Rep. Tammy Baldwin, a Democrat from Madison, said the plan was “necessary if the United States is to maintain a leadership role in technology and grow our economy in the 21st century.”
Baldwin said that “if the Congress adopts this agenda, both the UW-Madison and area businesses will surely benefit from increased federal support for research and development in alternative energy sources, high speed communications and biotechnology.” The University of Wisconsin-Madison was the fourth-biggest research institution in the country in fiscal 2003, according to National Science Foundation figures.