THIS WEEK IN SOUTH CAROLINA The South Carolina General Assembly returned in statewide session last week after having been on Easter furlough.
H.3151 (Requisite Study of the US Constitution) was passed out of the Higher Education Subcommittee with several proposed changes to clarify and update the language. The bill will go before the full House Education and Public Works Committee this week.
The State Budget Process The full Senate Finance Committee began work on the budget last week. Most of the Committee's work was focused on proviso changes. Committee budget deliberations will continue this week.
Detailed information on Clemson's 2015 state legislative and budget priorities for FY 2015-16 may be found at these links:
BILLS OF INTEREST The Clemson University Governmental Affairs office is monitoring several bills that have potential impact on Clemson. A complete listing of these bills may be found here. Click on the bill number for a description of the legislation, along with the bill's current status.
CLEMSON ON CAPITOL HILL Wall Street Journal Op-Ed on Patent Bill by University Presidents Last week, President Jim Clements and President Robert Brown of Boston University wrote an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal on the Innovation Act (H.R.9). The op-ed acknowledges the need to address abusive patent practices, but highlights the areas of concern with the current legislation before Congress.
House and Senate Members Introduce Grace Period Restoration Act A bipartisan group of House and Senate members has introduced legislation to clarify that the comprehensive patent reform bill enacted in 2011, the America Invents Act (AIA), provides a one-year grace period during which inventors can discuss or write publicly about their discoveries without jeopardizing their intellectual property rights.
COMPETES Act Reauthorization Introduced in the House On April 15, House Science Committee Chairman Lamar Smith (R-TX) introduced the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2015 (H.R. 1806). This legislation is a two year reauthorization of the National Science Foundation (NSF), Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), and some programs within the Department of Energy (DoE). This legislation is scheduled for a markup by the full committee on Wednesday, April 22.
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