Institutions receiving awards under the CHIPS and Science Act. “Organizations that represent the perspective of underserved communities in economic development initiatives.”ġ3. Transportation planning organizations.ġ2. Any of the Energy Department’s 17 national laboratories.ġ0. Elementary schools and secondary schools, including career and technical education schools.Ħ. “Organizations that promote local economic stability, high-wage domestic jobs, and broad-based economic opportunities, such as employee ownership membership associations or state or local employee ownerships and cooperative development centers, financial institutions and investment funds.”ĥ. “Organizations that contribute to increasing the participation of underserved populations in science, technology, innovation and entrepreneurship.”Ĥ. Economic development organizations “with relevant expertise.”Ģ. The law also lists 13 other things that a bid “may” include:ġ. We’d be better off if a bid included a lot of very specific partners If I were a Commerce Department official looking at a bid from Southwest Virginia and Virginia Tech wasn’t involved, I’d sure want to know why. Given Virginia Tech’s prominence in the region, it’s hard to imagine a bid without Virginia Tech being involved. ![]() My read on this: While a consortium only needs one of these things to be eligible, it’s probably safe to assume that a bid would be stronger if it included more than one. “Labor organizations or workforce training organizations.” “Economic development organizations or similar entities that are focused primarily on improving science, technology, innovation, entrepreneurship, or access to capital.”ĥ. “Industry or firms in relevant technology, innovation or manufacturing sectors.”Ĥ. State or local governments, or some other configuration of government entities.ģ. The law says that a consortium must include at least one of the following (and I’m abbreviating here) five entities:Ģ. It’s hard to imagine a winning proposal without Virginia Tech. The law says that one of the purposes of the legislation is to “encourage new and constructive collaborations among local, State, Tribal, and Federal government entities, institutions of higher education, the private sector, economic development organizations, labor organizations, nonprofit organizations, and community organizations that promote broad-based regional innovation initiatives.” The clear meaning seems to be that no one group can or should “go it alone.” The law wants to see wide-ranging alliances. ![]() The law says that “eligible consortia” may apply (more on what makes a group eligible to come below). With that in mind, let’s look at the law in light of some of the questions surrounding Southwest Virginia’s possible bid. Warner has effectively sided with those: The point of the legislation isn’t to raise Virginia Tech’s standing as a research university, it’s to grow additional technology hubs around the country. ![]() Others don’t necessarily want Virginia Tech leading any bid they fear it would be based too much on academic research, and not on creating jobs in the community. Mark Warner, D-Virginia, doesn’t think transportation is a strong pitch - and he was co-sponsor of the legislation, so he ought to know. Virginia Tech wanted to lead a bid based on transportation technology, for instance. But I raise the concept as an entry point into the second part of my two-part examination of the prospects of Southwest Virginia making a bid for one of the 20 regional technology hubs that the federal government intends to designate – and then reward with lots of cash.Īs I’ve pointed out in previous columns, there are conflicting interests among some of those in the region. Supreme Court justices argue over “originalism.” What did the founders mean when they wrote such-and-such into the Constitution? Or can that meaning change over time? We will not settle that question today.
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