SSTI Digest

The National Science Foundation tells of a record number of doctorates awarded at the same time the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) reports opportunities to secure tenure-track positions continue to shrink, the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association points out state support for higher education remains below Great Recession levels, and AAAS says many federal agency research budgets are only now approaching pre-sequestration levels of 2012.

Alberta’s provincial government has announced a significant shift in its approach to economic development, moving from a program it had created just last fall to provide $5,000 for each new job created to a broader range of initiatives supporting business incubators, investor tax credits, and industrial diversification. In explaining the change in direction, the Economic Development and Trade Minister said, “Quite frankly, businesses and industry provided us feedback to say, ‘You know what, that isn’t quite going to give you the outcomes that you’re looking for,’ ” according to press reports.   

Maryland legislators recently approved a $42.3 billion fiscal year 2017 spending bill that incorporates many of the funding levels included in Gov. Larry Hogan’s proposal. Gov. Hogan made education a main focus of his proposal, and the final bill would hold university tuition increases to no more than 2 percent. In addition, legislators formalized the growing strategic partnership between University of Maryland campuses in Baltimore and College Park. The unification is intended to bolster the state’s research profile, and drive high-tech industries in the Baltimore region.

Funding for the Maryland Technology Development Corporation (TEDCO) total $26.8 million, up from $18.9 million in FY 2016.

In nearly every state, employers use non-compete agreements with the justification that these contracts can help protect trade secrets and reduce the probability of worker exits. At the same time, however, non-competes may impose a large cost on workers, whose bargaining power and future employment opportunities are reduced by the contract. New research from the Office of Economic Policy at the U.S. Department of Treasury evaluates the impacts of non-compete agreements and suggests that reform is needed in order to craft policies that best benefit firms, workers, and society as a whole.

On April 25, the Economic Development Administration (EDA) will begin accepting applications for the 2016 round of the Regional Innovation Strategies (RIS) program. A total of $15 million in federal funding will be available through the program’s i6 Challenge and Seed Fund Support Grant competition. EDA will hold a series of webinars next week leading up to the release of the Federal Funding Opportunity on April 25, 2016. Webinar times are available on EDA’s RIS page. SSTI will host a post-launch webinar with EDA on May 5, 2016 at 2:00 P.M. EDT. Register today…

Last week, JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPMC) announced the launch of PRO Neighborhoods, a $125 million, five-year initiative to promote economic opportunity in disadvantaged neighborhoods around the country. PRO Neighborhoods will invest in local collaborative partnerships and financial solutions, focusing on community lending, housing capital and high-quality data. Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) partnerships and collaborative efforts to provide capital to small businesses in distressed neighborhoods may be eligible for support. Learn more…

Massachusetts legislators are debating the future of Gov. Charlie Baker’s $918 million economic development proposal, including investments in local infrastructure, emerging technologies, community-based innovation, brownfields cleanup, Gateway Cities development and workforce development. The proposal would implement several of the action items from Baker’s economic strategic plan, issued last November, over the next five years. About half of the funds would support local infrastructure projects, but other investments would bolster the Massachusetts’ Manufacturing Innovation Institutes, university tech commercialization and innovative co-working spaces.

The Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) released a notice of intent to establish a Modular Chemical Process Intensification Institute for Clean Energy Manufacturing –the fourth National Manufacturing Innovation Institute sponsored by the Department of Energy. EERE will commit up to $70 million to spur innovation related to clean energy technologies that reduce energy and greenhouse gas emissions in energy-intensive and energy-related manufacturing.  EERE plans to issue the federal funding announcement in May. At that time, EERE will outline the final eligibility requirements, potential funding commitment, and other key details. 

SSTI is excited to announce the 2016 SSTI Excellence in TBED awards program. For the last nine years, SSTI has recognized initiatives that greatly impact state and regional economies a national competition showcasing effective and innovative approaches to building tech-based economies. To mark the program’s 10th anniversary, we will be announcing several changes to the program the next couple weeks – so stay tuned!

In this week’s Digest, we wanted to highlight several of the key dates for the 2016 competition:

• 2016 Awards Categories Announced – April 21.
• Awards Brochure Released – May 4.
• Submissions Window Opens – May 9.
• Submissions Due – July 8, 2016!
• Winners Announced at SSTI’s 20th Annual Conference  – November 1-3.

Help us improve the awards program by completing a brief survey. It includes a sneak peak of the potential categories for 2016!

The U.S. venture capital (VC) industry continued a gradual deflation in activity in Q1 2016, even as capital invested remained at a historically robust level according to Pitchbook’s 1Q 2016 U.S. Venture Industry Report. In Q1 2016, the VC industry also continued the trend of massive late-stage VC rounds with $9.4 billion of $17.7 billion invested in late-stage financing. While VC activities declined in Q1, angel and seed capital deals continued to plateau for another quarter. In its recently released 2015 Annual VC Valuations & Trends Report, Pitchbook researchers projected that the VC industry has peaked and VC activity will slowly return to 2013 levels and its 2016 Q1 report may confirm that assertion over the next couple years.

To drive state competitiveness and job creation, Indiana and Mississippi announced new efforts to engage regional institutions of higher education and other organizations to provide workers with the skills that match the needs of existing industry as well as attract new business and industry to their state. Through the Indiana Department of Workforce Development (DWD), the state will commit $22 million to fund industry-led regional partnerships aimed at aligning education and workforce needs. Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant announced the creation of a new workforce training fund to allow state leaders to allocate dollars toward workforce training with a focus on recruiting new business to the state. 

Indiana

Over the last two months, the state announced the winners of the first round of Skill UP Indiana! and is now accepting applications for the second round of the program. Via these two rounds of funding, the state will commit up to $22 million to encourage the development of sector-focused training and education programs for in-demand occupations as well as teach necessary workforce skills and competencies as identified by local employers.

Many states across the country already have, or will soon have, signed budgets ready for the 2017 fiscal year.  Over the past few months, SSTI has examined gubernatorial addresses and proposed budgets for a preview of technology-based economic development spending in the coming year. This week, we take a look at what initiatives and spending levels survived spending negotiations in New York, South Dakota, Wyoming.

New York
Gov. Andrew Cuomo and New York legislators reached an agreement on fiscal year 2017 spending late last week. The resulting budget includes a new $15 minimum wage, paid family leave, a $4.2 billion middle class tax cut and $55 billion in transportation infrastructure spending.