November 2006

Speaker Designate Nancy Pelosi, Rep. Anna Eshoo and Rep. George Miller Address High-Tech Executives at AeA Headquarters on Democrats Innovation Agenda
November 17, 2006:  In an event held yesterday at AeA’s Washington, DC headquarters, House Speaker Designate Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA), and Rep. George Miller (D-CA) addressed high-tech executives from AeA Member Companies, and gave an overview on top House Congressional priorities for the high-tech industry. The visit to AeA was among the first public appearances of all three representatives off Capitol Hill since the November 7th mid-term elections....read more.

September 2006

AeA Letter to Senate Praising Introduction of National Competitiveness Investment Act
September 26, 2006:  AeA letter to Senator John Ensign (R-NV) and his Senate colleagues thanking them for introducing the “National Competitiveness Investment Act...read more.

AeA Releases New Competitiveness Series Report on the R&D Tax Credit
September 5, 2006:  This new report highlights how critical R&D has been to the United States, particularly industry funded R&D. Since the creation of the R&D tax credit in 1981, domestic spending on research and development has proportionally shifted away from government and toward private industry. In 1981 government and industry spent roughly the same amount of total dollars on R&D. Since then, the gap has widened significantly. In 2004, U.S. industry spent more than twice that of the U.S government.to Strengthen the R&D Tax Credit and Make it Permanent.

Read the Report || Read the Press Release

August 2006

AeA Texas Competitiveness Summit Held at the University of Texas, Dallas
August 30, 2006:  As part of AeA's nationwide effort to raise awareness of the issue of U.S. Global Competitiveness, the Texas Council of AeA, hosted a regional summit at the University of Texas, Dallas. The well attended summit raised visibility of the issue, allowed participants to discuss how it is affecting the region and how Texas, specifically, is combating the problem. Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) served as the honorary chair and delivered the keynote address...read more.

Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) Keynote Speaker & Summit Honorary Chairman Tom Luce, Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of Education Lee Jackson, Chancellor, University of North Texas System Phil Wilson, Deputy Chief of Staff, Office of the Governor, State of Texas Sue Dark, CEO, DeepNines Technologies, Inc, and member of the AeA Board of Directors Julie England, Vice President, Texas Instruments, and member of the AeA Board of Directors

July 2006

AeA Letter to House Leadership Requesting Floor Time for HR 5356 and HR 5358
July 17, 2006:  AeA Letter to House Leaders J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL) and John A. Boehner (R-OH) requesting floor time for HR 5356 and HR 5358, bills related to math and science education, and that are critical to U.S. competitiveness...read more.

President Bush Visits AeA Member Cabot Microelectronics in Illinois
On July 7, President George W. Bush and House Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL) visit AeA member company Cabot Microelectronics Corporation in Aurora, IL, to promote the American Competitiveness Initiative (ACI).  Pictured President Bush stands with a group of engineers as he waves to other employees at Cabot's headquarters  (White House photo by Eric Draper).   View image slideshow.

AeA Op-Ed printed in San Jose Mercury News
July 12, 2006:  "Stop the political football:  Pass a permanent tax credit" - Op Ed by AeA President & CEO in the San Jose Mercury News...read more.

June 2006

AeA Letter to Chairman Arlen Specter (R-PA) Requesting Full Funding for ACI
June 6, 2006:   AeA letter to Chairman Arlen Specter (R-PA), Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies Subcommittee, Senate Appropriations Committee, requesting full funding for the Education provisions in the President's American Competitiveness Initiative (ACI)...read more.

Attracting the Best and Brightest to the United States
Reforming High-Skilled Visa Policy...read more.

May 2006

AeA Signs Innovation & Competitiveness Coalition Letter to President Bush
On May 5, AeA signed onto a letter representing the business, academic, and scientific community praising President George W. Bush on his strong leadership regarding the American Competitiveness Initiative...read more.

