Doubling Research Budgets
With
enactment of the America COMPETES Act, the US set the basic research
agencies -- National Science Foundation (NSF), the Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science, and
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) -- on a path to
doubling their research budgets.
Nearly two-thirds of papers cited in
the U.S. patent applications were supported through federal funding,
according to the AAAS report. However, applying the results of the
research and getting the new technologies to the market is often the
sticking point. This gap is often referred to as the "Valley of Death."
Commercialization in Small Business with Public-Private Partnerships
In addition to programs, like the
Technology Innovation Program at NIST, which helps small high-tech
entrepreneurs bring new technologies to the market, one of the policy
strategies is to create public-private partnerships. Government funding
can mitigate some financial risk -- which can lead to a faster pace of
innovation -- and the private sector can ensure that the new
technologies can get over the Valley of Death and to the market.
Advanced Vehicle Technology Act
Provides the most comprehensive
authorization to date for long-term sustained funding of public-private
vehicle R&D and commercial application activities in the DOE
Vehicle Technologies Program.
The
Manufacturing Extension Partnership at NIST
This is the only program of its
kind to help keep small American manufacturers on the cutting edge by
enhancing growth, improving productivity and expanding capacity.
The Advanced Research Projects Agency for Energy, (ARPA-E)
Modeled after the highly successful Defense Advanced Research Projects
Agency, received an overwhelming
response -- 3,700 white papers -- far exceeding anyone's expectations. There is pent-up need for this type of transformational
technology development that will result in green jobs here in the U.S.
America COMPETES Act
Reauthorization is due in 2010 to improve science, technology, engineering, and math education, to develop a skilled workforce to develop and manage new technologies.