Action on U.S. Jobs & Innovation

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(August 9, 2007) President Signs Gordon's COMPETES Act

(Washington, DC) – Equipping teachers, educating students, investing in research and stimulating America’s economy are the goals of H.R. 2272, the America COMPETES Act, a bill signed into law this morning by President Bush at the White House.

“We have to recognize there are roughly seven billion people in the world, half of whom make less than $2 a day. We cannot and would not want to compete with that,” said Gordon. “We have to compete at a higher level with a better equipped and skilled workforce than that of our global counterparts.”

The bill, which will help secure the U.S.’s ability to compete in the global marketplace, was steered through Congress by House Science & Technology Committee Chairman Bart Gordon (D-TN) and Congressional leaders based upon the recommendations of the National Academies’ 2005 report, “Rising Above the Gathering Storm.”

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(May 23, 2007) Committee Advances ARPA-E Legislation

(Washington, DC) – The House Committee on Science and Technology today approved four pieces of legislation with goals of furthering federal research and development in the energy and healthcare information technology arenas.

Among the bills marked up today by the full Committee was H.R. 364, to provide for the establishment of the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy, the third piece from Chairman Bart Gordon’s (D-TN) innovation package to clear the Committee.

The bill was adopted by a bipartisan vote of 25-12.

“U.S. dependence on traditional energy sources and outdated technologies has put us in a perilous position – we can not afford to wait until we face severe disruptions to fossil energy supplies or serious impacts from climate change to address this challenge,” Gordon said.

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(May 21, 2007) - House Passes Major U.S. Competitiveness, Science/Math Education Package

(Washington, DC) Today, the U.S. House of Representatives followed through on a commitment to insure U.S. students, teachers, businesses and workers are prepared to continue leading the world in innovation, research and technology - well into the future.

"I can't repeat it often enough - providing high quality jobs for hard working Americans must be our first priority. And in order to accomplish that, we must be proactive," said House Committee on Science and Technology Chairman Bart Gordon (D-TN). "This package of legislation is proactive and far-reaching. It puts in place measures designed to advance U.S. innovation, which in turns advances our economy."

H.R. 2272, the 21st Century Competitiveness Act of 2007, passed the House today by voice vote. The bill represents an integral piece of the House Democrats' "Innovation Agenda." The legislative package is comprised of bills authored and steered by the House Committee on Science and Technology - H.R. 362, H.R. 363, H.R. 1068, H.R. 1867 and H.R. 1868. Each of these bills previously passed the House by wide bipartisan margins.

House passage of H.R. 2272 today sets in motion a conference with similar bipartisan innovation and competitiveness legislation which recently passed the U.S. Senate - S. 761, the America COMPETES Act.

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(April 24, 2007) - House Clears Bills Aimed at Aimed at Boosting U.S. Competitiveness, Advances Democratic Innovation Agenda

The U.S. House of Representatives today cleared two bills that comprise key components of the Democrats' Innovation Agenda aimed at strengthening U.S. basic research, and improving and supporting the national corps of math and science teachers.

H.R. 362, the "10,000 Teachers, 10 Million Minds" Science and Math Scholarship Act and H.R. 363, Sowing the Seeds through Science and Engineering Research Act, cleared the House today by wide bipartisan margins.

The bills were both authored by Rep. Bart Gordon (D-TN), Chairman of the House Science & Technology Committee. They are based upon the recommendations of the National Academies' widely-acknowledged "Rising Above the Gathering Storm" report, which found that the U.S. stands to lose its competitive edge in the international economy unless immediate action is taken.

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(January 10, 2007) - Chairman Renews Effort to Make U.S. Most Innovative, Well-Educated Country in the World

"These bills are familiar and their provisions are widely acknowledged. They serve to enact measures to strengthen the standing in the global economy, make sure our kids are prepared for the careers of the future and usher in bold changes to this country's approach to energy research," said Chairman Gordon.

The legislative package will serve as the vehicle for a broader discussion of these issues by the Committee. Chairman Gordon intends to move all three bills through the Committee early this year and send them on to the full House for consideration.  This package will serve as a cornerstone of the Democrats' Competitiveness and Innovation Agenda.

(June 7, 2006) - Democrats Significantly Improve and Support House Competitiveness Legislation

The U.S. House Committee on Science today advanced legislation aimed at spurring global competitiveness and improving science and math education.  Committee Democrats were successful in shaping the legislation to address the key recommendations of a National Academy of Sciences (NAS) report entitled Rising Above the Gathering Storm. That influential report was issued last fall and warned the U.S. could fall behind our global counterparts without immediate action....

"The substitute legislation to H.R. 5356 and H.R. 5358, which I have cosponsored, meld provisions from the majority's bills and my bipartisan bills, H.R.4434 and H.R. 4596," said Ranking Member Rep. Bart Gordon (D-TN).  "I want to thank the Chairman and other Members of the Majority for working with me to improve both the scope and funding levels authorized in the manager's amendments so that they are more in-line with National Academy report."...