AeA President & CEO Testified to House Committee on Education/Workforce
On May 3, AeA President and CEO Bill Archey testified before the House of Representatives' Committee on Education and the Workforce at a hearing on, "Building American Competitiveness:  Examining the Scope and Success of Existing Federal Math and Science Programs."  Additional panelists included the Assistant Secretary of Education and the Director of Education, Workforce, and Income Security at the GAO...read more.

Bill Archey, President & CEO, AeA, presents data from the AeA Cyberstates 2006
report during his testimony to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce

April 2006
On April 18, AeA President and CEO Bill Archey participated in a panel discussion at the Minnesota High Technology Association's annual Spring Conference, entitled "Will Minnesota remain globally competitive?"  Archey discussed how the competitiveness issue has finally been taken up by policymakers in Washington and assessed the chances of legislation being passed and signed by the President.

On April 19, AeA released its ninth annual Cyberstates report detailing national and state trends in high-tech employment, wages, exports, and other key economic factors.  The results showed a U.S. tech industry that is adding jobs for the first time since the bursting of the tech bubble in 2001.  Though the news was positive, the growth was modest - 61,000 nets jobs, or one percent of total tech industry employment.  This reinforces the urgent need for policymakers to address the competitive challenges facing the country and ensure future job growth in an industry that pays its worker 85 percent more than average private sector wage.

Following the release of Cyberstates, AeA has begun to conduct a series of briefings, including on Capitol Hill, on the current state of the U.S. high-tech industry and how this relates to the competitiveness issue now being considered by Congress and the President.

March 2006
On March 1, 2006, Rep. Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY), Chairman of the House Science Committee, and key staff from the Science Committee visited AeA to discuss U.S. competitiveness at a Cyber Series luncheon event that was sponsored by Northrop Grumman, in AeA's Washington, DC, headquarters.

Bill Archey, President & CEO, AeA; Rep. Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY), Chair of the House Science Committee; and Tom Vice, Sr VP, Business Development Integrated Systems, Northrop Grumman, at an AeA CyberSeries Luncheon on March 1, 2006 (L-R).

On March 10, the San Jose Mercury News publishes an editorial by AeA President and CEO Bill Archey on the chances of Congress passing competitiveness legislation in the 2005 session.  He expressed the concern that, despite an overwhelming bipartisan consensus on what needs to be done, Congress may still fail to act as it wrestles over who gets the credit.

On March 23, AeA's Mountain States Council held the first regional summit on competitiveness, entitled "Colorado Legislative Lunch and Competitiveness Outlook 2006" in Denver.  The event featured featured a panel discussion among local educators and community leaders.  AeA President and CEO Bill Archey provided a timeline of what had been accomplished over the last two years in our work on competitiveness.  Dr. Dan Arvizu, Director of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and a member of the National Science Board, delivered a discussion on math/science education results and R&D investment - and benchmarked the performance of the United States and Colorado against the global market.

John Picanso, CIO, Colorado State; Patrick Leonard, AeA MT States Executive Committee Member and VP, Quovadx/Rogue Wave; Tom Edman, AeA National Board Chair and CEO, Applied Films; Dr. Dan Arvizu, NREL Director; ,Jessica Wright, AeA Mountain States Executive Director; Emily Magrish, President of Magrish International and AeA Consultant (L-R).

February 2006
On February 6, 2006, at the AeA Board of Directors meeting in Tucson, AZ, Rep. George Miller (D-CA) addresses the Board and states, “the AeA paper set the table for the competitiveness issue in Washington.”  

AeA's Board of Directors picked the association's top six policy priorities for 2006.  The issue of competitiveness was considered a transcendent one given its pervasive importance. The Board strongly encouraged both AeA staff and members to continue to lead on the vital issue of competitiveness.

The Board directed AeA staff to host a series of regional summits on competitiveness through its nationwide network of councils.  These would bring together leaders of the business and academic communities, local politicians, parents groups, and the media to raise awareness of the competitiveness challenge and advocate for policy action.

The Oregonian newspaper publishes an op-ed by Robert DeKonig, CEO, Routeware, and Chairman of the AeA Oregon Council, about competitiveness...read more.

