Kent Conrad: “Throughout the 105th Congress, the Administration and the Congress focused considerable attention on information…”

“Throughout the 105th Congress, the Administration and the Congress focused considerable attention on information technology (IT) issues, particularly the difficulties that many American companies are experiencing in recruiting skilled workers to fill key positions in information technology. The Department of Commerce, early in the 105th Congress, released a study, "America's New Deficit: The Shortage of Information Technology Workers," alerting us to the severe shortage of information technology workers. This report was supported by a study from the Information Technology Association of America, "Help Wanted 1998: A Call for Collaborative Action For the New Millennium," which estimated that there are more than 340,000 highly skilled positions in information technology that are not filled. Moreover, the Department of Labor projected that our economy will require more than 130,000 information technology jobs in three fields--systems analysts, computer scientists and engineers, and computer programmers--every year for the next 10 years. Mr. President, the shortage of skilled high-tech workers is not unique to any one region of the country--Silicon Valley, Dallas, Atlanta, or Northern Virginia. It is a matter of urgent concern across the country.”