 220,000 manufacturing workers in 2003, a figure that represented nearly 19 percent of the state's total private sector workforce. The manufacturing sector accounted for 23.2 percent of Iowa's gross state product, the largest share of any industrial activity in the state. For comparison, the IT industry in Iowa employs less than 30,000 individuals, a level of employment representing 2.5 percent of private sector employment in the state.

One other recommendation spotlighted by Gov. Vilsack - the appointment of a statewide Iowa Advanced Manufacturers’ Council - could serve as an advocate for the sector by identifying needs and developing proposals for policies and programs or sponsoring internships. The group would be comprised of business and academia and exist as part of a larger group such as the Iowa Business Council or Iowa Association of Business and Industry.

Both of the roadmaps were developed with feedback from industry representatives and public and private leaders from throughout Iowa. The plans are available in their entirety through IDED at http://www.iowalifechanging.com.

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Alaska Authorizes Nearly Eight-fold Increase in Public VC Investments
The available pool of equity capital grew substantially last Thursday as the board of trustees for the $31.7 billion Alaska Permanent Fund approved the placement of 8 percent of the fund's value into alternative assets, such as venture capital funds and hedge funds. The Associated Press reports the current value of all alternative investments held by the Permanent Fund totals $292 million. With the new authorization target, equity capital could comprise more than $2.5 billion at the fund's present value.

The change will happen gradually, however, as the board increased the mandate to Crestline, the fund’s current absolute return manager, from $250 million to $500 million. The board also increased the allocation for absolute return strategies from 1 percent to 4 percent. The target asset allocation to private equity also is at 4 percent.

Moving more of the public fund into riskier placements is coupled with more secrecy as the board also approved regulations to keep more of the fund's activities confidential. Earlier this year, the state legislature passed House Bill 215, which removed a list of allowable fund investments and authorized less public disclosure of fund activities.

In addition to providing a source of revenues for the state's annual budget in times of fiscal uncertainty, most of the income earned on the Alaska Permanent Fund is used to provide annual checks of approximately $1,000 to each Alaska resident.

More information is available at: http://www.apfc.org/

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Progress Disappointing Despite Thoughtful Initiatives in Indiana, Report Says
While Indiana has demonstrated strong competitiveness in industry and university R&D and performed well in entrepreneurial programs, the state lags most of its regional competitors and many of the 50 states in terms of production of new innovation workers and educational attainment, says a new report from Techpoint and the Indiana Chamber of Commerce.

The report, Indiana Technology Profile, benchmarks the state's progress against five peer states and all 50 states using 23 metrics in four broad categories, which include education and workforce, dynamism, digital infrastructure, and research and creativity. Results indicate that despite good effort and thoughtful initiatives, Indiana's progress has been disappointing, and there are clear challenges ahead, the report states.

For nine metrics, Indiana improved in rank from 2001 to 2005. However, for the remaining 14, it slipped relative to other U.S. states or did not move at all, according to the report. The lack of educational attainment is particularly disconcerting, the report says, given the strong presence of higher education institutions throughout the state, the report says. In 2005, Indiana ranked 44th in bachelor degree attainment, compared to its peer state Minnesota, which ranked 11th and Illinois, which ranked 13th. In physical S&E degrees, Indiana ranked 36, compared to Michigan, which ranked 9 and Illinois, which ranked 29.

Indiana also has not performed well in its high-tech share of the advanced manufacturing sector, which is a critical pillar of Indiana's high-tech economic development, according to the report. Even though its share of this sector has increased by 5 percent over the past five years, its competitive position among the 50 states has not changed. The national average growth in the high-tech share of manufacturing has been 15 percent, the report states.

In terms of entrepreneurial programs, however, Indiana is positioned in the top half of all states at 18. Its peer states' average rank is 24. In addition, Indiana has obtained a good competitive position with regard to private industry R&D and business activity related to university-led research. The authors stress that the state's competitive advantage lies in high-tech manufacturing, innovative activities at universities, and entrepreneurial programs and R&D activities by industry.

Of particular interest, the authors say, is the performance of states such as Idaho, South Dakota and Utah. The authors found these states providing examples that could guide Indiana leaders and decision makers. The report offers five "break away" strategies along with big move initiatives to be considered by policymakers as the state seeks to improve its competitiveness and overall economic performance.

How the state's revamped economic development efforts perform based on the report's findings remains to be seen. Wrapping up his first year in office, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels has made economic development a priority for his administration, specifically setting the objective for higher personal income throughout the state. In early 2005, Gov. Daniels signed into law a comprehensive overhaul of the state's economic development office that replaced the Department of Commerce with the new Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC). Modeled much after the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, IEDC is a public-private partnership governed by a 12-member board and chaired by the governor.

Earlier this year, the General Assembly passed all of the governor's proposals to reinvigorate the state's economy, which include opening the EDGE tax credit to businesses of all sizes, increasing the R&D tax credit and updating the tax code, and assisting local communities to prepare and market properties prior to sale to create more rapid job creation.

