Science and Technology Education
Our students must be provided with well-trained math and science teachers and state-of-the-art curriculums to keep pace with today’s job markets. As a member of the House Science Committee, Congressman Baird believes we must improve the performance of our young people in science, technology, and mathematical fields. That’s why Congressman Baird is a cosponsor of the 10,000 Teachers, 10 Million Minds Science and Math Scholarship Act. This legislation establishes a scholarship program at the National Science Foundation (NSF) to provide scholarships to science, math, and engineering students who commit to become science or math teachers at elementary and secondary schools; authorizes summer teacher training institutes at the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Department of Energy to improve the content knowledge and pedagogical skills of in-service science and math teachers; establishes a master’s degree program at NSF for in-service science and mathematics teachers; and establishes training programs at NSF for preparing science and math teachers to teach Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate courses in science and math.
Small Business Innovation Research
Our economy depends on innovation for continued growth, and research indicates that small businesses tend to be more dynamic and inventive than large corporations. The federal government’s Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) program was designed to encourage small businesses to meet these goals and develop innovative technologies.
In 2001, however, the Small Business Administration (SBA) ruled that companies receiving more than 51 percent of their financial backing from venture capitalists were excluded from the SBIR program. After talking with a venture capital-backed small business innovator in his congressional district that was deemed ineligible for SBIR grant funds, Congressman Baird set to work on getting the rule changed. Venture capital-backed small businesses conduct an array of innovative, life-saving research and development programs, and many of these innovative small businesses could not support their costly research without some venture capital funding. Congressman Baird believes the 2001 SBIR ruling conflicts with the original intent of the law; SBIR was established in 1982 to encourage small businesses to explore their technological and commercial potential, and to enable them to compete with larger businesses.
Additionally, Congressman Baird has been working with his colleagues on the Science Committee to improve the SBIR program and address some of the barriers that prevent small businesses from commercializing the technologies that they develop under it. SBIR is the single largest technology development program supported by the federal government, but has received little congressional oversight since its creation. Congressman Baird supports common sense SBIR reforms that ensure federal research and development investments ultimately stimulate job creation and economic growth.
Tsunami Detection
In December of 2004, a deadly tsunami ravaged Southeast Asia. Congressman Baird
believes the U.S. can and must learn from this tragedy. The devastation in Asia
has made it alarmingly clear that our federal, state, and local governments must
work together to ensure that Washington has a fully functioning tsunami detection
and alert system. Funding the programs that will protect our coastal communities
is not a choice, it is a requirement. Congressman Baird strongly supports the
Administration’s decision to allocate further funding for tsunami detection
programs, and has worked, and will continue to work, to make sure that communities
along the Long Beach Peninsula, the Columbia River, and Washington’s entire
coast are adequately protected.
Cyber Security
The U.S. economy relies on a vast information infrastructure. Unfortunately,
this infrastructure is every bit as vulnerable as our physical infrastructure
is to terrorist attack. Imagine, for instance, if the September 11th terrorists
had simultaneously launched a cyber attack, throwing our financial markets in
chaos, disabling our air traffic control system, and undermining critical communications
networks. Such attacks are indeed possible and very probable unless Congress
provides the resources to reinforce our IT infrastructure. Congressman Baird
introduced legislation to establish a formidable research effort, using the brightest
minds in the academic community, to bolster the integrity of our computer network
infrastructure. He reached across party lines with Science Committee Chairman
Boehlert to pass the Cyber Security Research and Development Act, which ultimately
became law.
Invasive Species
Invasive species may not receive much attention in national political debates,
but they represent one of the most profound threats to our local environment
and economy. In Southwest Washington, for instance, Spartina grass has invaded
Willapa Bay, creating an ecological dead-zone, and threatening the very existence
of our local shellfish industry. In addition to securing appropriations to fight
Spartina, Congressman Baird helped create three separate bills to provide additional
resources to identify and combat invasive species: the National Aquatic Invasive
Species Act, the Aquatic Invasive Species Research Act, and the Harmful
Algal
Bloom and Hypoxia Research Amendments Act. Congressman Baird is also leading
efforts to prevent the introduction of Zebra Mussels into our West Coast ecosystems.
These freshwater mussels have proliferated in the Great Lakes and Mississippi
river region, causing billions of dollars in economic and environmental damage.
Nobel Prize
In April of 2006, the House of Representatives unanimously passed a resolution
authored by Congressman Baird to honor the 2005 Nobel Laureates in the fields
of Physics and Chemistry as well as acknowledge the importance of National Institute
of Standards and Technology (NIST) research and its contributions to United States
industry, academia, and government. Congressman Baird hopes that the passage
of this resolution, along with other similar resolutions, will inspire a new
generation of students eager to pursue careers in math and science.
Earthquakes
On February 28, 2001, Washington state was struck by a 6.8 magnitude earthquake,
the epicenter of which was located only a few miles from Olympia. A federal program,
known as the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program (NEHRP), helped mitigate
the quake’s impact on local communities. The NEHRP program provides builders
and engineers with assistance to design and construct structures that can withstand
powerful earthquakes.
The NEHRP program remains tremendously important to our region because Washington
will inevitably experience more earthquakes in the future. When Congress reorganized
the federal government to create a Department of Homeland Security, it inadvertently
included NEHRP in the new department. NEHRP was not intended as a homeland security
program, and its inclusion in DHS added an additional layer of bureaucracy, without
providing any additional benefit. To remedy this, Congressman Baird introduced
bipartisan legislation to return NEHRP to the Department of Commerce, streamlining
the program and ensuring our communities remain protected. Congressman Baird’s
legislation passed the House on October 1, 2003.
Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology is a developing science that has the potential to revolutionize
our world. Nanotech scientists study tiny units, such as single cells and molecules.
Nanotech scientists and engineers are currently working to identify diseases
at their earliest stages, utilizing only a small tissue sample, such as a piece
of hair or even a single cell. These tests could be applied to livestock, and
diseases such as Mad Cow could be identified within seconds, whereas the current
test is cumbersome, expensive, and time-consuming. These measurements could be
analyzed by ultra-rapid diagnostic tools that respond in real time.
Congressman Baird has secured funds to allow significant nanotech research to
occur in Washington state. This research may ultimately transform our world,
while simultaneously creating a new high-tech manufacturing sector for nanotech
devices in our own state.
Small Businesses and Technological Innovation
Our economy is dependent on innovation for continued growth, and research indicates
that small businesses tend to be more dynamic and inventive than large corporations.
Currently, the government operates a program called the Small Business Innovative
Research (SBIR) program to encourage small businesses to develop innovative technologies
for federal use as well as to encourage commercialization for individual companies.
Unfortunately, the program has become out of reach for many companies with venture
capital investment. These companies are foten cot cleared under the definition
of “small business,” even though they may only have a handful of
direct employees. Congressman Baird is a cosponsor of legislation to allow some
companies with venture capital investment from accessing the SBIR program. He
is also working on legislation to reform the program and address some of the
barriers that prevent small businesses from commercializing the technologies
that they develop under the program. |
