Defense Addiction by Sanford Gottlieb

Author:Sanford Gottlieb [Gottlieb, Sanford]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Social Science, General, Sociology
ISBN: 9780429969638
Google: JwHFDwAAQBAJ
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2018-02-12T03:35:46+00:00

Will Elections Alter the Picture?

John Rowland, a Republican, was elected governor in 1994 along with a GOP legislative majority on a platform of reduced spending and taxes. Will the changed political landscape wipe out earlier economic development measures?

One of these was the creation of Techconn, a private nonprofit corporation. Its mission is to generate manufacturing jobs for displaced defense workers through emerging environmental, energy, transportation, and marine technologies. For example, with federal, state, and private funds and industrial partners, Techconn is attempting to convert municipal sewage sludge into electric power for motor vehicles. Connecticut is also helping fund a joint project in which Techconn and others bring electronic lessons about energy and the environment into school classrooms.

Clifford Neal, Techconn’s former president and general manager, found federal funding through TRP to be “disappointing.”7 The amount of money was not the problem; TRP provided over $1 million to Techconn for several projects. Rather, the problem was the requirement that all new technologies have a military as well as civilian use. “The program has been hijacked by the Defense Department,” Neal complained. “Dual use is being used to save costs on military research and development, with industry paying half.”

“Dual use” was also built into Connecticut’s Defense Information and Services Network (DISN), which helps defense firms both secure additional military contracts and identify alternative markets. DISN has used a federal grant to provide field consultants to businesses, to conduct workshops and conferences with federal procurement officials, and to publish a newsletter and a resource guide to key technologies.

Betsy Hunt, special project manager for the Connecticut Department of Economic Development, says that this civilian-military approach is designed to improve Connecticut firms’ competitiveness in either sector.8 She also reported in fall 1995 that the only change made by the Rowland administration as of that time was abandonment of state grants to defense firms. From the outset, however, most financial aid to these firms had been loans and loan guarantees, not grants.9

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