TechWonk Blog Subsection
TechWonk Blog
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I joined a conversation this week (on Feb 26) called the 鈥淕reenGov Dialogue on Demand Response鈥� that was hosted by the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). It brought together leaders from government, the private sector, non-profits and academia to identify opportunities to reduce our nation鈥檚 periods of peak energy demand, promote a more stable electric grid, and help the Federal Government [...]
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The Subcommittee on Energy and Power held its Hearing聽Tuesday聽on "American Energy Security and Innovation: An Assessment of Private-Sector Successes and Opportunities in Energy Efficient Technologies." The staff background memo, the witness list, written testimony and other info is聽here. I only caught portions, as the Hearing lasted 4 hours, and was held concurrently with the CEQ-hosted聽GreenGov Dialogue [...]
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The expansion of the Information Technology Agreement (ITA) is both an ambitious and achievable trade deal that can be completed this year.聽 But it鈥檚 going to require a lot more sweat equity from the private sector, as well as the Obama Administration.聽 That鈥檚 the message 91快活林 and 19 other major economic and business organizations today sent in a letter to President Obama.聽 In that letter, the heads [...]
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We鈥檙e two days from the deadline that Congress and the President set for themselves to find a solution to dodge the indiscriminate, across-the-board cuts to federally funded programs, otherwise known as sequestration.聽 Sequestration, if you remember, was the mechanism approved by Congress and the President in 2011 to spur greater focus by both to take steps address the nation鈥檚 deficits.聽 It was believed, [...]
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In a report that would have made Casablanca鈥檚 Captain Renault blush, this morning鈥檚 Marketplace Morning Report discovered the 鈥渟hocking鈥� news that U.S.-headquartered multinational companies keep their foreign earnings in foreign markets, and by doing so, they are able to defer any U.S. taxes on those earnings until it is invested in the U.S.聽 This isn鈥檛 new -- tax deferral been a feature of U.S. tax [...]
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As Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan meets with President Obama today at the White House, this is the right moment for him to announce that his nation is ready to join the United States and 10 other countries in the negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).聽 Such a step would increase considerably the potential economic significance of an agreement and almost certainly ensure that, if [...]
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The White House today聽released a report聽that is intended to set the stage for greater coordination across the federal government to protect the intellectual property of American business. 聽As part of the release, I participated in a panel discussion that examined the global challenges that companies face in this arena. 聽Here鈥檚 what I had to say, excerpted from the full discussion. * * * * *聽 聽 Dean [...]
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The usual snail鈥檚 pace of Washington does not appear to apply to efforts to advance skilled immigration reform.聽 The past seven days have featured an important hearing on comprehensive immigration reform in the Senate and the introduction of two high-skilled immigration bills on the same day.聽 All of this activity, and the events that preceded it, can only mean one thing: 聽Real immigration reform is [...]
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The reaction from Democratic and Republican Members of Congress to Tuesday night鈥檚 State of the Union Address and Republican response show the genuine opportunity for the development of a next-generation energy strategy that can jumpstart U.S. job creation and economic growth.聽 And the technology sector can be a leader in this effort, utilizing innovative products that boost efficiency and productivity [...]
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Think of helium, and we think birthday balloons and silly high-pitched voices.聽 But helium plays a number of critical roles in our economy 鈥� from health care to high-tech manufacturing.聽 Helium is a key component in MRI machines, for instance, and we couldn鈥檛 make the semiconductors for our computers and other electronics without it.聽 That鈥檚 why a looming cut-off of helium sales is so concerning, and [...]
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