ARTICLE
23
RELATING TO
STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT - THE INNOVATE RHODE
ISLAND SMALL
BUSINESS PROGRAM
SECTION 1. Title 42 of the General Laws entitled "STATE
AFFAIRS AND
GOVERNMENT" is hereby
amended by adding thereto the following chapter:
CHAPTER
64.16
THE
INNOVATE
42-64.16-1.
Establishment of incentive program. (a) There
is hereby established the
Innovate
and economic development in the state, STAC may provide
grants to eligible businesses to offset
costs associated with applying to the
Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grants or Small
Business Technology Transfer Research
(STTR) grants. The grants shall be paid from the
Innovate
established in this chapter.
(b) Eligibility. In
order to be eligible for a grant under this section, a business must
satisfy all of the following conditions:
(1) The business must
be a for-profit, Rhode Island-based business with fifty (50) or
fewer employees. For the purposes of this section, a Rhode
Island-based business is one that has
its principal place of business and at least fifty-one
percent (51%) of its employees residing in this
state.
(2) The business must
have submitted a qualified SBIR/STTR Phase I proposal to a
participating federal agency in response to a specific federal
solicitation.
(3) The business must
satisfy all federal SBIR/STTR requirements.
(4) The business
shall not receive concurrent funding support from other sources that
duplicates the purpose of this section.
(5) The business must
certify that at least fifty-one percent (51%) of the research
described in the federal SBIR/STTR Phase I proposal will be
conducted in this state and that the
business will remain a Rhode Island-based business for the
duration of the SBIR/STTR Phase I
project.
(6) The business must
demonstrate its ability to conduct research in its SBIR/STTR Phase
I proposal.
(c) Grant. STAC may
award grants to reimburse an eligible business for up to fifty
percent (50%) of the costs of preparing and submitting an
SBIR/STTR Phase I proposal, up to a
maximum of three thousand dollars ($3,000). A business may
receive only one grant under this
section per year. A business may receive only one grant under
this section with respect to each
federal proposal submission. Costs that may be reimbursed
include costs incurred directly related
to preparation and submission of the grant such as word
processing services, proposal consulting
fees, project-related supplies, literature searches,
rental of space or equipment related to the
proposal preparation, and salaries of individuals involved
with the preparation of the proposals.
Costs that shall not be reimbursed include travel
expenses, large equipment purchases, facility or
leasehold improvements, and legal fees.
(d) Application. A
business shall apply, under oath, to STAC for a grant under this
section on a form prescribed by STAC that includes at least
all of the following:
(1) The name of the
business, the form of business organization under which it is
operated, and the names and addresses of the principals or
management of the business.
(2) An
acknowledgement of receipt of the Phase I proposal by the relevant federal
agency.
(3) An itemized
statement of the costs that may be reimbursed.
(4) Any other
information necessary for STAC to evaluate the application.
42-64.16-2.
Establishment of matching funds program. (a) There is established
the
foster job creation and economic development in the state,
STAC may provide grants to eligible
businesses to match funds received by a business as a SBIR or
STTR Phase I award, loans to
eligible businesses to match funds received by a business as a
SBIR or STTR Phase II award, and
to encourage businesses to apply for further Phase II
and Phase III awards, respectively.
(b) Eligibility. In
order to be eligible for a grant under this section, a business must
satisfy all of the following conditions:
(1) The business must
be a for-profit, Rhode Island-based business with fifty (50) or
fewer employees. For the purposes of this section, Rhode
Island-based business is one that has its
principal place of business and at least fifty-one percent
(51%) of its employees residing in this
state.
(2) The business must
have received an SBIR/STTR Phase I award from a participating
federal agency in response to a specific federal
solicitation. To receive the full Phase I matching
grant, the business must also have submitted a final Phase
I report, demonstrated that the
sponsoring agency has interest in the Phase II proposal, and
submitted a Phase II proposal to the
agency. To receive the full Phase II matching loan, the
business must also have submitted a final
Phase II report, demonstrated that the sponsoring
agency has interest in the Phase III proposal,
and submitted a Phase III proposal to the agency.
(3) The business must
satisfy all federal SBIR/STTR requirements.
(4) The business
shall not receive concurrent funding support from other sources that
duplicates the purpose of this section.
