In the June 27, 2007 Issue:

Copyright State Science & Technology Institute 2007. 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.

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DOE Awards $375M for Three BioFuel Research Centers
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced this week it will invest up to $375 million over five years in three new Bioenergy Research Centers to be located in Oak Ridge, Tenn., and Madison, Wisc., and near Berkeley, Calif. The winning sites were selected through a competitive, peer-review process that began last year and included more than a dozen applicants from across the country.
 
Using multidisciplinary teams from several institutions, the centers' research will emphasize understanding how to reengineer biological processes to develop new, more efficient methods for converting the cellulose in plant material into ethanol or other biofuels that serve as a substitute for gasoline. DOE believes this research is critical because future biofuels production will require the use of feedstocks more diverse than corn, including cellulosic material such as agricultural residues, grasses, poplar trees, inedible plants, and nonedible portions of crops.

The centers will bring together diverse teams of researchers from 18 of the nation's leading universities, seven DOE national laboratories, at least one nonprofit organization, and a range of private companies. All three centers are located in geographically distinct areas and will use different plants both for laboratory research and for improving feedstock crops.

The three Bioenergy Research Centers involve the following partners:

The mission of the Bioenergy Research Centers will lie between basic and applied science, focusing on bioenergy applications. The centers aim to identify practical solutions to producing renewable, carbon-neutral energy. At the same time, the centers will be grounded in basic research, pursuing alternative avenues and a range of high-risk, high-return approaches to finding solutions. To some degree, one key to the centers' success will be their ability to develop the more basic dimensions of their research to a point that can easily transition to applied research.

Subject to the finalization of contract terms and congressional appropriations, the centers are expected to begin work in 2008 and be fully operational by 2009.

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DOL Releases List of WIRED III Recipients
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) recently named 13 more regions to receive grants through the third round of the Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) program. As with the previous round of awards (see the Jan. 22, 2007 issue of the Digest), the recipients will each receive $5 million over the course of three years to integrate workforce training initiatives into a regional technology-based economic development strategy. The winners include:

This $65 million round of grants is intended to act a seed funding to attract additional financial support from other public and private sources.
 
A map of all 39 WIRED grant regions and descriptions of their ongoing projects are available at: http://www.doleta.gov/wired/regions/

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Legislative Updates: Arizona, New Jersey Reach Budget Agreements
With less than two weeks to go before the new fiscal year, Arizona and New Jersey lawmakers approved funding for cutting-edge research at the close of their 2007 legislative sessions last week. Following is a synopsis of the TBED initiatives slated to receive funding under the respective budget agreements.
 
Arizona
Following several months of debate, Arizona lawmakers reached a budget agreement last week that is on target with many of Gov. Janet Napolitano’s priorities, including investments in innovation and education (see the Jan. 22, 2007 issue of the Digest).
 
The fiscal year 2008 budget, signed earlier this week by Gov. Napolitano, includes $25 million per year over the next four years for the 21st Century Fund "to promote bioscience programs and research." The fund was created by the legislature in 2006 as a public-private partnership to invest in medical, scientific and engineering research programs (see the June 26, 2006 issue of the Digest).
 
The Arizona Department of Commerce budget includes $1.8 million to foster business initiatives that include growth in high-tech sectors, foreign direct investment in Arizona, and strategic R&D.
 
The budget also includes increased funding for higher education and K-12 to support Gov. Napolitano’s One Arizona Education Initiative. General fund spending for universities would increase by 11.9 percent over last year, which includes $25 million for biomedicine initiatives. This funding is slated to:

The universities’ general fund budget also includes $2.3 million for a teacher loan initiative to increase the number of math and science teachers in the state.
 
Direct assistance to K-12 schools will increase by 8.3 percent under the budget agreement. This appropriation includes $46 million for additional teacher salary increases, $4.7 million for math and science education, and $2 million for Master Teachers, to cultivate and retain a talented workforce.
 
Other general fund appropriations include $1 million per year over the next five years to the Arizona Biomedical Research Commission for the regenerative tissue repository, a non-embryonic stem cell bank.
 
