WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senators Mark Pryor (D-AR) and Mark Warner (D-VA) today introduced legislation to stimulate innovation in America by allowing federal agencies to organize prize competitions that reward scientific and technological developments and promote job growth.
“In recent years our economy has become stagnant, in part, because other countries are taking the lead in turning new ideas into new industries. We can jumpstart economic development and compete globally by motivating American innovation and rewarding entrepreneurs who take the risks needed to come up with the next great idea. American ingenuity has lifted up our country before and can do it again,” Pryor said.
“A good idea is a good idea no matter where it comes from,” Senator Warner said. “This proposal allows us to offer real incentives that will help jump-start efforts by our nation’s best and brightest from the public and private sectors to get us back in the race.”
The Reward Innovation in America Act implements recommendations from the National Academy of Science’s 2007 report on Innovation Inducement Prizes. The legislation authorizes federal agencies to hold competitions with monetary prizes in order to encourage innovation in basic and applied research, technology development, and prototype demonstration that advance the mission of an agency. Currently, only a few federal agencies have limited authority to hold competitions.
The United States has a long history of competition leading to new inventions and industries. Examples include:
- · Orteig Prize: In 1927, Charles Lindberg won the $25,000 Orteig Prize for the first non-stop flight from New York to Paris, which spurred the development of commercial aviation worldwide.
- · Oil Spill Recovery Institute Contest: After the Exxon-Valdez oil spill in 1989, the Oil Spill Recovery Institute of Cordova, Alaska, had trouble cleaning up the oil at the bottom of the Prince William Sound. The Institute put together a $20,000 contest for the best solution; a construction engineer from the Midwest won the prize, and the problem was solved.
- · Ansari X Prize: In 2004, the Ansari X Prize offered $10 million for the pursuit of innovations in the aviation industry. The winner was SpaceShipOne, the first private team to build and launch a spacecraft capable of carrying 3 people 100 kilometers above the earth’s surface. Since the winner was announced, there has been more than $1.5 billion spent in support of the private spaceflight industry.
- · L Prize: In 2009, the Department of Energy created the L Prize, a competition to spur lighting manufacturers to develop high-quality, high-efficiency lighting products to replace the common light bulb. The Department is offering $10 million and $5 million dollar prizes, and the competition is currently receiving submissions.