(5) For a Phase I
matching grant, the business must certify that at least fifty-one percent
(51%) of the research described in the federal
SBIR/STTR Phase II proposal will be conducted in
this state and that the business will remain a Rhode
Island-based business for the duration of the
SBIR/STTR Phase II project. For a Phase II matching
loan, the business must certify that at least
fifty-one percent (51%) of the research described in the
federal SBIR/STTR Phase III proposal
will be conducted in this state and that the business will
remain a Rhode Island-based business for
the duration of the SBIR/STTR Phase III project.
(6) For a Phase I
matching grant, the business must demonstrate its ability to conduct
research in its SBIR/STTR Phase II proposal. For a Phase II
matching loan, the business must
demonstrate its ability to conduct research in its SBIR/STTR
Phase III proposal.
(c) Phase I Matching Grant. STAC may award grants to match the funds
received by a
business through a SBIR/STTR Phase I proposal up to a maximum
of one hundred thousand
dollars ($100,000). Seventy-five percent (75%) of the total
grant shall be remitted to the business
upon receipt of the SBIR/STTR Phase I award and
application for funds under this section.
Twenty-five percent (25%) of the total grant shall be
remitted to the business upon submission by
the business of the Phase II application to the funding
agency and acceptance of the Phase I report
by the funding agency. A business may receive only one
grant under this section per year. A
business may receive only one grant under this section with
respect to each federal proposal
submission. Over its lifetime, a business may receive a maximum
of six (6) awards under this
section.
(d) Phase II Matching
Loan. STAC may award loans to match the funds received by a
business through a SBIR/STTR Phase II proposal up to a maximum
of three hundred thousand
dollars ($300,000) that must be secured by sufficient assets
of the business. Seventy-five percent
(75%) of the total loan shall be remitted to the
business upon receipt of the SBIR/STTR Phase II
award and application for funds under this section.
Twenty-five percent (25%) of the total loan
shall be remitted to the business upon submission by the
business of the Phase III application to
the funding agency and acceptance of the Phase I report
by the funding agency. A business may
receive only one loan under this section per year. A business
may receive only one loan under this
section with respect to each federal proposal submission.
Over its lifetime, a business may receive
a maximum of six (6) loans under this section.
(e) Application. A
business shall apply, under oath, to STAC for a grant or loan under
this section on a form prescribed by STAC that includes at
least all of the following:
(1) The name of the
business, the form of business organization under which it is
operated, and the names and addresses of the principals or
management of the business.
(2) For a Phase I
matching grant, an acknowledgement of receipt of the Phase I report
and Phase II proposal by the relevant federal agency. For
a Phase II matching loan, an
acknowledgement of receipt of the Phase II report and Phase III
proposal by the relevant federal
agency.
(3) Any other
information necessary for STAC to evaluate the application.
42-64.16-3.
Establishment of bioscience & engineering internship program.
(a)
There is hereby established the Innovate
Program to be administered by
STAC. In order to promote
workforce development and education
in the bioscience and engineering fields and enhance the
talent pipeline for
businesses engaged in the biosciences and engineering, STAC may
reimburse eligible bioscience
and engineering companies for eligible internship
stipends. The reimbursements shall be paid
from the Innovate
(b) Bioscience and
engineering definitions.
(1) Bioscience
definition. For the purposes of this section, "bioscience" shall
mean
advanced and applied sciences that expand the understanding of
human physiology and have the
potential to lead to medical advances or therapeutic
applications.
(2) Engineering
definition. For the purposes of this section, "engineering" shall
mean
the creative application of advanced mathematics and
natural sciences to design or develop
complex structures, machines, processes, or systems.
(c) Business
eligibility. In order to be eligible for reimbursement under this section, a
business must satisfy all of the following conditions:
(1) The business must
be a for-profit, Rhode Island-based business with fifty (50) or
fewer employees. For the purposes of this section, a Rhode
Island-based business is one that has
its principal place of business and at least fifty-one
percent (51%) of its employees in this state.
(2) The business must
be primarily engaged in a bioscience or engineering field and must
demonstrate its ability to conduct research in bioscience or
engineering.
(3) The business must
host the internship in
(4) The business must
offer interns a hands-on learning experience and at least one
mentor directly overseeing the internship.
