With the conclusion of the General Assembly session, we have scheduled our annual Legislative Wrapup Breakfast for Wednesday, July 22, at 8:00 a.m. in the Anthony Wayne Room at the Chamber. Members of the Northeast Indiana Legislative Delegation will review the recently concluded special session and the newly passed biennial state budget.Cost for the breakfast is $5.00 per person and is open to all Chamber members. Please RSVP to Keith Knepp at kknepp@fwchamber.org or call (260) 424-1435 x228.Special thanks to our breakfast sponsors: GAI Consultants, NIPSCO, and WaterFurnace International.
General Assembly Passes Budget
After months of debate and negotiations the Indiana General Assembly passed a biennial budget on June 30th, with a few hours to spare before the midnight deadline. The budget spends $27.8 billion while leaving $1 billion in reserves. The most dividing factor of school funding is increased by 1.1 percent in 2010 and .3 percent in 2011. It flatlines higher ed, but does appropriate money for capital projects. It will allow for summer study committees on the school funding formula as well as gaming issues, including a Fort Wayne referendum.
NIIC Project Receives $10 Million
The recently passed state budget includes an appropriation for the Northeast Indiana Innovation Center (NIIC) for a project that will add a Global Design & Technology Center as well as a Center for Leadership in Advanced Manufacturing Performance. This project was a Chamber priority this session.
This initiative will....
- Create 35 new jobs with average annual salaries of $80,000
- Build out the infrastructure of the Innovation Park to attract more new innovative ventures
- Expand IPFW's research capacity and community engagement
- Provide support for a major new Park anchor client
- Become a magnet for affiliated ventures, supply chain partners, and high technology engineering talent
- Engineering talent is expected to be recruited from IPFW students (creating a localized brain gain)
Unlike other technology business incubators, the NIIC has achieved its current level of success without the benefit of a major coroporate anchor. This project will grow its commercial capabilities, global presence and employment base in our community while leveraging its master research agreement with Purdue University and strengthening its cooperative recruitment efforts for talent with IPFW.
Allen County Bridge Language in Budget
Also making it in the budget was language allowing the Allen County Commissioners to use the major bridge fund for repair and maintenance of smaller bridges (under 200 ft). The language also states that the commissioners are responsible for bridges in all of the county including municipalities.
Budget Comparison
See how Indiana fared compared to other states.
http://www.taxfoundation.org/blog/show/24811.html
Governor to Push Local Govt Reform
Gov. Daniels said he will renewefforts to enact local government reform in the 2010 legislative session (Howey PoliticsIndiana). 'I hope we make more forward progress next year. We should never ever skip anopportunity or a session, short or long, to try and make positive change, and we'll be thinkingabout that starting right away," said Daniels.
From U.S. Department of Defense
Raytheon Co., Network Centric Systems, Fort Wayne, Ind., was awarded in Jun. 26, 2009 a $ 21,746,737 cost-plus-fixed-fee and fixed-price contract for Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to develop the generation Network Centric Radio System (NCRS), with additional capabilities and an assured affordable price to the user. DARPA envisions two critical technologies for achieving these new goals: 1) a backbone radio architecture that enables a versatile IP networks and a radio gateway that enable legacy analog and digital communications systems to be internetworked. As with NCRS, the MAINGATE enables heterogeneous groups of radios to be integrated into a heterogeneous network tolerant to high latency and packet loss. The technology development for the program will permit affordable, tactical, real-time, high fidelity video, data, and voice services to be deployed in a network environment to support tactical operations in either maneuver or dismounted operations. A MAINGATE node consists of the gateway hoc network (MANET) IP radio, WAN port, LAN port, and operator console for a recurring production unit cost target (sell price to government) of $ 60, 000 (constant FY09$) per unit for a volume purchase of 1,000 units after the successful satisfaction of the base program objectives. Work is to be performed in Fullerton, Calif., (19.54 percent), Fort Wayne, Ind., (25.88 percent), Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., (7.19 percent), Vienna, Va., (3.20 percent), Cambridge, Md.,(7.02 percent), Columbia, Md., (22.45 percent), and Melbourne, Fla., (14.72 percent), with an estimated completion date of September 2012. Bids solicited on the World Wide Web with three bids received. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Arlington, Va., is the contracting activity (HR0011-09-C-0083).
Source: U.S. Department of Defense
1 comment:
What an exciting time for the expansion and development of the Northeast Indiana Innovation Park!
First, the Center wants to thank the Northeast Indiana Legislative delegation for their commitment to the development and expansion of our Park campus. It is through their continued efforts and leadership, in cooperation with our City and County leaders, that we are able to deliver higher quality, higher paying jobs and attract quality employers to this region.
Second, my thanks to the leadership of Joni Howell, the Community & Government Affairs Team, the Government Affairs Committee, and IPFW for making this a community priority and reinforcing that commitment during the legislative process.
We are excited to execute this next phase of our expansion. We recognize that this phase of development will move our park forward and open up new opportunities to make us a preferred destination in the State of Indiana for growth-minded companies.
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