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Senate debates USTAR shift toward commercialization amid criticism over taxpayer investment
Summary
Senate sponsors of SB166 said the measure shifts USTAR from basic research toward short-term commercialization and performance metrics after audit recommendations; Senator Dabakis criticized the program as "government picking winners," citing $18 million in taxpayer funds, while supporters defended reforms and monitoring. The bill was ordered to third reading with recorded votes.
Senator Milner and other floor sponsors outlined first substitute Senate Bill 166 as a refocusing of the USTAR program to emphasize commercialization, shorten time-to-market for technology transfer, and adopt auditor and independent assessor (SRI) recommendations. Speakers described a history in which USTAR helped leverage federal funding for research universities but…
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