CORRECTION: What's New @ IEEE-USA - Eye On Washington, Vol. 2012, No. 1 (10 January 2012)

The correct link for the latest issue is:  http://www.ieeeusa.org/policy/eyeonwashington/2012/01eow2012.asp


----- Forwarded by Erica Wissolik/IEEE-USA/STAFF/US/IEEE on 01/11/2012 04:00 PM -----

Dear Readers -

The latest issue of Eye on Washington is now available on-line.  For complete text and links to additional resources, please visit:  http://www.ieeeusa.org/policy/eyeonwashington/2012/1.asp

Congress remains on recess until the House convenes on January 17th and the Senate on Jan 23rd.  Attached is the full congressional calendar for 2012.



You can change your IEEE-USA Eye on Washington subscription status by using the forms at http://www.ieeeusa.org/communications/emailupdates/default.asp

Highlights of the current issue include:

CAPITOL HILL

2011 Legislative Summary: Patent Law Overhaul Bill: HR 1249 — PL 112-29 - After a years long effort in congressional offices and committee rooms, Congress cleared and the president signed bipartisan legislation in September to overhaul federal patent law. The America Invents Act changed the procedures for issuing patents, and for challenging the validity of patents once they have been issued in hopes of making the US patent system faster and more efficient.

SOPA - The Stop Online Piracy Act (H.R.3261) has thus far moved quickly and enjoyed strong support in the House and Senate Judiciary committees. But opponents are rallying to fight against the bill - despite wide bipartisan support in both chambers. SOPA aims to crack down on online piracy of music, movies and consumer products.  2011 Chair of IEEE-USA's Communications Policy Committee Eric Burger has set up a subcommittee, with members from both the Communications Committee and the Intellectual Property Policy Committee - to deal with the issue. While IEEE-USA has not yet taken a position on this issue, we hope to be able to provide the much needed technical expertise in the meantime.

Senators Call for FCC Flexibility in Spectrum Legislation - Several senators urged passage of legislation that gives the Federal Communications Commission flexibility in conducting spectrum license auctions and designating spectrum for unlicensed uses. The spectrum measure will be on the menu of revenue offsets for congressional leaders as they negotiate a yearlong payroll tax cut extension.

THE WHITE HOUSE & FEDERAL AGENCY ACTIVITY

OSTP Releases Federal STEM Education Portfolio - In the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act, signed into law by President Obama in January 2011, Congress called upon OSTP to oversee creation of a detailed catalogue of all Federal STEM education programs. In response, OSTP released The Federal Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Portfolio, a comprehensive listing of STEM education investments curated by Federal agencies. The report is a product of the Committee on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math Education (CoSTEM) of the National Science and Technology Council, the cabinet-level interagency group that coordinates Federal science and technology policy and is administered by OSTP.

New Center for Excellence Fuels Prize to Help Modernize Tools for Patent Examination - The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in cooperation with the newly unveiled Center of Excellence for Collaborative Innovation (COECI) launched the USPTO Innovation Challenge, a $50,000 prize to develop new algorithms to aid in patent examination. Approximately half-a-million U.S. patents are filed by inventors, entrepreneurs, and businesses each year.  The Challenge is part of a broader USPTO endeavor to modernize the information technology used by the Office’s patent examiners.

Net Neutrality Rules Formalized - On November 20 the Federal Communications Commission’s, or FCC, new net-neutrality rules went into effect, formalizing the principles of network freedom that have dictated Internet access since the information age began. What is this you say? Read a primer on the basic tenets of net neutrality here. The FCC’s new net-neutrality rules outline three basic points of compliance for Internet Service Providers, or ISPs.

LATEST IEEE-USA & IEEE ACTIVITIES

IEEE-USA Coordinates with Federal Officials to Promote Small High-Tech Businesses - In December, IEEE-USA representatives met with federal officials to discuss ways U.S. IEEE members can better take advantage of programs that promote small high-tech businesses. Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine), ranking member of the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, secured the committee hearing room for the discussion and helped find federal speakers. Representatives from the Commerce Department Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, the Export-Import Bank and the United States Trade Representative attended. Jim Jefferies, 2011 IEEE-USA vice president for government relations, and Terry Wong, 2011 chair of the IEEE-USA Entrepreneurial Activities Committee, led the contingent of IEEE entrepreneurs.