(5) Any two or more
related businesses that are commonly controlled by any person or
entity, directly or indirectly, are limited to reimbursement
under this section available for one
business only.
(d) Intern
eligibility. In order to be an eligible intern under this section, a
prospective
intern must satisfy all of the following requirements:
(1) The prospective
intern must be a
university located in
(2) For students
enrolled in community college, the student must be enrolled in an
Associate's Degree or Certificate program or completed
one within the past year; for students
enrolled in four-year college or university, the student must
have or will have completed at least
sophomore year the semester before the internship, or have
graduated within the past year; for
graduate students, the student must be enrolled in a Master's
Degree program or received their
Master's Degree within the past
year.
(3) The intern cannot
be the spouse, child, grandchild, sibling, niece, nephew, or spouse
of a child, grandchild, sibling, niece, or nephew of any
employee of the business.
(4) The intern cannot
participate in more than one internship subsidized
under this section
in the same calendar year.
(5) The intern cannot
participate in more than two internships subsidized under this
section, over two calendar years, with the same business.
(e) Reimbursement.
STAC may reimburse eligible companies for pay rates up to twelve
dollars ($12) per hour for a total reimbursement of no more
than three thousand dollars ($3,000)
per eligible intern in a bioscience or engineering internship
program. Businesses may seek
reimbursement for up to two (2) interns per calendar year. Interns
shall be paid directly by the
eligible business. Eligible businesses may seek reimbursement
under this section by providing
certification and proof of payment to STAC.
(f) Business
application. A business shall apply, under oath, to STAC to qualify for
reimbursement under this section on a form prescribed by STAC that
includes at least all of the
following:
(1) The name of the
business, the form of business organization under which it is
operated, and the names and addresses of the principals or
management of the business.
(2) Certification
that the business meets the requirements for eligibility under this section.
(3) A description of
the bioscience or engineering internship program that the business
intends to offer.
(4) Any other
information necessary for STAC to evaluate the application.
(g) Prospective
intern application. A prospective intern shall apply, under oath, to
STAC to qualify for an internship under this section
on a form prescribed by STAC that includes
at least all of the following:
(1) The prospective
interns name, address, college or university, program of study, year
of study at the college or university, and degree of
attainment.
(2) Certification
that prospective intern meets the requirements for eligibility under this
section.
(3) Proof of
(4) Proof of
enrollment in a college or university in
graduated from a college or university in
(5) Resume and cover
letter.
(6) Any other
information necessary for STAC to evaluate the application.
(h) Application process.
STAC may receive applications from businesses and
prospective interns throughout the calendar year and make
determinations relating to eligibility
under this section. STAC may make available to eligible
businesses the eligible intern
applications. Eligible businesses looking to host interns may
review applications, interview
candidates, and select and hire interns according to their
qualifications and the businesses needs.
42-64.16-4.
Program guidelines. STAC shall develop
guidelines related to the
administration of the programs established by this chapter. At least
twenty (20) days before the
effective date of any guidelines or nontechnical amendments to
guidelines, STAC must publish
the proposed guidelines on STAC website and provide
notice to persons who have requested
notice of proposed guidelines. In addition, STAC must accept
oral and written comments on the
proposed guidelines during the fifteen (15) business days
beginning on the first day that STAC
has completed these notifications. For the purpose of
this section, a technical amendment is either
of the following:
(1) An amendment that
corrects a spelling or grammatical error.
(2) An amendment that
makes a clarification based on public comment and could have
been anticipated by the public notice that immediately
preceded the public comment.
42-64.16-5.
Innovate
revenue fund. (a) Establishment. The Innovate
hereby established as a special revenue fund in STAC.
(b) Purpose. The
Innovate
used for the
Matching Funds Program, and the
as specified in this chapter. Moneys in the IRISBA shall
be allocated as specified in this chapter
and shall not exceed available funds in the account.
42-64.16-6.
Reports. -- STAC shall publish a report on the
use of funds in the Innovate
shall contain information on the commitment, disbursement,
and use of funds allocated under the
(IRISBA). The report is due no later than one month after the
end of the fiscal quarter, and must
be submitted to the following:
(1) The chairs of the
house of representatives and senate finance
committees.
(2) The fiscal
offices of the general assembly.
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.