The FY 2008 proposed budget agreement is available at: http://www.azleg.gov/jlbc/budgetagree061807.pdf
 
New Jersey
The New Jersey Legislature also approved the state’s FY 2008 budget last week, which includes major investments in science, technology and cancer research.
 
The New Jersey Commission on Science and Technology will receive $22.6 million, $21.3 million of which is for science and technology grants. In addition, $630,000 is set aside for the business incubator network, and the New Jersey Manufacturing Extension Program will receive $600,000.
 
Also included in the state Department of Treasury budget is $5.5 million for the New Jersey Stem Cell Research Institute and $1.2 million in grants for a statewide systematic initiative to reform mathematics and science education.
 
The state Department of Health and Senior Services budget includes $25.2 million for the Cancer Institute of New Jersey, $32 million for cancer research, and $1 million to the New Jersey State Commission on Cancer Research.
 
The appropriations bill is available at: http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/bills/BillView.asp

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Texas Governor Vetoes $570M in Spending from Proposed Budget; Slashes University Funding
Last week, Texas Gov. Rick Perry signed off on the state’s budget, but not before making substantial use of his line-item veto. Overall, the approved $151 billion FY 2008-2009 budget increases general revenue spending by $7.7 billion (11.8 percent) over the current biennium. Much of that new spending will support education in the state; however, a number of programs, particularly those connected to higher education, failed to receive the governor’s approval.
 
In all, Gov. Perry vetoed nearly $200 million in higher education spending. The largest of the cuts resulted from the governor’s decision to end group health insurance for faculty at the state’s community colleges. The veto is the result of a long-standing argument over whether or not the state should bear the financial responsibility for these benefits, according to a recent Austin-American Statesman article. The governor charged that many community colleges had inappropriately inflated their budget requests to receive funding for costs that should be covered by local taxes and tuition.
 
Gov. Perry characterized about $36 million in additional cuts as necessary to trim funding for “pet pork projects” at the state’s institutions of higher education. These cuts include a total of $12 million intended for life science and medical research at the University of Texas at San Antonio, the UT Health Science Centers at Houston and San Antonio, and the UT Medical Branch at Galveston. The funding would have supported research into diabetes, obesity and public health. The governor said the cuts were necessary to prevent overlap of research programs at the state's various universities and that a long-range plan for statewide university research was needed before larger investments could take place.
 
The governor also eliminated funding for a proposed pilot program to track and improve student performance from high school through college and into the labor market. In his proclamation, Gov. Perry argued that the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board should be able to cover the cost of the program within its existing budget.
 
This year’s legislative session, however, was not entirely disappointing for the higher education community. Earlier this month, Perry signed off on a bill to authorize funding for a $300 million Cancer Prevention and Research Institute and additional cancer research around the state. That measure, which is dependent on a constitutional amendment, will be put to Texas voters in November. The referendum would authorize a total of $3 billion in general obligation bonds for cancer research to be issued in grants between 2010 and 2020.

Perry also fulfilled a pledge made in his February State of the State address to create a new pilot program to increase the number of engineering and computer sciences graduates in the state (see the Feb. 19, 2007 issue of the Digest). The TEXAS Technology Grant program will provide grants to engineering and computer science students, particularly those from underrepresented demographics and those that demonstrate financial need. The budget increases the biennial allocation for the existing TEXAS Grants program by $96.2 million to fund these new awards.
 
Gov. Perry’s announcement on the budget is available at: http://www.governor.state.tx.us/divisions/press/pressreleases/PressRelease.2007-06-15.5254

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South Carolina Governor, Legislature Spar Over State’s Investment
Capturing an overwhelming majority of the votes needed to override Gov. Mark Sanford’s veto, the South Carolina Legislature prevailed last week in its efforts to position the state as a leader in hydrogen technology.
 
The Hydrogen Infrastructure Development Act, S. 243, authorizes the state to offer up to $15 million over the next four years in grants for research related to hydrogen production, storage, distribution and dispensing infrastructure. The bill also offers $300 tax rebates for in-state purchases of flex- and hydrogen-fuel vehicles and up to $500 for conversion equipment purchases. The veto was overridden with a 40-2 vote in the Senate and a 99-1 vote in the House.
                       