U.S. STATES

2012 State of the State Speeches

    1 - Schedule and Full Text
    2 - Schedule of 2012 state legislative sessions
    3 - Republican Power in 2012 - After a contentious political year, Republicans may moderate their approach

AWARDS, FELLOWSHIPS & GRANTS

DIRKSEN GRANTS: CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH AWARDS DEADLINE: All proposals must be received no later than March 1, 2012.
The Dirksen Congressional Center invites applications for grants to fund research on congressional leadership and the U.S. Congress. The Center, named for the late Senate Minority Leader Everett M. Dirksen, is a private, nonpartisan, nonprofit research and educational organization devoted to the study of Congress and its leaders. Applications are accepted at any time, but the deadline is March 1 for the annual selections, which are announced in April. A total of up to $35,000 will be available in 2012.

National Science Foundation Recent opportunities include:

Innovation Corps Program  (I-Corps) - The National Science Foundation (NSF) seeks to develop and nurture a national innovation ecosystem that builds upon fundamental research to guide the output of scientific discoveries closer to the development of technologies, products and processes that benefit society. In order to jumpstart a national innovation ecosystem, NSF is establishing the NSF Innovation Corps (NSF I-Corps). The NSF I-Corps' purpose is to identify NSF-funded researchers who will receive additional support - in the form of mentoring and funding - to accelerate innovation that can attract subsequent third-party funding. The purpose of the NSF I-Corps grant is to give the project team access to resources to help determine the readiness to transition technology developed by previously-funded or currently-funded NSF projects.  The outcome of the I-Corps projects will be threefold: 1) a clear go/no go decision regarding viability of products and services, 2) should the decision be to move the effort forward, a transition plan to do so, and 3) a technology demonstration for potential partners.

Dear Colleague Letter on Supplements for Student to Participate in the FY 2012 Sandia National Labs NINE Summer Scholars Program - The National Science Foundation (NSF) has entered into a collaboration with the Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) to enable graduate students to spend the summer of 2012 working at the SNL National Institute for Nano-Engineering, NINE (http://www.sandia.gov/NINE/), under the mentorship of SNL researchers.. In order to facilitate this collaboration, relevant programs in the NSF Division of Civil, Mechanical, and Manufacturing Innovation (CMMI) plan to provide small supplements to existing awards. It is expected that approximately 10 supplements will be made in the range of $10,000 to $12,000. The awarded supplement is designed to provide funding for student salary during the program, fringe benefits, travel costs, and other supplies & materials needed for the research project.

California Council on Science and Technology (CCST) Fellowships - The California Council on Science and Technology (CCST) is pleased to announce that applications are now being accepted for the 2012-2013 California Science and Technology Policy Fellowships based in Sacramento. The S&T Policy Fellowship, a unique one-year professional development opportunity, provides the selected fellows with hands-on experience working with the California Legislature to incorporate science and technology into public policy. Eligible applicants will be Ph.D.-level (or equivalent) scientists and engineers who have a sincere interest in California current events, the state legislative process, and a strong desire to learn how policy decisions are made. Deadline for submission of applications is February 29, 2012 at 5:00 p.m. PST. More information is available at http://fellows.ccst.us.

REPORTS, DOCUMENTS OF NOTE & INFO RESOURCES

European Commission - The European Commission presented the proposal for the legislative decisions on HORIZON 2020 - The Framework Programme for Research and Innovation for 2014 to 2020. HORIZON 2020 will be the EU financial instrument to implement the Europe 2020 strategy for jobs and smart, sustainable, and inclusive growth, and the Innovation Union flagship initiative, particularly for the completion of the European Research Area (ERA). The new program will form a common strategic framework that will encompass all the currently separate EU research and innovation funding schemes - the EU RTD Framework Programme, the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP), and the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) - in one single program. It will provide seamless support from basic and frontier research to innovation and the market.

Center for American Progress - The Corporate R&D Tax Credit and U.S. Innovation and Competitiveness: Gauging the Economic and Fiscal Effectiveness of the Credit Investment in research and development is a significant driver of technological progress and economic growth, particularly in high-wage developed countries. The United States spends more than any other nation in the world on research and development, or R&D, but its relative position (measured by the share of such investment in national income) has been falling even as other countries increase their investments in research.

White House - The Federal Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Portfolio

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What's New @ IEEE-USA's Eye on Washington highlights important federal legislative and regulatory developments that affect U.S. engineers and their careers. In addition to this biweekly newsletter, subscribers receive legislative bulletins and action alerts on IEEE-USA priority issues, including: retirement security, employment benefits, research & development funding, computers and information policy, immigration reform, intellectual property protection and privacy of health/medical information.

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