As Congress continues negotiations over the FY15 federal budget, SSTI is hard at work trying to secure additional funding for the Regional Innovation program. The Regional Innovation Program was authorized under the American COMPETES Act and is designed to provide funding to support regional innovation activities.
The Senate has approved $20 million for the program for FY2015, while the House did not provide any funding for the program. SSTI has prepared a support letter to Congressional leaders requesting funding at the $20 million level (see below).
We are is seeking organizations to sign on to the letter, which is below. While SSTI continues to engage directly with Congressional members and staff, it is critical to show the breadth and depth of support for the Regional Innovation Program among the TBED community during these negotiations. The more organizations that sign will increase our chances to secure funding. The deadline for signatures to this letter is Thursday, July 31.
Please review the below letter, and if you are able to sign on for your organization, please reply to Caroline Wagner (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) to list your organization as a signatory on the letter.
Finally, we wanted to keep you updated on the progress of the FY14 Regional Innovation Program competition solicitation. We heard from EDA last week that they expect to release the notice of Federal Funding Opportunity (FFO) at the end of month or the first week in August. EDA will award grants in November 2014.
Thanks,
Dan
Dan Berglund President and CEO
SSTI
5015 Pine Creek Drive
Westerville, OH 43081
614.901.1690
www.ssti.org
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Barbara Mikulski
Chairwoman
Commerce, Justice & Science Appropriations Subcommittee
142 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Richard Shelby
Ranking Member
Commerce, Justice & Science Appropriations Subcommittee
125 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Frank Wolf
Chairman
Commerce, Justice & Science Appropriations Subcommittee
H-309, The Capitol
Washington, DC 20515
Chaka Fattah
Ranking Member
Commerce, Justice & Science Appropriations Subcommittee
1016 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
Dear Chairwoman Mikulski, Ranking Member Shelby, Chairman Frank and Ranking Member Fattah:
As supporters of SSTI, a national nonprofit organization that leads, supports, and strengthens efforts to improve regional economies through science, technology, and innovation, we urge you to allocate $20 million in funding for the Regional Innovation Program as you work to conference and finalize the Commerce, Justice & Science Appropriations bill for fiscal year 2015. We appreciate that the current fiscal environment has meant that you must make particularly difficult choices during the appropriations process. Thank you for your support of this promising program, and for providing the program $10 million in FY14 for its first year of funding.
The Regional Innovation Program was authorized under the American COMPETES Act to encourage and support the development of regional innovation strategies across the country. As members of the tech-based economic development (TBED) community, we recognize that the strategies supported by the Regional Innovation Program have successfully sparked job creation outcomes in our communities. Continuation of these funds would be instrumental in cultivating entrepreneurship, new startups, and commercialization of new products and ideas through access to capital, expertise and networks.
Dozens of TBED programs have generated impressive track records in developing small businesses, creating new employment opportunities and improving local economies. We are confident that an investment in regional innovation can improve job growth, produce startup companies, leverage private dollars, increase wealth generation, and accelerate and enhance the important work currently being done in these areas.
As you move forward into conference for the FY15 Commerce, Justice & Science appropriations bill, we request that you maintain the $20 million funding level outlined in the Senate version of this legislation. Thank you for your consideration of this request, and we look forward to continuing our work together in support of this promising and innovative program.