In his veto message to the legislature, Gov. Sanford expresses concern regarding an overemphasis on hydrogen technology at the expense of excluding other types of research. The governor provides several examples of the state's previous and ongoing support in hydrogen research, including a commitment of $3.6 million in recurring state funds for hydrogen-related projects in this year’s budget and $1 million for fuel cell research at the University of South Carolina.
 
Gov. Sanford maintains it is not the role of the government to lead the private sector or pick the “winning” industry of tomorrow. In addition, he explains that his administration has significant reservations about this level of public investment without more quantifiable returns to taxpayers.
 
The governor’s skepticism on hydrogen research was not the only reason the bill met his veto pen. According to the veto message, several items unrelated to hydrogen research were attached to the bill, including a sales tax exemption for amusement parks and an economic impact zone credit – both of which are found in S. 91, also vetoed by Gov. Sanford and consequently overridden by the legislature.
 
S. 91, the Research and Development Tax Credit Reform Act, creates an Economic Impact Zone tax Credit to companies that employ 5,000 or more full-time workers and have a total capital investment of at least $2 billion. According to the governor, the legislation does not target actual job creation but, instead, requires companies to invest money and employ workers.
 
The bill also includes tax credits for retail facilities, small businesses and installation of solar energy heating or cooling systems. Gov. Sanford referred to the bill as another example of a fragmented approach to economic development that does not serve the taxpayer well or fit with the coordination essential to competing effectively in today’s economy. The veto was overridden with a 42-0 vote in the Senate and 102-0 vote in the House.
 
The legislature also approved the fiscal year 2007-08 budget last week, excluding the governor’s $2 million proposal for a Rural Broadband Fund (see the Jan. 8, 2007 issue of the Digest). However, lawmakers did adopt a resolution to set up a 17-member Broadband Technology and Communications Study Committee to evaluate the state’s broadband communications infrastructure and assess the ability of the need for broadband services in rural areas.

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NAS Provides Suggestions to Improve Business Stats
The national economy is a dynamic system, and the techniques to measure the system must be updated in order to understand its complexity, according to a recent report published by the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). In Understanding Business Dynamics: An Integrated Data System for America’s Future, NAS outlines steps that could be taken to properly capture pertinent information about firms, especially the young and small ones that are driving the emerging sectors of the economy. While the report primarily concentrates on the operations of federal agencies and the recording of statistics that are national in scope, it raises an alternative question:

Are the states properly measuring small business dynamics?
 
The report’s recommendations are divided into three categories, which may be applicable to states wishing to improve their data collection systems:

Because the current system of data collection focuses on larger companies and traditional sectors, the report contends it is more difficult to monitor the parts of the economy that are rapidly changing. Agencies such as the Census Bureau and the Bureau for Labor Statistics (BLS) are advised to increase sampling of younger companies in future survey work. In addition, as economic data are released to the public, they should be presented in a manner that incorporates the age of the companies.
 
Many of the measurement objectives outlined in the report can be accomplished by coordinating currently available data instead of creating new and costly mechanisms, the report states. The authors recommend establishing a longitudinal data infrastructure that would link individual households and businesses across various surveys and data collection methods. Instead of expanding the reach of individual agencies, some agencies could coordinate efforts to administer periodic joint surveys to test certain variables and correct errors in their survey methods.
 
The report indicates there are four business registers in the U.S. that provide wide-scale coverage of businesses: one organized by Dun & Bradstreet and three administered by the IRS, the BLS, and the Census Bureau. The BLS and Census Bureau lists are inconsistent when compared to each other, however, possibly leading to errors in the calculation of measures such as the gross domestic product and productivity. Such errors may, in turn, alter policies dependent on this data. The Census Bureau is limited by the amount of information it can share with the BLS because its data contains federal tax information. The panel behind the report recommends expanding federal legislation to allow tax information to be extended to entities such as BLS and the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

The report was supported by a contract between NAS and the Kauffman Foundation. Chapter Five contains more specific information on recommendations. The report is available in full for purchase or can be read, page by page, for free through NAS. The executive summary also is available for download and can be accessed with the full report at: http://books.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=11844

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Useful Stats
Science and Engineering Graduate Students by State, 2001-2005
Every year, the National Science Foundation releases Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in S&E, a report filled with detailed statistics about the characteristics of science and engineering graduates enrolled at U.S. institutions. Using the annual report, SSTI has prepared a table showing the total number of graduate students for each year from 2001 to 2005 in each state, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Additionally, each state is ranked by the percent change in science and engineering graduate enrollment from 2001 to 2005.

