Innovation & Technology

I believe that innovation is what America does best. I also believe that technology and science-driven policies are how we can best meet many of our 21st century challenges.

New Mexico has long been home to leading innovators and researchers. Our national laboratories, research universities, and military installations have an extensive history of breakthroughs that have changed the way we power our electric grid, protect our national security, and connect the world.

To compete in the 21st-century economic landscape, New Mexico must tap into the extraordinary research and development already being conducted in our backyard,.  We need to support creative homegrown companies, and build a skilled workforce that will manufacture the advanced technologies and products of the future. Our business owners, scientists, and engineers have the creativity and capacity to provide a steady stream of technologies that could yield dividends in commercial markets.

We must encourage our national labs to more actively engage with the regional innovation systems where they are located. I was proud to pass legislation to establish off-campus microlabs that serve as the “front door" to our national laboratories. These microlabs give universities and businesses direct access to equipment, facilities and personnel at our labs and help create an environment that nurtures collaboration and entrepreneurship.

The clean energy industry is one area where New Mexico stands to gain thousands of jobs in the coming years thanks to this type of collaboration. With our immense potential for both solar and wind and the brilliant energy innovators at our labs and small businesses, our state can and should be a major producer and exporter of clean energy technology and power.

We owe it to our children and our economy to make smart investments in education and target areas where we have the potential to create jobs and major new industries. By preparing our students and retraining our labor force for a lucrative high-tech job market, we can build pathways toward a more diverse future generation of innovators and entrepreneurs, and create a sustainable and prosperous future for our state.

Latest

  • NM Delegation Hails $3 Million for UNM Program Focused on Improving Autonomous Technology

    WASHINGTON- U.S. Senators Tom Udall (D-N.M.) and Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and U.S. Representatives Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Deb Haaland (D-N.M.) and Xochitl Torres Small (D-N.M.) announced that the National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded the University of New Mexico (UNM) $3,254,834 for their Cognitive Autonomy for Human CPS: Turning Novices into Experts program. This program will help develop improvements that will make autonomous technology more adaptable to real-life behavior while also preparing underrepresented students for future professional and academic opportunities in the field of CPS. Read More

  • Heinrich Lays Out New Ways To Build A More Resilient 21st Century Electric Grid, Announces Plans For Transmission Investment Tax Credit Legislation

    Oct. 24, 2019) - U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), a member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, delivered the keynote address at the International Summit on the Electric Transmission Grid. At the event, held at the Canadian Embassy in Washington, D.C., Senator Heinrich announced plans to introduce legislation to create an investment tax credit for regionally significant transmission projects. Read More

  • Heinrich Featured Speaker At The Atlantic Festival

    Sept. 24, 2019) - Today, U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), co-founder of the Senate Artificial Intelligence Caucus, was a featured speaker at The Atlantic Festival in Washington, D.C. Senator Heinrich was interviewed by The Atlantic contributor John Donvan as part of a series titled, "Military Readiness in the Age of AI." Read More

  • Heinrich, Collins Introduce Bipartisan American Energy Opportunity Act To Streamline Clean Energy Technology Permitting

    Sept. 9, 2019) - U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) today introduced the American Energy Opportunity Act to provide state and local governments with voluntary tools to expedite and standardize the permitting process for distributed energy technologies, such as rooftop solar and battery storage, while ensuring high-quality and safe installations. Read More

  • Udall, Heinrich, Torres Small Announce $750,000 to NMSU to Develop Clean Energy Workforce

    WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and U.S. Representative Xochitl Torres Small announced that the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration (EDA) has awarded $750,000 to New Mexico State University’s (NMSU) College of Engineering to create the Innovation and Commercialization for Regional Energy Workforce (I-CREW). The I-CREW program will focus on accelerating clean energy technology and developing a statewide clean energy workforce. Read More

  • Udall, Heinrich, Luján Announce $384,777 to San Juan College to Launch Big Idea Innovation Accelerator

    WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and U.S. Representative Ben Ray Luján announced that the U.S. Department of Commerce's Economic Development Administration (EDA) has awarded $384,777 to San Juan College in Farmington, New Mexico to launch the Big Idea Innovation Accelerator, which will offer resources, consulting, and mentorship to boost entrepreneurship. The accelerator will provide critical assistance to entrepreneurs, researchers, and inventors as they translate innovative ideas into products, services, companies, and good jobs. WASHINGTON — U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and U.S. Representative Ben Ray Luján announced that the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration (EDA) has awarded $384,777 to San Juan College in Farmington, New Mexico to launch the Big Idea Innovation Accelerator, which will offer resources, consulting, and mentorship to boost entrepreneurship. The accelerator will provide critical assistance to entrepreneurs, researchers, and inventors as they translate innovative ideas into products, services, companies, and good jobs.    "When entrepreneurs are given the right tools, they can turn good ideas into innovative products, new companies, and good-paying jobs. San Juan College’s new Big Idea Innovation Accelerator will serve as a resource hub for emerging businesses, helping to expand networks for entrepreneurs and connect them to the resources they need to succeed," said Udall. “This critical funding will help build the next generation of New Mexico entrepreneurs and innovators as they continue to drive our economy forward. As a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I’ll keep fighting for strong federal investment to boost entrepreneurship, empower local communities and support regional economies - in San Juan County and across New Mexico.”   “San Juan College is leading the way in supporting new job creating small business owners in Farmington and the entire Four Corners region,” said Heinrich, a member of the Joint Economic Committee. “Small businesses are job creators and are truly the heart of our state's economy. I’m proud to support this major federal investment to help San Juan College mentor entrepreneurs so they can build the creative, homegrown companies that will help the local economy thrive.”   “The New Mexico students I meet with always have big ideas. They’re creative, hardworking, and entrepreneurial. These funds will go a long way in bridging the waters between idea and reality. I’m excited to see what comes out of these funds because when our student’s succeed, our economy succeeds.  I know that our students will be working hard to drive New Mexico’s economy forward,” said Luján.   The grant was awarded under the EDA’s i6 Challenge, which provides funding for projects that will increase regional capacity to accelerate high-growth entrepreneurship. More information is available here.     Read More

  • Udall, Heinrich, Torres Small Announce $1.5 Million for NMSU Sun and Space Weather Research

    WASHINGTON - Today, U.S. Senators Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich and U.S. Representative Xochitl Torres Small announced that New Mexico State University's (NMSU) Department of Astronomy was awarded a $1.5 million grant by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to hire a space scientist to work on physics of sun and space weather. This funding was awarded through a program called "Faculty Development in the Space Sciences" from the NSF Directorate for Geosciences, Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences. Read More