[Shuttle Shucker]

This news will likely mean that the 3 largest federal agency procurement budgets (DOD, DOE & NASA) will finally have competitive prizes included in 'em:

http://www.fuelcellsworks.com/Supppage6771.html

"U.S. Rep. Inglis (R-SC) and U.S. Rep. Dan Lipinski (D-IL) have re-filed
their H-Prize hydrogen incentive bill. It passed with overwhelming
bi-partisan support, 416-6, during the 109th Congress. It stalled last year
in the Senate, therefore requiring it to be re-filed and passed in the new
Congress."

http://www.fuelcellsworks.com/Supppage6788.html

"WASHINGTON -- U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carrolina) continued his
push for energy independence and innovation by reintroducing legislation in
the U.S. Senate yesterday creating the H-Prize. The H-Prize is meant to help
overcome the technical challenges related to using hydrogen as a widely
available and abundant fuel source by offering cash incentives. Graham
introduced similar legislation in the last Congress."

Other interesting relevant articles / blogs:

http://cosmiclog.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2007/01/24/41211.aspx

&

http://cosmiclog.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2007/01/22/38371.aspx

"[p]rizes can provide an extra push, particularly for innovators who may be
flying under the big automakers' radar."

[Shuttle Shucker]

Elsewhere in Washington, page 460 of NASA's brand new budget request:

http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/168652main_NASA_FY08_Budget_Request.pdf

suggests that prize requests for upcoming years have dwindled to merely $4 million annually. At least the Centennial Challenges program hasn't been eliminated though.

Hopefully momentum will nevertheless pick up for the paradigm shift in procurement with the Congressionally re-iniated "H-Prize" bill for the Dept. of Energy:

http://cosmiclog.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2007/01/24/41211.aspx

Meanwhile, DARPA's DOD continues to fund its own competitive prize(s).
The DOD, NASA and the DOE represented the U.S. federal govt's 3 largest procurement budgets at least a few years back. The more different agencies embrace the competitive prizes reform, the harder it could be for the NASA pork constituency to continue backing away from it at taxpayers' expense. Interestingly enough, now there are two different political parties in power in D.C. and competing for votes. Pork-reduction is supposedly on the agenda of both in the quest for votes in 2008. I guess we'll see how much they really mean it...