What's New @ IEEE-USA - Eye On Washington Vol. 2011, No. 11 (7 September 2011)

Dear Readers -

The latest issue of IEEE-USA's Eye on Washington is now available online.  For complete text and links to additional resources, please visit: http://www.ieeeusa.org/policy/eyeonwashington/2011/12eow2011.asp

As we send this out, the Senate is in its final debate over the patent reform act.  We expect a vote later today.

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CAPITOL HILL

Patent Reform Legislation Set for Final Vote - 7 SEPT: The Senate voted, 93-5, to invoke cloture on a procedural motion to call up the House-passed patent reform bill (HR 1249).  Minority Whip Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) encouraged colleagues to file amendments to the legislation quickly and work with leaders to advance the bill, although he indicated he would oppose efforts to derail the measure, irritating Tom Coburn (R-OK). The cloture vote clears the way for the Senate to pass the un-amended bill without requiring the House to take additional action.

Republican Jobs Agenda August 29, 2011 (see online version for a link)

Concern Over Prospect of Empty Space Station - Some Senators working on space policy are alarmed by the possibility that the International Space Station might be left unmanned later this year. Without a means of sending U.S. scientists into space, and with Russia reassessing its own space vehicles after last week’s crash of an umanned cargo flight to the station, there maybe be no way of getting folks into space. The station is currently manned by six astronauts — three Russians, two Americans, and one Japanese — who can return to Earth in two Russian Soyuz capsules docked at the station.

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THE WHITE HOUSE & FEDERAL AGENCY ACTIVITY

Letter to President Obama from the Governors' Wind Energy Coalition Regarding Wind Energy  (see online version for a link)

Obama Responds to House Request for List of Proposed Regulations Costing $1 Billion or More - House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) requested that President Obama produce a list of proposed regulations with annual costs that could exceed $1 billion.  Obama responded, though he cautioned that none would be implemented without “careful consideration to cost-saving possibilities and alternatives.”

FERC Decides Not To Adopt Smart Grid Standards - White House In a recent decision, FERC decided not to set rules adopting five of the smart grid standards "families" that have been in the works since 2009. FERC claims that almost everyone who commented on the standards recommended against adoption.

White House Unleashes Teen Innovators at Libraries and Museums - When President Obama launched his Educate to Innovate campaign—outlining a vision for moving American students from the middle to the top of the pack in math and science—he made one point clear:  “Our future is on the line.”

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REPORTS, DOCUMENTS OF NOTE & INFO RESOURCES (see online version for links)

Sizing the Clean Economy: A National and Regional Green Jobs Assessment - A new study from the Brookings Institution found that from 2003 to 2010, the clean economy grew by 8.3 percent—almost double what the overall economy grew during those years. Further, the clean economy currently employs 2.7 million workers across a diverse group of industries—more than the biosciences and fossil fuel sectors.

New NSF Investment to Accelerate Innovation Research - Last week, the National Science Foundation (NSF) granted a set of 22 awards to spur innovations from research discoveries across many fields of science and engineering.  Through the Accelerating Innovation Research (AIR) program, the NSF Division for Industrial Innovation and Partnerships invested $9.2 million into two types of awards that will foster innovative technology and thinking at different scales.

Solar Energy Industries Association - U.S. Solar Energy Trade Assessment 2011: Trade Flows and Domestic Content for Solar Energy-Related Goods and Services in the United States

Congressional Budget Office - Estimated Impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act on Employment and Economic Output from April 2011 Through June 2011

National Science Foundation -  Interface between Computer Science and Economics & Social Sciences (ICES)


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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.

Copyright © 2011, The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc.  Permission granted to copy for personal use or for non-commercial republication with appropriate attribution.

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