SSTI Digest

U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Chair of the Senate Commerce Committee and key architect of the CHIPS and Science Law, secured up to $500 million in federal investments to preserve and expand the Regional Tech Hubs (Tech Hubs) program. Sen. Cantwell secured the funding as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which is set to pass before the end of the year. SSTI helped lead a coalition that advocated for the provision and additional funding for Tech Hubs. As explained in a press release from Senator Cantwell, while Congress authorized $12.9 billion for the Tech Hubs over five years under the law, only 10% of authorized funding for the first two years has been appropriated. Funding for the Tech Hubs will be generated from spectrum auction proceeds. The spectrum provisions secured in the package will allow the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to conduct a one-time auction for the AWS-3 spectrum band to help meet the surging spectrum demands of wireless consumers. The timing of the auction is undetermined and the actual amount of funding available for Tech Hub support will depend on the outcome of the auction. Still also…

FYI This Week, a science policy newsletter from the American Institute of Physics, reported in their November 25 article Commerce aims to commit CHIPS money before Trump returns that “Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said … she is trying to allocate all the semiconductor manufacturing and research funds appropriated by the CHIPS and Science Act before President Joe Biden leaves office." Since Raimondo made that statement, the U.S. Department of Commerce (DoC) has announced the following CHIPS and Science Act Awards: Up to $35.5 million awarded to BAE Systems Electronic Systems, a BAE Systems Inc business unit. The award is intended to support the modernization of the company’s Microelectronics Center in Nashua, New Hampshire. Up to $23.9 million awarded to Rocket Lab, the parent company of space power provider SolAero Technologies Corp. The award is intended to help the company create a “robust and resilient” supply of space-grade solar cells that power spacecraft and satellites. The company’s facility is in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The investment is expected to create over 100 direct jobs. Up to $75 million in direct funding awarded to Absolics, an affiliate of the…

The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) recently awarded  $14.5 million in Appalachian Regional Initiative for Stronger Economies (ARISE) grants for five projects. ARISE is ARC’s multi-state initiative that aims to drive large-scale, regional economic transformation through collaborative projects. These awards included $3,980,996 awarded to Morehead State University to build the aerospace workforce in Kentucky and West Virginia. The university will use ARISE funding to expand its SpaceTrek initiative, which addresses the region’s aerospace workforce deficits. Academic institutions will collaborate with industry partners to implement the SpaceTrek summer program and SpacePrep explorations workshops. These programs will introduce pre-college students to higher education opportunities and careers in aerospace and provide an immersive experience in aerospace subdisciplines, including electronics, telecommunications, and data analysis. ARC awarded $2,870,702 to Thrive Regional Partnership to expand three collaborative capacity-building programs in Alabama, Georgia, and Tennessee. The partnership will use ARISE funds to expand three…

The U.S. Department of the Treasury (Treasury) announced at the Native CDFI Network’s Annual Policy and Capacity Building Summit $8.6 million in additional support for tribal nations through the State Small Business and Credit Initiative (SSBCI) 2.0 program, published in a readout. Building on the over half-billion in previously approved Capital Program allocations, Treasury announced an additional $7.4 million in Capital Program allocations to 11 tribal governments. The lion’s share, up to $3.2 billion, has been allocated to the Penobscot consortium representing five tribal governments. These allocations  bring the total to over $530 million in allocations corresponding to 246 tribal governments. A full list of Tribal Capital Program approvals as of December 2024 can be found here. On the Technical Assistance (TA) Program side of SSBCI 2.0, an additional $1.2 million has been approved for a total of $5.3 million in TA Grant Program awards to 20 tribal governments. A full list of Tribal TA Grant Program approvals as of December 2024 can be found here. Outside of Capital and TA Grant Program approvals, Treasury released a policy brief titled “…

Personal income[1] has increased from $1.25 trillion in 1974 to $23.38 trillion in 2023 nationwide, a nearly nineteen-fold increase over the past 50 years. Meanwhile, per capita personal income (PCPI), a metric of personal income standardized by population, has only seen a twelvefold increase from $5,836 to $69,810 over the same period. SSTI reveals these numbers from its analysis of new U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) data. SSTI also found that, since 1974, both the average and median annual percentage change in personal income are 6%, with just one drop (-3%) in the last half-century at the onset of the Great Recession from 2008 to 2009. PCPI follows a similar trend at a 5% average and median percentage change with just one drop (-4%) during the same years. But how have these changes been distributed regionally? High-level metrics like personal income are typically driven through highly variable changes across geographies, with some regions’ rapid growths and other’s declines. This edition of Useful Stats will explore both personal income and PCPI at the county level across the past 50 years to determine regionality and how it has driven the massive…

If you haven’t already done so, now is the time to register for SSTI’s Annual Conference. The registration deadline is December 3—that’s less than two weeks away! Register now to ensure your spot as practitioners and policymakers from around the country come together to learn from each other the best way to advance their innovation economy. The agenda contains four plenary sessions with national thought leaders and more than 20 breakout sessions to help plan for 2025 and beyond. Sessions include:

On Nov. 14, the Massachusetts’ House and Senate approved a compromise $4 billion economic development measure after months of negotiations that followed the end of their formal legislative session this past summer and the spring release of Gov. Maura Healey’s $3.5 billion proposal, An Act relative to strengthening Massachusetts’ economic leadership, or the Mass Leads Act.  The Mass Leads Act sought to reauthorize the state’s life sciences investments at $1 billion for the next decade, launch a separate $1 billion, 10-year climatetech initiative, and build on the momentum of the state's CHIPS + Science wins by proposing targeted investments in advanced manufacturing and robotics. It also included $100 million to create an Applied AI Hub in Massachusetts. The authorized investments in H.5100: An Act relative to strengthening Massachusetts’ economic leadership will encourage new and proven industries within Massachusetts, support workforce development and talent retention, and modernize economic growth strategies. The Act also provides for wide-ranging policy changes to make the state more competitive and authorizes $3.96 billion in capital bonds for the state’s…

CHIPS for America recently announced $285 million to establish the Semiconductor Manufacturing and Advanced Research with Twins (SMART) USA Institute, which will focus on semiconductor manufacturing and advanced packaging. SMART USA is a consortium spanning more than 30 states and comprising more than 150 expected partners in industry, academia, national labs, and the full spectrum of supply chain design and manufacturing, according to a press release from Purdue University. The consortium is led by Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC), located in Durham, North Carolina. A press release from the U.S. Department of Commerce (DoC) noted that Commerce and the Semiconductor Research Corporation Manufacturing Consortium Corporation (SRC) “are entering negotiations for the department to provide SRC $285 million to establish and operate a Manufacturing USA institute headquartered in Durham, North Carolina. With combined funding totaling $1 billion, this investment will support the launch of the first-of-its-kind CHIPS Manufacturing USA Institute.” Purdue is the lead academic institution of the SRC-led consortium. DoC awarded TSMC Arizona Corporation (TSMC…

SSTI extends a huge “thank you” to all of the organizations partnering with us to make SSTI’s 2024 Annual Conference a success! Please take a moment now to learn more about our partners here and then be sure to visit them in person this December.   The Arizona Commerce Authority is our host partner. ACA) is the state’s leading economic development organization with a streamlined mission to grow and strengthen Arizona’s economy.   The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF) has been recognized repeatedly as the world’s leading think tank for science and technology policy.   TEConomy Partners is a global leader in research, analysis and strategy for innovation-driven economic development.   EcoMap Technologies’ leading ecosystem intelligence AI software transforms the way hyperlocal information is accessed.   The UK Science & Innovation Network (SIN) is the science diplomacy team for the United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office and the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology.…

The Association of University Research Parks (AURP) recognized Dan Berglund, SSTI president, with a Career Achievement Award at its International Conference earlier this month. In a press release, AURP said, "Through the course of his SSTI career, Dan’s leadership has made a significant contribution to the advancement and recognition of the innovation ecosystem, including the Innovation Advocacy Council.” In addition to the Career Achievement award, AURP presented the Outstanding Innovation District Award to Tech Port San Antonio, an innovation and technology campus and dynamic hub for aerospace, manufacturing, cybersecurity and robotics, the Innovation Award to BlueHalo's LOCUST Laser Weapon System, a laser weapon for short range air defense, the first confirmed operational deployment of a Directed Energy laser weapon by the U.S. military, the Innovation Award to Dreamscape Learn, an education company that uses VR technology that promotes STEM and other learning, and the Leadership Award to The Walton Family Charitable Support Foundation, which was founded to support specific charities in the state of Arkansas. Congratulations to all the winners.

The United States Department of the Treasury’s (Treasury) new 2022-2023 State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) 2.0 Annual Report highlights the nearly $10 billion program to enhance access to capital for small businesses, particularly those in underserved communities. Data from the participating jurisdiction’s first 18 months—from August 5, 2022 through December 31, 2023—reveals approximately $750 million expended SSBCI dollars, resulting in $3.1 billion in overall new financing, including $2.6 billion in private investments, and 46,200 jobs reported expected to be created or retained (20,600 created and 25,600 retained). These funds have supported nearly 3,900 loans or investments, with 75% of transactions directed toward underserved businesses, including 40% for minority-owned and 31% for women-owned or controlled companies. Of these transactions, the majority were part of lending programs. Loan participation programs had the largest number of total transactions at 1,295, or 33% of the total, in 2022-2023, followed by loan guarantee programs (1,032) and capital access programs (749). Overall, lending programs made up the lion’s share of total transactions, 84…

SSTI will continue the conversation about the SSBCI program at the Annual Conference. SSBCI director, Jeff Stout, will provide an update on the program in The latest on Treasury’s $10 billion investment in small businesses. The session will provide insights into Treasury's current thinking and to better understand how SSBCI might be better leveraged as a regional resource. SSBCI outreach team member Karl Fooks will moderate the session, How regions are adapting to trends in equity investment. This session will highlight how other states have been adapting to swings in private venture capital markets from all-time highs to mediocre activity, which, for many states, occurred just as they were rolling out their approaches to the SSBCI program. We’ll also discuss the implications of this volatility for designing future capital access initiatives.  Finally, SSBCI representatives will present as part of the Federal Funding Forum.