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Week of November 28 - December 2, 2005Welcome to the National Dialogue on Entrepreneurship, an initiative of the Public Forum Institute made possible by a grant from the Kauffman Foundation of Kansas City. Through NDE-news, we bring you short summaries and analyses of various trends driving the innovation economy. Subscribe now to receive your weekly copy. Archived issues are available online. Links to the day's entrepreneurship stories from across the nation and around the world are posted each weekday on the NDE main page - bookmark it and stay informed about the latest entrepreneurship news. |
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Capitol Hill Update: FY 2006 Appropriations
Two months into Fiscal Year
2006 and there still isn’t a new federal budget yet. But, Congress is
working on it and light is appearing at the end of the tunnel. At press
time, only five (out of 12) appropriations bills had been signed into
law, but several other bills were close to final enactment. The
Commerce-State-Justice appropriations bill—which funds the Small
Business Administration and a host of technology and business
development efforts---is awaiting final signature from President Bush.
Many key programs fared better than expected. For example, the
Manufacturing Extension Partnership program received $106 million, a
slight drop of $2 million from last year’s total. The Advanced
Technology Program was not so popular, as its budget drops down to $80
million. The Strengthening America’s Communities Initiative, the
administration’s plan to streamline federal economic development
programs, was not included in the final measure. Over at the Small
Business Administration, Congress approved $16 billion in loan authority
for the 7(a) loan program. The federal subsidy for the 7(a) loan program
has been removed, and it will now be funded via borrower and lender
fees. Other programs, such as various microloan initiatives and the
Small Business Development Center program, received funding at levels
close to last year’s totals. |
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House Democrats Tout Innovation
Democrats in the US House of
Representatives have unveiled a new plan to nurture innovation and
promote US competitiveness. The Innovation Agenda: A Commitment to
Competitiveness to Keep America No. 1 is a bold statement of
legislative priorities designed to build a skilled and talented
workforce, to advance scientific research, and to nurture
entrepreneurship. The package contains a host of interesting proposals.
Among other things, The Innovation Agenda proposes to double
funding for the Commerce Department’s Manufacturing Extension
Partnerships and the Advanced Technology Program. It also calls for
expanded use of broad-based stock options to encourage employee
ownership, and revisions to the Sarbanes-Oxley law to reduce
administrative burdens on small businesses. Finally, the plan includes
several measures (including a 50% tax credit) to assist small businesses
in providing health insurance to their employees. |
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The Power of Rural Philanthropy
The generation and
re-investment of wealth are critical building blocks for any community
seeking to support entrepreneurship. As a result, philanthropy can and
should be an important part of any regional entrepreneurship initiative.
This is especially true in rural communities, according to a new report
from New Ventures in Philanthropy. The Power of Rural Philanthropy notes
that home-grown rural philanthropy is booming. For example, in the past
six years, the number of geographic funds affiliated with community
foundations has grown by 132%. The report contains lots of case studies
of effective rural foundations, and offers suggestions for moving ahead.
In particular, the study urges rural leaders to identify new
endowment-raising opportunities and to use current assets to build
organizational capacity for further home-grown development. |
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American business executives
and entrepreneurs regularly complain about their difficulties in
attracting and retaining talented workers for critical knowledge
intensive industries. Well, it appears that American entrepreneurs
aren’t alone. Canadian business owners are also worried, according to a
new survey from the Canadian Advanced Technology Alliance (CATAAlliance),
an Ottawa-based association of technology firms. CATAAlliance surveyed
the owners of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to assess their
hiring needs and plans. Seventy-five percent of surveyed firms were
hiring, and more than 45% noted that finding needed talent proved
challenging. This latter result may be partially due to the fact that
few of these firms use the latest human resources technologies and
practices. The survey notes that more effective human resources
practices could significantly improve firm recruitment and retention
efforts. |
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Gate2Growth The European Union has been involved in a host of activities to support innovation and entrepreneurship. As part of these initiatives, it has sponsored Gate2Growth, a network designed to help “innovation professionals” do a better job of support growth-oriented entrepreneurs. The network’s website is full of interesting and useful materials. It also includes a database of European service providers who focus on helping innovative businesses. (NOTE: Registration is required to access many of these resources. |
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