Report Describes Clinton Administration’s Technology Policies
Four more years of a Clinton-Gore White House and a Republican Congress is likely to mean four more years of disagreement over the proper role for the federal government in promoting technology development. While both parties agree that the government should support basic research, the country’s science and technology infrastructure, and a business climate that encourages innovation, consensus ends there. The Republicans, intent on limiting the federal government, feel it should stay out of technology development for commercial applications. The Clinton Administration argues that government is needed to encourage the development of technologies which would benefit the nation but are too risky, expensive, and long-term for any single company to pursue.
Earlier this year, President Clinton’s National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) released a 87-page report, “Technology in the National Interest.” Based on a 1993 Clinton-Gore policy document entitled “Technology for America’s Economic Growth,” (see FYI #23, 1993), this report documents the programs and policies put into place or strengthened by the Clinton Administration to improve the economy through advances in technology. “Technical progress is the single most important factor in generating sustained economic growth,” the report says, “estimated to account for as much as half the Nation’s long-term growth over the past 50 years.” Five main goals are outlined for federal policies: creating a business environment conducive to technological innovation; encouraging private-sector technology development and commercialization; investing in infrastructure; integrating the military and civilian industrial bases; and maintaining a world-class workforce. The NSTC report cites a number of initiatives endorsed by the Clinton Administration to accomplish each of these goals.
The first goal, achieving a good business climate, is described in the report as “perhaps the most important factor in the equation for national growth and prosperity.” Deficit reduction, removal of anti-trust barriers, extension of the research and experimentation tax credit, and attempts to eliminate unnecessary regulations and revise regulatory policies are advocated by both the Clinton Administration and the Republican Congress. Trade policies, such as NAFTA and GATT, help level the playing field so American companies have access to, and can compete fairly in, foreign markets. Goal Two involves fostering technology development and diffusion. “Today,” according to the report, “the development of new enabling technologies and emerging technologies...is at risk.” Government-industry partnership programs such as NIST’s Advanced Technology Program and Manufacturing Extension Partnerships, the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles, and the Environmental Technology Initiative are designed to use government resources to encourage and leverage private-sector investments.
While federal support for highways, power and communications infrastructure is still essential, the report says that “new kinds of infrastructure and innovative ways of managing and using existing facilities” are also needed. Federal investments have aided industry development of the National Information Infrastructure, a network of computers, communications, databases, and consumer electronics. The report adds, “there remain essential roles for government...[to] ensure the growth of an information infrastructure available to all Americans at a reasonable cost.”
Goal Four is the integration of military and civilian industrial bases. The NSTC report claims that spin-offs from defense R&D are no longer sufficient for the US to lead the world in civilian technologies, and the nation cannot afford to maintain two distinct industrial bases. The Administration’s efforts to break down the barriers between civilian and military sectors include dual-use technology programs and defense acquisition reform.
The final goal is the development and maintenance of a world-class workforce. Clinton Administration proposals to improve education and training include the Goals 2000 program to strengthen K-12 education; direct federal loans and tax deductions for higher education and training; fellowships and job training; and an emphasis, largely through the National Information Infrastructure, on lifelong learning.
The report is available through the Department of Commerce’s Office of Technology Policy Publications Request Line at: 202-482-3037, or on the World Wide Web at: http://www.ta.doc.gov/techni/techni.htm
