September 19, 2013
Dear President Obama and Members of the 113th Congress:
We, as associations representing the high tech business community, stand with and
echo the sentiments of the 165 university presidents’ recent open letter to you regarding
our nation’s “Innovation Deficit.” This call to action transcends the initiatives or agendas
of any one person, group, sector, or political party. Working together to close the
Innovation Deficit should be one of the highest priorities of our country. Can we, as a
nation afford to jeopardize America’s role as the world’s innovation leader any longer?
The answer is obviously no, particularly as we have observed firsthand the alarming
consequences of a “widening gap between needed and actual investments” in American
education, research, and scientific innovation.
We understand the broader fiscal pressures our nation faces and applaud your focus on
this fundamental challenge. However, America’s competitiveness and future innovation
capabilities cannot be held in limbo or sacrificed amidst the constantly changing,
hypercompetitive global economy in which our member companies operate. Federal
dollars invested in long-term basic research yield extraordinary returns for society–
providing the foundation for game changing ideas, new industries, and the 21st century
workforce driving them.
While the federal government is uniquely positioned to invest in long-term research and
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) education, our member
companies also significantly contribute to the nation’s innovation framework, even
during periods of declining revenue, because they know that these investments will
have the highest rate of return in the future. Industry leaders prioritize expenditures that
keep companies moving forward, devoting up to 20 percent of revenues to research and
development (R&D) annually. We encourage policymakers to employ the same strategy
and consider the potential return on research investments when making budget and
appropriations decisions this year.
The success of our great country is in part attributable to continuous advances in
technology, enabled by the tenacity and caliber of a high-skilled workforce, publicprivate partnerships, and an unparalleled university ecosystem. We strongly encourage
Congress and the Administration to recommit to strong and sustained federal
investments in basic research, including taking steps to realize the vision outlined in the
last two authorizations of the America COMPETES Act.
We stand ready to partner with you to answer the call to “Close the Innovation Deficit”.
Sincerely,
Marion C. Blakey
President & CEO
Aerospace Industries Association (AIA)
Brian C. Toohey
President & CEO
Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA)
Jeff Burnstein
President
Association for Advancing Automation (A3)
Dennis C. McGuirk
President & CEO
Semiconductor Equipment and Materials
International (SEMI)
Edward Black
President & CEO
Computer & Communications Industry Association
Rhone Resch
President & CEO
Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA)
Todd Thibodeaux
President & CEO
CompTIA
Ken Wasch
President
Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA)
Deborah L. Wince-Smith
President & CEO
Council on Competitiveness
Shawn Osborne
President & CEO
TechAmerica
Dean Garfield
President & CEO
Information Technology Industry Council
Bob Moore
Executive Director
Technology Councils of North America (TECNA)
James J. Greenberger
Executive Director
National Alliance for Advanced Technology
Batteries
Grant Seiffert
President
Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA)