May 7, 2003

This morning:

This afternoon:
 
- Mitch Daniels, the White House's budget director, announced yesterday that he will step down in a month. While he has not officially announced his future plans, it is assumed that he will run for governor of Indiana. Who President Bush selects as successor will have an impact on the ongoing negotiations with Congress on his tax cut plans for the next decade.

- Today, the House is expected to pass a bill that authorizes an increase in federal funds for nanotechnology research (see second news item, below). This is the first in several key steps needed to make these increases reality. The Senate also must approve the legislation before the bill can be sent to the President for signature. Following this step, members of the Appropriations Committees must approve any actual allocation of additional funds towards this field of research.

- In the news:

10 UNIVERSITIES CUT PROGRAMS FOR MINORITIES
Summer Sessions Faced Legal Threats
By Bryan A. Keogh, Chicago Tribune, May 7, 2003

Several public and private universities, including Princeton University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, have announced they will eliminate or alter summer programs and scholarships that accept only minorities. The schools' decisions follow a campaign by two anti-affirmative action groups that wrote letters to the universities, threatening to file complaints against them with the Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights if the programs were not changed. The universities generally say they did not modify or end their programs solely because of the letters. But at least 10 schools took the action after being warned that their programs might be illegal, and in some cases after the groups' complaints prompted a government investigation.

Much attention has focused on a pending Supreme Court case that will decide whether race can be a factor in school admissions. The anti-affirmative action groups are targeting a different aspect of academic life--scholarships and summer programs that exclusively benefit African-Americans, Hispanics or other minorities in an attempt to remedy decades of discrimination. Although the programs vary, they typically seek to improve underrepresented minorities' chances for admission to undergraduate or graduate schools. "We're not asking that programs be ended, just opened up," said Roger Clegg, general counsel of the Center for Equal Opportunity, which sent the letters along with the American Civil Rights Institute. "If you're a member of the wrong race, you're not eligible for the program--period."


*** Complete article (free registration required) at http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-0305070260may07,1,664460.story?coll=chi%2Dnews%2Dhed


BACKERS OF NANOTECHNOLOGY RESEARCH FUNDING CITE POTENTIAL FUTURE BENEFITS
By Joseph C. Anselmo, CQ Today, May 6, 2003

The House is scheduled to vote Wednesday on a bill aimed at keeping the United States competitive in the emerging field of nanotechnology. The bill (HR 766) would authorize $2.4 billion over the next three years for federally funded research into nanotechnology, a revolutionary science that involves manipulating matter on the scale of a billionth of a meter -- roughly half the width of a strand of DNA. The bipartisan bill was introduced by House Science Committee Chairman Sherwood Boehlert, R-N.Y., and approved by the committee on May 1 without opposition. It has 24 cosponsors. A similar measure (S 189) is pending in the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.
 
Boehlert's bill builds on a presidential nanotechnology research initiative launched by President Bill Clinton in 2000 and expanded by President Bush. Proponents say the science will spur profound technological advances over the next two decades in industries such as computing, medicine and energy.  A National Science Foundation adviser projects the market in products that carry nano-components could reach $1 trillion annually by 2015.

*** CQ Today is available online to subscribers only.


SUPREME COURT REQUESTS GOVERNMENT BRIEF IN 'EXPERIMENTAL USE' CASE
From the American Council on Education, May 8, 2003

The Supreme Court has requested that U.S. Solicitor General Theodore Olson submit a brief in what could become a landmark case for research universities in the area of experimental use doctrine. For 170 years, U.S. legal doctrine has held that university researchers could freely borrow patented technologies for limited use in basic research for noncommercial ventures. In October 2002, the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals nullified the "experimental use doctrine" in a decision handed down in the case Madey vs. Duke University.  "A request for a brief to the solicitor general clearly signals that at least one member of the court is interested in exploring the experimental use doctrine," said Sheldon Steinbach, ACE vice president and general counsel. "This is a positive sign for research universities and the research community."

The case stems from a 1997 lawsuit initiated by Professor John Madey, charging Duke and six individuals with patent infringement after leaving Duke for Stanford University. The Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, which has nationwide jurisdiction over patent issues, created new law by narrowing the experimental use doctrine in a way that effectively eliminates the doctrine. The appeals court held that major research universities such as Duke often sanction and fund research projects with arguably no commercial application whatsoever. However, these projects unmistakably further the institution's legitimate business objectives, including educating participating students and faculty.

The Federal Circuit Court's opinion is currently in effect and applies not only to Duke but to all research institutions with equal force. ACE has joined an amicus brief filed on behalf of Duke by the Association of American Medical Colleges and 29 colleges and higher education organizations asking the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn the federal appeals court ruling.

*** (This is the complete article.)


REP. BLUNT BRINGING BACK A SCALED-DOWN 'FAITH-BASED INITIATIVE'
Harold Ford Jr. to Lead Effort for House Democrats
By Bill Swindell, CQ Today, May 6, 2003

House Republican leaders have recruited Tennessee Democrat Rep. Harold E. Ford Jr. to help them replicate a bipartisan strategy used two years ago on legislation intended to spur charitable donations. House Majority Whip Roy Blunt of Missouri will unveil on Wednesday a new bill designed to use tax breaks to spur charitable giving -- a vastly scaled-back version of President Bush's "faith-based initiative." Blunt persuaded Ford to join as the primary cosponsor to help pick up Democratic support.

The bipartisan outreach mimics the 2001 effort of former House Conference Chairman J.C. Watts Jr. of Oklahoma (1995-2003) and Rep. Tony P. Hall, D-Ohio, (1979-2003) on their bill to funnel more federal money to religious charities. That bill passed on a 233-198 vote after two days of acrimonious debate, but the Senate never considered the measure. This year's measure is expected to pass without much controversy, since the Senate passed its bill (S 476) April 9 by a vote of 95-5.

*** (This is the complete article.)


LIVE WEBCAST TOMORROW ON VETERANS AND RADIATION EXPOSURE
From the National Academies, May 7, 2003

The federal government's assessment of compensation eligibility for veterans who participated in nuclear-weapons testing is the topic of a one-hour public briefing on Thursday, May 8. Join the event by listening to a live audio Webcast (requires free RealPlayer) and submitting questions using an e-mail form, both accessible on the home page after 11 a.m. CDT.

*** The link can be found at www.National-Academies.org 

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