Welcome to the December edition of A Capitol View.
SMI is playing a greater role convening government and industry organizations seeking bipartisan collaboration to tackle some of the thorniest public policy and investment challenges.
Gather ‘round: We are regularly hosting government agencies, clients, and other stakeholders in our first-class meeting space for panel discussions and workshops – on topics ranging from overcoming hurdles to domestic manufacturing and adopting advanced materials to building robust supply chains for electric batteries and critical minerals.
Full steam ahead: Last month, SMI Senior VP Jeremy Steslicki organized an invite-only conference on behalf of the Marine Machinery Association (MMA), a leading forum for military and commercial shipbuilders and suppliers. Steslicki leads SMI’s Shipbuilding and Naval Research Practice Area, which specializes in helping clients secure federal funding to develop and deploy technologies and maritime platforms for the Navy.
Conference highlights: Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona, a member of the Armed Services Committee co-sponsor of the SHIPS for America Act, provided opening remarks. Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro reported earlier this month that he expects Congress to introduce the SHIPS for America Act in the coming days.
The conference’s lunch speaker was Rep. John Rutherford from Florida, a member of the Appropriations Committee who represents Navy installations and shipbuilding maintenance and repair facilities in the Jacksonville area.
In the trenches: SMI’s VP for Communications Strategy Bryan Bender moderated a lively bipartisan panel on Navy challenges and Capitol Hill priorities for improving the sea service’s shipbuilding programs, featuring top congressional defense committee staff.
Attendees also heard from top DoD and Navy industrial base and supply officials, while representatives from leading shipbuilders and suppliers shared common challenges in supporting the Navy and attracting the workforce needed to meet the nation’s maritime demands.
“SMI was a fantastic host, and their facility was perfect for this meeting,” said John Rhatigan, MMA board chairman.
Contact SMI VP Bryan Bender to learn more about SMI events.
DECISION 2024
LEADERSHIP CHANGES: Republican control of the White House and both chambers of Congress next month means new agency leaders and chairs of House and Senate committees that set policy and funding priorities.
President-elect Donald Trump will be responsible for filling 4,000 vacancies in executive branch departments, from cabinet and sub-cabinet appointments, to a variety of other political appointments. He intends to nominate for Senate confirmation Pete Hegseth to be Secretary of Defense and Chris Wright to be Secretary of Energy, among others.
Taking the gavel: In the Senate, where Republicans have gained a three-seat majority, Sen. John Thune of South Dakota has been elected Majority Leader, while Sen. John Barrasso of Wyoming has been elected Majority Whip.
Sen. Susan Collins of Maine will chair the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, while Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the outgoing Republican Leader, is slated to chair the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee.
Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas is likely to be the next Chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, while Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi is almost certain to chair the Senate Armed Services Committee.
On the Democratic side, Sens. Chuck Schumer of New York and Dick Durbin of Illinois were re-elected as party leader and whip. The No. 3 spot, meanwhile, went to Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, who was elected chair of the Steering and Policy Committee.
Other lineups: Republicans will narrowly retain their majority in the House, where several key committee chairmanships were up for grabs.
On the Energy and Commerce Committee, Reps. Brett Guthrie of Kentucky will replace outgoing Rep. Cathy McMorris Rogers of Washington State. Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma will remain Chairman of the House Appropriations Committee and Rep. Ken Calvert of California will retain the gavel of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee.
Meanwhile, Rep. Brian Mast of Florida has been elected Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Along with his counterpart Sen. Jim Risch of Idaho, Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, he will play a key role in shaping America’s relations with China and the implementation of President Trump’s tariff policy.
Minority report: The House Democratic Caucus also selected many of its ranking committee leaders, with many retaining their positions from the last Congress, including Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut for Appropriations, Rep. Richard Neal of Massachusetts for Ways and Means, and Rep. Frank Pallone of New Jersey for Energy and Commerce.
WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
‘PROBLEMS AND OPPORTUNITIES’: SMI client UMass Lowell continues to expand the Lowell Innovation Network Corridor, a transformational public-private partnership announced earlier this year to marry economic development with STEM education.
UMass Lowell and Science Applications International Corporation launched a Cyber Center of Excellence to strengthen the resilience of the defense industrial base and expand the pipeline of skilled cyber professionals across the region.
‘Laser-focused’: “Our administration has been laser-focused on competing for our nation’s leading companies to grow here in Massachusetts, and on providing opportunities to advance and grow our state’s workforce,” said Massachusetts Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll. “This partnership prioritizes our state’s innovation economy while also ensuring we’re setting our state, and our country, up for a safer cyber future.”
“UMass Lowell appreciates the ever-evolving relationship between national security and cyber readiness, and the importance of advancing research into relevant cyber infrastructure,” said UMass Lowell Chancellor Julie Chen. “Partnering with SAIC gives students, professors, and regional industry partners alike the opportunity to better understand the associated challenges within this relationship, and to better posture for problems and opportunities as they arise in the future.”
