The Senate Commerce Committee supported its decision by saying that even the administration couldn't agree on the institute's goals. But the National Institute of Standards and Technology, the federal agency that would oversee I3P, is not ready to give up on it. Michael Newman, a spokesman for NIST, noted that House and Senate negotiators have yet to agree on the details of NIST's budget. They can change their mind in a minute, but it doesn't look real good. Also in limbo is spending on the Advanced Technology Program, a government-industry partnership to help commercialize technologies.
Universities are often subcontractors in the program's awards.
The spending bills also contain money for distance education. The Senate version of the same bill also encourages the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to continue using distance education to teach public broadcasters in rural areas how to switch from analog to digital broadcasting. And it calls on the Office of Justice Programs to collaborate with the National Guard to use distance education to deliver training programs. The House version also calls on the Federal Judicial Center, in conjunction with the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, to write a report on how distance education provides an alternative for courts' education and training programs that would reduce travel costs and time spent away from judicial duties. Dan Carnevale contributed to this report.