Texas Council Will Address State Competitiveness
Governor Urges Pension Fund to Invest in Emerging Tech Companies
Starting in January, a new advisory council within the Texas Governor’s Office will begin work on a long-term strategy to bolster the state’s economic competitiveness. The Competitiveness Council will be charged with designing an overall framework for cooperation between public and private organizations involved in economic development. Gov. Rick Perry will appoint the group’s members by the end of the year.
People
BioMed SA, a recently founded technology council to promote the development of San Antonio’s health and bioscience community, selected Ann Stevens to serve as its first executive director.
People
Robert Chernow was appointed to the newly created position of vice provost for entrepreneurship at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
People
Randy Goldsmith resigned his position as president and CEO of the San Antonio Technology Accelerator Initiative (SATAI) Network to become assistant vice president of tech transfer and economic development at the University of Texas at San Antonio. SATAI is currently accepting applications to fill the vacancy (see item below).
People
Jeff Moseley will replace Jim Kollaer as president and CEO of the Greater Houston Partnership.
SATAI Seeks President & CEO
The San Antonio Technology Accelerator Initiative (SATAI) Network, a nonprofit organization, is accepting applications from qualified candidates to fill the position of President and CEO. The SATAI Network seeks someone with strong leadership and team-building skills, as well as experience in linking venture capital to venture creation and cultivating an environment and resources for start-up enterprises.
Texas Legislature Approves Funding for Emerging Technology Fund
The Texas Legislature recently approved $100 million of the original $300 million requested by Gov. Rick Perry for the Emerging Technologies Fund (ETF). Another $100 million is expected to be available from the state's rainy day fund if revenues exceed forecasts.
NY S&T Office to Become Public Foundation
New York's lead agency for promoting tech-based economic development (TBED) in the state soon will have a new name, if not a complete makeover. Under enacted budget legislation, the New York Office of Science, Technology and Academic Research (NYSTAR) will become the New York State Foundation for Science, Technology and Innovation by Jan. 1, 2006.
New York Budget Calls for New Oversight of Empire Zones
New York's Empire Zones Program dodged a veto from Gov. George Pataki as an agreement was met with the legislature to restructure the program. The state budget, signed into law last week, extends the program and allows for an additional 12 zones to be created throughout the state.
TBED Organizations & People Update
Craig Watters is serving as interim director of the Falcone Center for Entrepreneurship at Syracuse University. Past director Nola Miyasaki has relocated to Hawaii to join a biotech company.
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George "Mick" Stadler is the new CEO for the incubator at the Rochester Institute of Technology.
New York Science & Technology Program Funding Restored
New York Governor George Pataki amended his proposed FY 1997-98 budget to restore funding for the state's technology programs. Pataki's revised budget calls for more than $20 million for technology programs, almost twice what was originally submitted to the legislature in January.
Texas Creates S&T Council
Last month, Governor George W. Bush issued an Executive Order that created the Texas Science and Technology Council. The mission of the 21 member board is to "research, develop, and report to the Governor the means available to the State of Texas to become the national leader in science and technology cooperation, development, and research."
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Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute named Nag Patibandla as director of the Center for Future Energy Systems, a New York State Center for Advanced Technology.
People
The University of Texas at El Paso hired Tony Woo as the assistant vice provost for research and technology transfer.
Markle Foundation to Donate $100 Million for Public Use of Internet
The Markle Foundation has announced plans to give away $100 million -- more than half of the Foundation's current endowment -- over the next five years for projects and programs to improve public benefit from the Internet. Recipients will include non-profit organizations as well as for-profit companies.
Awards are concentrated in four areas:
Texas Passes R&D Tax Credit
On October 1, Texas will begin offering a tax credit for business research and development expenditures. The new law, Texas Senate Bill 441, provides Texas corporations with a franchise tax credit equal to five percent of eligible R&D expenses for up to 50 percent of a company’s total franchise tax liability. Unused portions may be carried forward for up to 20 years.
Missouri, Ohio and Texas Governors Seek Increased Support for TBED Efforts
Not all of the news coming out of governors' offices is bad for TBED strategies. For example, just in the past week, governors in Missouri, Ohio and Texas proposed increases in state investments for job creation in emerging fields, higher education scholarships, and technology commercialization and research programs. The following overview provides highlights of their recommendations for TBED proposals in the upcoming fiscal year or biennium.
Entrepreneurial Efforts Underway to Boost Economy
As companies across the nation continue to announce massive layoffs during the economic recession, states, localities and private foundations are encouraging entrepreneurial training and providing support services to help create new jobs and assist struggling businesses.
More than $1B in new state and local initiatives for clean energy announced
New York City and the state of Illinois have both made moves recently to shift more of their economies to clean energy.
New York City and the state of Illinois have both made moves recently to shift more of their economies to clean energy. Mayor Bill de Blasio and the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) announced a 15-year, $191 million Offshore Wind Vision (OSW) plan to make New York City a leading destination for the offshore wind industry. Last month, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed sweeping legislation offering new incentives for the adoption of clean energy and aim to move it to 100 percent clean energy by 2050. And Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker is looking to use American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) money to establish a clean energy investment fund.
Treasury announces five more states’ plans approved for SSBCI
New York State legislation would curb new crypto mining operations; bills await governor’s action
Since the inception of cryptocurrency mining over a decade ago, the state of New York has become a hotspot for the digital coins, encompassing 19.9 percent of the total U.S. hashrate, or the collective computing power of miners. However, concerns over the environmental impacts of, and high electricity demands for, these mining operations have been increasingly thrust into the spotlight.
New York shuts down fossil fuel crypto infrastructure
New York became the first state to enact a temporary ban on new cryptocurrency mining permits at fossil fuel plants in a move aimed at addressing the environmental concerns over the energy-intensive activity. The legislation, signed by Gov. Kathy Hochul, will impose a two-year moratorium on crypto-mining companies seeking new permits to retrofit some of the state’s oldest fossil fuel plants into digital mining operations.