Read more: Cyber Center Added to LINC Business Chain
Plus: UMass Lowell and Home Base Collaborate to Support Veterans’ Health and Well-Being
TECHNOLOGY
COMMON EFFORT: In the latest win for some of SMI’s clients, the Department of Defense announced another $160 million in awards as part of the Microelectronics Commons program, a network of tech hubs funded by the CHIPS and Science Act to advance U.S. leadership in semiconductors.
The awards follow previous rounds of $269 million for 33 new technical projects and $240 million to launch the eight national hubs.
‘Next industrial revolution’: Meanwhile, the DoD also funded nine additional proposals for its Distributed Bioindustrial Manufacturing Program, which is intended to carry out the 2022 executive order on “Advancing Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Innovation for a Sustainable, Safe, and Secure American Bioeconomy.”
“The next industrial revolution will be a biomanufacturing revolution. DoD is keenly aware of that reality,” said Heidi Shyu, Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering. She said the latest investment “will help transition U.S. bioindustrial manufacturing from the laboratory to a network of large-scale production facilities” and “fortify defense supply chains for critical chemicals and novel materials.”
For more information contact SMI Director Aarzu Maknojia.
BATT SIGNAL: SMI has taken the reins of a new and growing industry coalition dedicated to sustaining a domestic supply chain for electric battery components and the critical materials that make them possible.
‘National security implications’: The BATT Coalition had its first D.C. fly-in last month. Member companies and coalition leaders met with bipartisan lawmakers and congressional staff to advocate for tax reforms that secure and grow the domestic battery supply chain for defense systems, energy storage, electric vehicles, and other applications critical to ensuring U.S. economic competitiveness and national security.
“On both sides of the aisle, we saw staff members that understood the national security implications of not having a domestic battery supply chain,” Ross Kirschner, general counsel at Mitra Chem, told reporters during a media roundtable held at SMI.
More news coverage of the BATT fly-in:
U.S. Auto and Battery Makers Are Poised to Fight Trump’s Anti-EV Plans
What to expect on critical minerals during the lame duck
Why the Energy Industry Doesn’t Think Trump Will Unravel All of Biden’s Climate Legacy
Related: China bans export of critical minerals to U.S. as trade tensions escalate
Plus: The Outlook for IRA Tech-Neutral Tax Credits — What Companies Need to Know
LIFE SCIENCES
‘QUICKER AND WITH HIGHER CONFIDENCE’: SMI is closely tracking a newly launched investment program under the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) seeking proposals for AI and medical imaging.
The INDEX program “aims to create a platform that seamlessly links data providers, data users, and service providers with high quality images that will enable robust, trustworthy AI tool development for pathology and radiology.”
“Importantly,” it adds, “the tools developed using INDEX will help doctors read medical images quicker and with higher confidence, reducing physician burnout and getting patients to a diagnosis – and potential treatment – faster.”
Mark your calendars: A Proposer’s Day is set for Jan.9, 2025, while solution briefs are due Jan. 23.
For more information contact SMI VP Travis Taylor.
DEFENSE
ON THE AGENDA: SMI COO Ken Wetzel briefed the Joint Defense Manufacturing Technology Panel during their recent meeting at the Defense Manufacturing Conference (DMC) in Austin, TX.
The DMC conference also featured a who’s who of the Department of Defense and military laboratory leaders in manufacturing, prototyping, and advanced materials and packaging.
Notable attendees included Anthony Di Stasio, Aissa Tovar, Adele Ratcliff, Aisha Haynes, Keith DeVries, Greg Hudas, and Bryan Bojanowski.
SMI had a large presence at DMC this year, where we were proud to support some of the nation’s most innovative companies and research universities as they work with the DoD at all levels to turn concepts into capabilities.
POLICY CHOP: In case you missed it, the compromise version of the Fiscal Year 2025 National Defense Authorization Act, the annual legislation that sets defense policy, is finally out. Next stop is final consideration by the House and Senate this month, before it goes to President Joe Biden for signature.
DoD tech news: CDAO and DIU Launch New Effort Focused on Accelerating DOD Adoption of AI Capabilities
Plus: At California Reagan Forum, the tech bros storm the Pentagon old guard
ENERGY
‘INCREDIBLE POTENTIAL’: SMI is proud to be at the forefront of helping realize the full potential of marine energy is powering our future.
Congrats to our clients University of Michigan, Oregon State University, Florida Atlantic University, and California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo for being among the recipients of $18 million in new U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) grants for research and development of marine energy and offshore wind projects.
“The oceans hold incredible potential for renewable energy to power homes, businesses, and even offshore work such as marine research,” said Jeff Marootian assistant secretary of energy who oversees the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. “These projects harness the creativity of researchers at universities across the country to spur innovation in marine and ocean renewable energy.”
Dream team: Kudos to SMI’s marine energy and hydropower team, including VPs Damian Kunko, Paul Gay, and Jeffrey Leahey, who have partnered with some of the leading water power innovators to sharpen the policies and budgets to unleash what is widely regarded as an untapped clean energy resource.
Related: An experiment in Oregon might help wave energy take off
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