On February 14, AeA President and CEO Bill Archey, along with Dwight Decker, Chairman of Newport Beach based Conexant, met with the editorial board of the Orange County Register to discuss competitiveness.  Based on this meeting, the Register published a series of editorials on various aspects of U.S. competitiveness and invited letters to the editor from local industry leaders on their experience doing business in a rapidly changing world.

On February 24, AeA President and CEO Bill Archey addressed the Defense Science Board Task Force on the issue of competitiveness.

The National Journal published an op-ed by, AeA President and CEO Bill Archey, entitled "Eating our Seed Corn" that discussed U.S. competitiveness...read more.

January 2006
On January 19, 2006, Democrats from the House of Representatives hold a symposium on competitiveness in front of 350 attendees — including 40 from the press.  At the symposium the House Minority Leader, Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), states “I want to thank Bill Archey and AeA for providing the intellectual basis for the Democratic agenda.”

AeA was chosen to chair the PR Working Group of the Task Force on the Future of American Innovation.  John Palafoutas, Senior Vice President, Domestic Policy and Congressional Affairs, has been working with the Task Force for over a year, advocating for an increase in government-funded basic research, particularly in the physical sciences.

December 2005

A  panel of 55 U.S. business leaders, university presidents, scientists, government leaders, and association heads -- including AeA's Bill Archey -- at the National Summit on Competitiveness.  

On December 6, 2005, the Republican National Summit on Competitiveness was held at the U.S. Department of Commerce and the Republican paper was released.  AeA co-sponsored this event and AeA's John Palafoutas was praised by Rep. Sherwood L. Boehlert (R-NY), Chairman of the House Science Committee, for his role in bringing about the summit.  Bill Archey is one of the participants and also was selected to moderate the panel on government-funded basic research.  This panel included the head of the National Science Foundation, the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the Deputy Secretary of Commerce, and the President & CEO of Texas Instruments.

Bill Archey, President & CEO, AeA, moderates a breakout session with Deputy Commerce Secretary Sampson and Arden Bement, Director, NSF

Bill Archey, President & CEO, AeA; Robert Ballard, President, Institute for Exploration; Mary Sue Coleman, President, University of Michigan (L-R)

On December 7, 2005, AeA's President & CEO, Bill Archey, testifies on Capitol Hill before the National Science Board on AeA’s view on the competitiveness challenge.

On December 14, 2005, Bill Archey gives a keynote address to tech industry leaders in Chattanooga, Tennessee on competitiveness.  Attending were staff members from the offices of Senator Lamar Alexander and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist.

November 2005
November 1, 2005, Bill Archey gives a briefing on the AeA Competitiveness report to the director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the NIST advisory board, which includes two Nobel Laureates.

Bill Archey and a small group of industry leaders meet with Margaret Spellings, Secretary of Education, to discuss competitiveness and education.

Democrats prepare to release their competitiveness agenda.  Archey was asked to review a draft before it was published, and his recommends were universally accepted.

On November 15, 2005, the House Minority Leader, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and other Democrats release "The Innovation Agenda:  A Commitment to Competitiveness to Keep America #1" at the National Press Club in Washington, DC.

On November 30, 2005, Tom Edman, Chair of AeA's Board of Directors and President and CEO of Applied Films, presented AeA's competitiveness report to Viviane Reading, EU Commissioner for Information Society and Media.

September 2005
On September 5, 2005, Matthew Kazmierczak, Vice President, Research and Industry Analysis, and Josh James, Senior Manager, Research and Industry Analysis, meet with officials from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to brief them on AeA’s competitiveness report.

On Sep. 12, 2005, Democrats hold their first field hearing on competitiveness at Stanford University with AeA's Bill Archey, 19 CEOs of high-tech companies, and four university presidents/chancellors present as panelists.  Rep. George Miller (D-CA) announces at the start of that hearing that the AeA competitiveness report “was the catalyst that woke up those of us in the public policy sphere to the competitiveness challenges facing America.” 

August 2005
On August 17, 2005, The San Jose Mercury News publishes an op-ed by Bill Archey, President & CEO, AeA, about attracting the world's top talent to America...read more.

