Book Description

The Competitiveness Policy Council (CPC) concludes that the United States continues to face major competitiveness problems despite recent increases in the growth of both the economy and national productivity. It proposes sweeping educational reform in three areas: developing content and performance standards; ensuring that schools have the flexibility, expertise, and resources to achieve the National Education Goals; and holding schools accountable for students' achievement. CPC's recommendations for training have four dimensions: lifetime learning, school-to-work transition, retraining for dislocated workers, and improvement of worker training programs. Industry should be promoted in the following ways: enacting an innovation and commercialization tax credit; redirecting government spending to civilian and dual-use research and development; expanding federal support for cooperative projects with private industry; monitoring by boards of directors of corporate performance; preparing by companies of periodic analyses of long-term performance; and expanding exports. Private investment should be encouraged through a permanent equipment tax credit, authorization of industry consortia for joint production, and more rapid depreciation allowances. Recommendations to improve the public infrastructure, especially the transportation system, have also been proposed. The CPC recommends that national saving be increased by raising private saving and reducing public spending. (Members' biographies and subcouncil member lists are appended.) (YLB)