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