HOUSE 3rd Reading Unamended April 7, 2015 HOUSE Amended 2nd Reading April 6, 2015First Regular Session Seventieth General Assembly STATE OF COLORADO REENGROSSED This Version Includes All Amendments Adopted in the House of Introduction LLS NO. 15-0496.01 Gregg Fraser x4325 HOUSE BILL 15-1002 HOUSE SPONSORSHIP Lee, SENATE SPONSORSHIP Heath, House Committees Senate Committees Business Affairs and Labor Appropriations A BILL FOR AN ACT Concerning the economic gardening pilot project in the office of economic development, and, in connection therewith, making an appropriation. Bill Summary (Note: This summary applies to this bill as introduced and does not reflect any amendments that may be subsequently adopted. If this bill passes third reading in the house of introduction, a bill summary that applies to the reengrossed version of this bill will be available at http://www.leg.state.co.us/billsummaries.) House Bill 13-1003 established the economic gardening pilot project (project) in the office of economic development (office). The bill modifies the project by: Increasing, from $750 to $1500, the fee that companies must pay to participate; Eliminating the statutory deadline by which the office must select the minimum number of participating companies; Replacing the cap of 12 months of services that participating companies may use with a range of between 40 and 100 hours of services, and allowing the terms of engagement to be reevaluated upon expiration of the hours used and at other times; Extending the reporting requirements and future repeal date of the program 2 years from 2016 to 2018; and Requiring $200,000 to be appropriated from the general fund for the economic gardening pilot project for each of the additional 2 years that the program is extended. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Colorado: SECTION 1. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 24-48.5-102.7, amend (4) (a) (III), (4) (b) (II), (4) (c), (4) (d) (II), (4) (d) (III), (5), (6) introductory portion, and (7) as follows: 24-48.5-102.7. Economic gardening pilot project - small business development centers - economic gardening pilot project fund - created - annual report - definitions - repeal. (4) (a) (III) After the small business development center staff members are certified pursuant to subparagraph (II) of this paragraph (a), the state director shall use the existing infrastructure of small business development centers to promote the pilot project to second-stage companies and to those small business development center clients and referrals that, in the state director's opinion, show growth potential in jobs, sales, or export potential. The office shall broaden its promotion of the pilot project to ensure its marketing of the project reaches more companies that are eligible to participate in the economic gardening pilot project. (b) (II) In order to participate in the pilot project, a company selected for participation must pay a one-time fee of seven hundred fifty one thousand five hundred dollars, which moneys shall be deposited into the economic gardening pilot project fund, created in subsection (5) of this section, for reinvestment in the pilot project. (c) On or before March 1, 2014, The state director shall select a minimum of twenty companies to participate in the pilot project. (d) (II) A participating company has twelve months From the date that the state director selects the a company to participate in the pilot project, to use the participating company may, in accordance with the terms of engagement agreed upon by the company and the office, use between forty to one hundred hours of strategic assistance and other economic gardening services offered pursuant to the pilot project. Upon exhausting the agreed-upon number of hours, and at other times as circumstances may warrant, the company and the office may reassess the scope of the project and decide to renew or renegotiate the terms of engagement. (III) The pilot project terminates on June 30, 2016 June 30, 2017. (5) There is hereby created in the state treasury the economic gardening pilot project fund, to be administered by the state director. The fund consists of all fees received pursuant to subparagraph (II) of paragraph (b) of subsection (4) of this section and any moneys appropriated by the general assembly for the purposes of this section. The general assembly shall make annual appropriations of the moneys in the fund to the office for administering the pilot project. Any moneys in the fund not appropriated shall remain in the fund and shall not be transferred or revert to the general fund of the state at the end of any fiscal year; except that any unencumbered moneys remaining in the fund upon the repeal of this section shall be transferred to the general fund. The general assembly shall appropriate one hundred thousand dollars from the general fund to the office for the purposes of this section in the 2016-17 fiscal year. (6) On or before November 1, 2014, and on or before November 1 each year thereafter through November 1, 2016 November 1, 2018, the director shall submit a report to the finance and the business, labor, and economic and workforce development business affairs and labor committees of the house of representatives and the finance and business, labor, and technology committees of the senate, or any successor committees, summarizing the pilot project activities during the preceding fiscal year. The report must include, at a minimum: (7) This section is repealed, effective July 1, 2017 July 1, 2019. SECTION 2. Appropriation. For the 2015-16 state fiscal year, $15,000 is appropriated to the office of the governor. This appropriation is from the economic gardening pilot project fund created in section 24-48.5-102.7 (5), C.R.S. To implement this act, the office may use this appropriation to support global business development. SECTION 3. Act subject to petition - effective date. This act takes effect at 12:01 a.m. on the day following the expiration of the ninety-day period after final adjournment of the general assembly (August 5, 2015, if adjournment sine die is on May 6, 2015); except that, if a referendum petition is filed pursuant to section 1 (3) of article V of the state constitution against this act or an item, section, or part of this act within such period, then the act, item, section, or part will not take effect unless approved by the people at the general election to be held in November 2016 and, in such case, will take effect on the date of the official declaration of the vote thereon by the governor.