Issue Position: Technology

Issue Position

California's technology industry has been a tremendous engine of innovation and economic growth, particularly here in California. Senator Barbara Boxer believes that for America to remain competitive in the global economy, the technology industry must remain competitive. She also believes that we must work to expand access to the innovations of the technology industry to a greater number of Americans.

* Access to H1B Visas: America's technology industry has remained strong by drawing on the talent of the world when needed. Senator Boxer has consistently supported legislation to increase the number of technology workers granted temporary H1B visas to work in technology fields and to allow foreigners with advanced degrees from U.S. universities to remain in the United States if they are offered jobs with technology companies.

* Training of American Workers: At the same time, Senator Boxer believes we need to increase the capacity of the American workforce to fill jobs in the technology industry. In that light, she supports increased funding for math, science, and technology education.

* Computers in Schools: Senator Boxer wrote the 1996 law to provide an enhanced tax deduction for companies that donate new and nearly-new computers to schools. She was a strong supporter of the economic stimulus package enacted earlier this year, which includes nearly $75 million for California to purchase up-to-date computers and software for schools.

* Expanding Broadband: Senator Boxer has been a leader in the Senate in expanding broadband services. In 2003, she was the lead author of bipartisan legislation to set aside a portion of the broadcast spectrum for wireless broadband technology, which would make it easier for companies to provide consumers with access to high-speed Internet connections. The Federal Communications Commission began implementing the Boxer proposal later that year. In 2008, Senator Boxer cosponsored legislation, which is now law, to further increase access to high-speed broadband.

* Creating Clean Energy and Green Jobs: Earlier this year, Senator Boxer supported President Obama's economic stimulus plan that included $71 billion to support clean energy and green jobs.

* Supporting Net Neutrality: Senator Boxer supports net neutrality legislation to ensure that Internet Service Providers cannot discriminate against web sites or give preferential access to some web sites over others.

* Eliminating Spyware: Senator Boxer supports prohibiting spyware, adware, and other invasive software from being secretly installed on computers. For example, in 2005, she coauthored bipartisan legislation that bans installing software on someone else's computer without notice and consent and without clear procedures for the consumer to remove the software.

* No Internet Taxes: Senator Boxer opposes efforts to impose taxes on Internet retail sales and she has supported a moratorium on Internet use taxes.

* Innovation Through Research and Development: Senator Boxer has long supported the Research and Development Tax Credit, which has proven to be an essential element in promoting innovation in California's technology industry. She is also a strong supporter of various efforts to nurture the biotech industry, including increasing research funding for the National Institutes of Health, funding stem cell research, and supporting the Human Genome Project.

* Protecting Intellectual Property: Senator Boxer believes that stealing is stealing, whether it is a physical product or intellectual property. In 2008, she cosponsored legislation to crack down on theft of intellectual property and provide resources to enforce our intellectual property laws.

* Deregulating Export of High-Speed Computers: In the 1990s, Senator Boxer was a leader in the effort to deregulate controls on the export of high-speed computers, and she urged the Clinton Administration to work with the technology community to find a solution to the issue. The export restrictions were placing America's technology industry at a competitive disadvantage with the rest of the world.

* Promoting High-Tech Transportation: Senator Boxer has secured federal assistance to promote development of the alternative fuel vehicle industry - and she did so long before the recent explosion in fuel prices. She wrote the law that repealed the luxury tax on alternative fuel vehicles, won federal funding for the military purchase of electric vehicles, and led the effort to provide funding for electric and natural gas buses for California transit systems as well as for Yosemite National Park.

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