Jeff Blodgett, Vice President of Research, at the Connecticut Economic Resource Center, Inc. is retiring.

The University of Virginia has named W. Mark Crowell, vice president for business development at The Scripps Research Institute, to the newly created position of executive director and associate vice president for innovation partnerships and commercialization.

Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley recently announced a new effort to direct $100 million to public and private venture capital investors. The InvestMaryland program would offer insurance companies tax credits to generate the funds, which would either be invested directly in startup companies or in private venture firms. Governor O'Malley's current proposal would provide $50 million to the Maryland Venture Fund and the other $50 million to venture capital firms.

JDG Associates, Executive Search Consultants, has been retained by the suburban Maryland-based National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to recruit two key leaders:

• The Director for Innovation and Industry Services will focus on technology transfer and commercialization along with the fostering of public/private partnerships and joint ventures; and,

Building on the momentum of the InvestMaryland initiative passed last session, Gov. Martin O'Malley unveiled a joint venture between the state, federal research labs and academic institutions to accelerate technology commercialization. Under the Maryland Innovation Initiative, participating universities would pay a fee of $250,000 each year and, when leveraged with state funds and private donations, a pool of money would be used to award grants to startup companies seeking to advance research from Maryland labs.

As many states near the mid-point of their 2012 legislative sessions, we thought it would be a good time to take a look at some of the bills advancing in statehouses that could impact states' efforts to improve economic conditions. Several states are seeking to advance access to capital initiatives as they continue to struggle with declining revenue and tight credit restrictions. The following overview provides a sampling of TBED bills supporting access to capital, R&D enhancements and higher education standards.

Providing Access to Capital

The Abell Foundation and Maryland Technology Development Company (TEDCO) announced the Propel Baltimore Fund — a $3.3 million angel investment fund targeted at startups and entrepreneurs in Baltimore. The fund will invest in technology companies with innovation-focused business plans that are located in Baltimore or are willing to relocate to the city. Initial investments will be between $50,000 and $100,000 (maximum investment of $220,000 per company). Propel investments will require a 50 percent match from outside investors. Read the press release.

A new fund established to capitalize on Maryland's leadership in R&D seeks to move 40 new discoveries and innovations out of the lab and into the marketplace each year through a partnership between the state and five universities. The Innovate Maryland initiative is seeded with $5 million in the FY13 budget with additional funds from the participating universities to provide grants to researchers. The Maryland Technology Development Corporation (TEDCO) will administer the fund.

Oregon lawmakers unanimously approved a bill (HB 3472) that instructs the state's Higher Education Coordinating Commission to design a pilot program to evaluate a new college funding system known as "Pay It Forward." Under the proposed model, students would commit a percentage of their future incomes to repay the state, instead of paying tuition or taking out traditional loans to attend community colleges and universities. The bill currently awaits the signature of Gov. John Kitzhaber.

A number of states recently have taken action to expand R&D tax credits and other legislation that would support innovation, commercialization and manufacturing. Hawaii, California, Maryland, Texas, and Florida have signed into law tax incentives and R&D tax credits and an R&D tax credit in New Hampshire went into effect.  The Maine legislature also passed a capital tax credit that will begin in 2014.

States across the U.S. are directing their attention to science, technology, education and technology (STEM) education, and already have passed a plethora of new initiatives in the current legislative session.  These programs are directed at various levels of education including primary education and higher education, with one program specifically designated for the state’s community colleges. A number of states have created STEM advisory councils under the governors’ offices, following the lead of Iowa and Massachusetts.

A continued trend toward improved fiscal conditions gave rise to targeted and riskier investments in research for several states this legislative session. In particular, lawmakers dedicated funds for life sciences research and for initiatives aimed at commercialization through partnerships with higher education and the private sector. Other states dedicated additional funds to expand promising research and technology-focused initiatives already underway.

Former Oklahoma Treasurer Scott Meacham has been named president and CEO of i2E.

LaunchTN announced Charlie Brock as the organization's new president and chief executive officer and Stuart McWhorter as the organization's new vice-chair.

A new article from Governing magazine is promoting free digital access to public information, or “Open Data,” as a pathway for promoting entrepreneurship and government cost-savings. When governments release free digital public records entrepreneurs can use the information to create apps that provide valuable and profitable services to consumers.

Governors in several states recently unveiled spending proposals for the upcoming fiscal year or biennium. While fiscal conditions in most states remain fragile, new or continuing investments focused on science, technology and innovation were introduced as pro-growth measures to aid in states' recovery efforts. With the exception of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's ambitious economic development plan (see the Jan. 9 issue of the Digest), most of the proposals were on the modest side.

The fourth installment of SSTI's Tech Talkin' Govs series includes excerpts from speeches delivered in Maryland, Missouri, Montana, Tennessee and Texas. Our first three installments were in the Jan. 9, Jan. 16 and Jan. 23 issues of the Digest.

The University of Maryland announced the Academy for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, an initiative to infuse a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship across its campus through a series of classes, workshops and outside-the-classroom experiences. By providing the necessary encouragement and resources, the university administration hopes to empower students and faculty to translate their passions and creative ideas into real-world solutions to economic, societal, technological and cultural problems. Launching in fall 2013, the academy will be led by Dr.

Measuring impact is critical to the success and sustainability of any economic development initiative, and as the national debate over fiscal austerity and taxpayer spending continues, TBED organizations can expect increased scrutiny and accountability for their investments.