June 2005

Anne M. Mulcahy, Chairman & CEO, Xerox Corporation, gives the keynote address to 500+ high tech and government leaders about competitiveness.

On June 8, 2005, Anne M. Mulcahy, Chairman and CEO, Xerox Corporation, gives a major address on competitiveness at the annual AeA High Tech Government Dinner in Washington, DC.

In an ongoing effort on competitiveness in the United States, AeA starts its Competitiveness Series that analyzes timely and relevant issues to the high-tech industry and to U.S. competitiveness in a global economy.

May 2005
Bill Archey gives a briefing in Jackson Hole, WY, at the University of California, Irvine’s chancellor’s retreat for industry leaders. Chancellor Ralph J. Cicerone went on to become the President of the National Academy of Sciences.

• AeA is asked by Rep. Sherwood Boehlert (R-NY), Chairman of the House Science Committee, and Rep. Frank Wolf (R-NY), Chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee for Science, to co-sponsor the Republican's National Summit on Competitiveness, to be held in December 2005.  AeA participates in over 40 planning meetings in preparation for the Summit between May and December.
• Rep. Frank Wolf (R-VA) reads AeA's competitiveness report and requests 100 additional copies to distribute to fellow congressional members.

March 2005
AeA briefs the California Democratic House delegation on competitiveness including then-Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, at the request of Reps. George Miller and Anna Eshoo.

February 2005 
On February 4, 2005, the AeA Board of Directors approves the AeA Competitiveness report in Hollywood, FL.  While the report provides recommendations, the focus of the report is the nature of the challenges ahead.

• Bill Archey tells the Board that it will probably take nine months before official Washington begins to understand the nature of the problem.

On February 14, 2005 AeA releases its competitiveness report, Losing the Competitive Advantage?: The Challenge for Science and Technology in the United States.

• The report receives press coverage in the Boston Globe, Chicago Tribune, San Jose Mercury News, and New York Times Online, to name a few.
• Bill Archey and John Palafoutas, Senior Vice President, Domestic Policy and Congressional Affairs, brief Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA), from Silicon Valley.
• Archey authors 10 different op-ed pieces, which were published in various papers, including Capitol Hill’s Roll Call and the San Jose Mercury News.
• Anna Eshoo insists on Archey briefing Rep. George Miller (D-CA), Chairman of the House Democratic Policy Committee.
• Archey briefs Rep. George Miller (D-CA), and he and Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA) request that Archey brief the entire Democratic congressional delegation from California.
• Archey briefs California Democratic delegation including the minority leader of the House.
  (Highest attendance of the year at the monthly meeting of the California Delegation.)
• Bill Archey, Matthew Kazmierczak, Vice President, Research and Industry Analysis, and/or Josh James, Senior Manager, Research and Industry Analysis, brief a large number of members of Congress of both parties over the next four months. Total of 65 briefed.

October 2004
Bill Archey, President & CEO, AeA, gives initial presentation on competitiveness to the AeA Board of Directors in Silicon Valley and receives overwhelming support to issue a report analyzing the impact of competitiveness on the high-tech industry and to the future of the country.

March 2004
AeA releases Offshore Outsourcing in an Increasingly Competitive and Rapidly Changing World.  This report examines the factors surrounding offshore outsourcing and concludes that this is really a symptom of a much larger issue: that of U.S. competitiveness in a global marketplace.

Congress

White House

For more information on Competitiveness Contact:

Policy

• John Palafoutas

  Senior Vice President, Domestic Policy and Congressional Affairs

  202.682.4451

  John_Palafoutas@aeanet.org

Research and Industry Analysis

• Matthew Kazmierczak
  Vice President, Research and Industry Analysis
  202.682.4438
  matthew_kazmierczak@aeanet.org
  
  
• Josh James
  Senior Manager, Research and Industry Analysis
  202.682.4422
  josh_james@aeanet.org

Press

• Anne Caliguiri
  Director of Communications
  202.682.4443
  anne_caliguiri@aeanet.org