Indiana Technology Profile was presented at the Indiana Technology Summit 8, and is available at: http://www2.indystar.com/images/graphics/2005/11/1101_techreport.pdf

Links to this paper and more than 3,000 additional TBED-related research reports, strategic plans and other papers can be found at the Tech-based Economic Development (TBED) Resource Center, jointly developed by the Technology Administration and SSTI, at http://www.tbedresourcecenter.org/.

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Congress Approves FY06 Appropriations for TBED Programs
Last week, Congress passed HR 2862, the fiscal year 2006 appropriations bill for State, Science, Justice, and Commerce. SSTI covered the federal budget request in the Feb. 14 issue of the Digest. Overall, Congress proved more financially supportive of the programs and agencies most utilized by state and regional tech-based programs than the Administration's FY06 request. Following are highlights from the selected bill, which now goes to the president for his anticipated signature. Changes from FY05 appropriations are noted in parentheses.

Department of Commerce
The Economic Development Administration - $284 million (no change) to provide grants for economic development assistance.

Within the Technology Administration, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) received $761.8 million (a $62.6 million increase over the FY05 appropriations, according to the American Institute of Physics Bulletin). The Office of Technology Policy received $6 million.

The Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) received $30 million ($1.9 million increase) under the appropriation, or $700,000 less than the Administration's request.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) received $3.9 billion, $3 million over the Administration's request. Key components for the research community include:

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office received $1.7 billion, an increase of $149 million over FY05.

NASA
The FY06 appropriation is $16.46 billion, which compares favorably to the Administration's request of $16.47 billion. According to the American Institute of Physics Bulletin, the FY05 budget was $16.07 billion. With the president's signature, Exploration Capabilities receives $6.7 billion ($1.8 million decrease) and Science, Aeronautics and Exploration receives $9.8 billion ($2.1 million increase).

National Science Foundation
NSF received $5.65 billion, which is $181 million over FY 05 and $49 million over the Administration's request, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education. Components include:

In addition, Math and Science Partnerships received $64 million ($15.4 million decrease), $4 million over the Administration's request.

Small Business Administration
Funding for core programs within the agency include:

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Useful Stats
2004 AUTM Results, By State
The Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) has released the 92-page summary report for its 14th annual survey of university licensing, revealing steady growth in the field. AUTM U.S. Licensing Survey: FY 2004 provides quantitative information about licensing activities at universities, hospitals and research institutions across North America.

With a 25 percent increase above 2003 figures in the number of starts-ups formed as a result of academic research, the 2004 survey reverses declines posted in each of the two previous surveys. Also, at least 635 new products were introduced to the market during the year, the survey found.

SSTI has prepared a summary table by state and province of selected data from the 2004 survey, including: total research expenditures, number of licenses executed, research funding relating to licenses, total licensing income, number of licenses yielding income, invention disclosures received, patent applications filed, U.S. patents issued and number of licensed technology that became available in 2004. Users should note because 12 survey respondents requested AUTM treat their responses anonymously, the figures for these institutions are not included in the data available to SSTI to create the summary table: http://www.ssti.org/Digest/Tables/112105t.htm

For the first time, the 2004 survey asked respondents to provide details about the types of invention disclosures and patent application filed as well as initial funding for new start-up companies. This final topic should be of interest to policymakers because it provides some of the best data yet about funding in the very earliest, highest-risk stages of bringing innovation to the public.

Another first is that AUTM will publish separate summary reports for the U.S. and Canada, completing the process of increased focus on Canada that started two years ago. The U.S. Licensing Survey Summary covers technology transfer activities at 198 institutions; the Canadian Licensing Survey Summary, scheduled for release in the first quarter of 2006, shares data from 34 institutions.

Highlights of the FY 2004 U.S. Licensing Survey Summary include:

AUTM members can download a PDF of the FY 2004 U.S. Licensing Survey Summary through the AUTM Web site, and can purchase printed copies at discounted price. Nonmembers also can purchase printed copies of the summary. Details are at www.autm.net.

More information about the FY 2004 Canadian Survey Summary will be available in the coming months. The FY 2004 Full Report, which includes all raw data collected through the Licensing Survey and additional charts and tables, also will be available in 2006.

For questions about survey figures, contact Ashley Stevens, AUTM survey editor at  (617) 353-4550 or astevens@bu.edu.

Contact AUTM headquarters for information about pricing and availability of the U.S. Survey Summary, Canadian Survey Summary and Full Report.

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People

Robert Cresanti was nominated by President Bush to become the next undersecretary of Commerce for Technology.

Jim Denn was named deputy executive director of the New York State Office of Science, Technology and Academic Research (NYSTAR).

Peter Gold was appointed associate provost for economic initiatives at Rutgers-Camden.

Eric Griego was appointed assistant secretary of economic development for the New Mexico Economic Development Department.

Hunt Lambert was selected as the new associate vice president for economic development in the Colorado State University system.

Jim Pennekamp will be the executive director of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville's research and business park, effective Dec. 1.

John Reardon will be new Charles County Economic Development Department chief in Maryland, effective in December.

Steven Weathers is the new president and CEO of the Regional Growth Partnership in Toledo, Ohio.

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