At a time when California's economic future increasingly relies on scientific and engineering expertise, major federal funded laboratories provide critically important know-how and highly specialized facilities. California has over 40, more than any other state, and their presence spurs innovation in high-tech industries; they serve as a magnet for some of the best scientific minds in the nation. Even so, they remain a largely untapped resource by the state, according to a new CCST report, California's Federal Laboratories: A State Resource.

"These federal laboratories are already a vital part of California's overall capabilities in science and technology," said Lawrence Papay, CCST council chair. "But they have expertise the state isn't always aware of and could be using today to address a wide range of issues ranging from homeland security to energy to disaster response."

For example, after Hurricane Katrina, the federal government called upon a Jet Propulsion Laboratory satellite to assess damage and flooding; a Sandia National Laboratories/California team to help assess long-term impact on physical infrastructure; and Lawrence Livermore to help with the communications network and brought sensor systems to help locate survivors buried in buildings. However, there is no mechanism in place to permit California to easily tap into such programs in the event of a similar disaster.

"In some cases the labs provide valuable assistance to California state agencies," said Papay. "But a significant disconnect remains between them. The goal of this report is to help bridge that gap."

The report, prepared in response to a request from Senator Jackie Speier, focuses on the six largest of California's 48 federal laboratories that have ongoing relationships with research universities, including Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories/California, Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, NASA Ames Research Center, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. These facilities conduct cutting-edge research on materials science, energy research, computer science, aerospace engineering, and biotechnology. They have a combined budget exceeding $5 billion and employ over 23,000 high-tech workers. In addition, they play an important role in education by working with students, faculty and teachers through a wide variety of programs.

Despite the labs' high profiles and leading roles in federal R&D, most Californians are not aware of the impact they have regionally, or of their potential to do even more for the state.

"The labs are a major contributor to California's overall science and technology community," said CCST Executive Director Susan Hackwood. "Their presence helps draw top people to California, and both industry and research universities collaborate with them."

The labs' major contributions come in the form of payroll and procurement; direct contributions to education, academic research, and industry; indirect contributions to technology and industry; and, in some cases, assistance to state and local government agencies. There are, however, major challenges that limit California's ability to gain greater benefits from these federal laboratories, according to the report, including conflicts in contracting policies between the laboratories and the state and a lack of understanding as to what the labs can offer local governments, especially with security related issues. The contracting issue is particularly intractable.

"There is more that this extraordinary collection of facilities could do for the state," said Hackwood. "The focus of their mission may be federal, but they are able and willing to provide services to the state."

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