For the U.S. as a whole, the country’s science and engineering graduate population increased by 11.5 percent over the five years. Among states, Minnesota experienced the largest increase at 61.8 percent, rising from 6,602 students in 2001 to 10,685 in 2005. North Dakota, Alaska, Idaho and Hawaii rounded out the states with the largest percent increase, all over 30 percent.

Of the states with a total S&E graduate student population over 10,000 in 2001, Ohio, Florida, California and North Carolina experienced increases over 15 percent. The average growth rate among the entities was 13.6 percent. Louisiana experienced the largest drop of S&E graduate enrollment during the five-year period, shrinking by 16.2 percent. Illinois, Michigan, and South Dakota were the only other states to witness a decrease in enrollment from 2001 to 2005.

To see how each state ranks, visit SSTI's table at: http://www.ssti.org/Digest/Tables/062707t.htm

Reports dating back to 1994 from the Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in S&E series are available at: http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/gradpostdoc/

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Under Armour Chairman & CEO to Speak at SSTI's 11th Annual Conference
SSTI is pleased to announce that Mr. Kevin Plank, chairman and chief executive officer of Under Armour Inc., will be a keynote speaker at SSTI's 11th Annual Conference on Oct. 18-19 in Baltimore.

As a former special teams captain for the University of Maryland, Kevin Plank began to foster the idea that is now Under Armour in 1995 during his time on the football field. Tired of repeatedly changing the cotton T-shirt under his jersey as it became wet and heavy during the course of a game, he set out to develop a next-generation shirt that would remain drier and lighter and consistently perform under the most extreme conditions. 

After earning his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from the University of Maryland, Mr. Plank has taken Under Armour from a small operation in his grandmother's basement to a company employing more than 1,000 people in just one decade. 

Mr. Plank oversaw the company's November 2005 IPO, the first to double on opening day in five years, and the December 2006 move from the NASDAQ to the New York Stock Exchange. In addition, the "PROTECT THIS HOUSE™" and "CLICK-CLACK™" advertising campaigns set industry standards, proving Under Armour's Brand has true staying power. Capitalizing on the impact of the powerful business ventures that have captured the eyes, ears, and hearts of consumers worldwide, Plank has led Under Armour's evolution from a niche company into a global industry leader.

While at the helm of Under Armour, Mr. Plank has been awarded a wide variety of accolades that demonstrate his growing influence within the industry. Plank has earned a spot in Sports Business Journal's "40 under 40" Hall of Fame, having been counted among a distinguished group of leaders in the sporting goods industry for the past three years, and was honored in 2006 with the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year national award in the Retail and Consumer Products Category.

Mr. Plank will deliver a keynote address during breakfast on Oct. 18, the first day of SSTI's 11th Annual Conference. More information on the conference is available at http://www.ssti.org/conference07.htm. Register before Sept. 25 to receive $100 off normal registration fees!

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People

The following were named recipients of the 2005 National Medal of Technology:

Gary Carter is stepping down as the executive director of the Tax Increment Financing Commission in Kansas City to become a senior vice president of Davenport One, a regional economic development agency in Davenport, Iowa.

Augustine Cheng was appointed managing director of Arizona Technology Enterprises.

Steve Gage announced he will retire as president of MAGNET, the Manufacturing Advocacy and Growth Network, effective July 13. Fatima Weathers will serve as acting president for the manufacturing advocate in Northeast Ohio, beginning July 16.

Craig Heim was named licensing manager for start-up companies at the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation.

Victor Hwang, the immediate past president of Larta Institute, has co-founded T2 Venture Capital.

Nick Sacia is the new executive director of the St. Johns County Chamber of Commerce in St. Augustine, Fla.

Paul Tonko was elected as president and CEO of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. Tonko replaces Peter Smith, whose resignation is effective at the end of June.

Randy Weiss will serve as an entrepreneur-in-residence within the University of Iowa Research Foundation.

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