Arizona Technology Council Announces Passing of SB 1335 -Small Business Opportunity Program- Legislation.TEMPE, Ariz. -- The Arizona Technology Council announces that Governor Janet Napolitano Janet Napolitano (b. November 29, 1957) is the current governor of the U.S. state of Arizona, originally elected in 2002, and re-elected in 2006. She is Arizona's third female governor, and the first female to win re-election. has signed the SB 1335 (Small Business Opportunity Program) legislation. This is a "key win" for the tech industry in the state of Arizona. Program details are as follows: SB 1335: Small Business Investments Arizona Small Business Opportunity Program Purpose -- to expand early stage investment in Arizona's small businesses. Background -- Small businesses comprise more than 80% of Arizona's economy. Assisting small businesses as they grow, particularly those well positioned to create high-wage jobs, is critical to Arizona's economic growth. A significant area of need for small businesses is access to "early-stage" equity capital when building their operations. This is so because they are too small to secure adequate financing through bank loans and other traditional sources of capital, or enter the stock market as a publicly traded company publicly traded company A company whose shares of common stock are held by the public and are available for purchase by investors. The shares of publicly traded firms are bought and sold on the organized exchanges or in the over-the-counter market. . Private equity investments by individuals and specialized "angel" funds and venture capital firms Name Location Founding date Managing Partners/Directors Specialty Capital managed 5AM Ventures Menlo Park, CA; Waltham, MA 2002 John Diekman, PhD (managing partner), Scott Rocklage, PhD (managing partner), Andrew Schwab (managing partner) life sciences $200M [1] can be used by small businesses to gain access to these resources. Yet, as the economy boomed in the latter half of the decade and "early stage" and "venture" capital investments soared nationwide, Arizona fell behind. Arizona cannot afford to lose its knowledge-based small businesses to other states. The critical shortage of equity capital for new businesses in Arizona represents a serious shortcoming short·com·ing n. A deficiency; a flaw. shortcoming Noun a fault or weakness Noun 1. and, as a result, small, homegrown home·grown adj. 1. Raised or grown at home. 2. Originating in or characteristic of a locality: "Rock is homegrown music in the United States, evolved from blues and country and Tin Pan Alley" businesses face difficulties in expanding operations and taking new ideas "New Ideas" is the debut single by Scottish New Wave/Indie Rock act The Dykeenies. It was first released as a Double A-side with "Will It Happen Tonight?" on July 17, 2006. The band also recorded a video for the track. , products and services to market. Description of Program -- A state tax credit is made available to investors who invest in early-stage "qualified small businesses." The credit is 30% of the investment, increasing to 35% for investments in bioscience companies and companies located in rural Arizona. The credit may be offset against Arizona taxable income Under the federal tax law, gross income reduced by adjustments and allowable deductions. It is the income against which tax rates are applied to compute an individual or entity's tax liability. The essence of taxable income is the accrual of some gain, profit, or benefit to a taxpayer. in equal amounts over a 3-year period. The credits are not transferable. A "qualified investment" must be an equity investment in a minimum amount of 25K per investment and each investor is limited to a maximum of 250K in investments in all qualified small businesses eligible for the credit per year. Credits are not available to persons who already hold 30% or more of the equity of a qualified small business. A "qualified small business" must: (1) have at least a portion of its operations in Arizona; (2) have at least two full-time employees or full-time independent contractors A person who contracts to do work for another person according to his or her own processes and methods; the contractor is not subject to another's control except for what is specified in a mutually binding agreement for a specific job. in Arizona; (3) not have a principal business in retail, restaurants, real estate, professional services (job) professional services - A department of a supplier providing consultancy and programming manpower for the supplier's products. , personal services personal services n. in contract law, the talents of a person which are unusual, special or unique and cannot be performed exactly the same by another. These can include the talents of an artist, an actor, a writer, or professional services. or health care services; (4) have total assets less than $2 million; and (5) have received not more than $2 million in investments eligible for the credit. The total tax credits are capped at $20 million over a 5-year period with no general fund impact in fiscal year 2006. Credits will be available to investors on a first-come, first-serve basis starting July 1, 2006. "The Council believed strongly that we could not be complacent about the need for capital for our emerging tech companies," said Todd Bankofier, president and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. of the Arizona Technology Council. "To build a knowledge-based economy will require, among other things, a commitment to investing in start-up companies start-up company A new business. . The Council placed a central focus on this issue in this year's session and our efforts paid off for the tech community." About The Arizona Technology Council Since its inception in 2002, the Arizona Technology Council has stood as the largest association of technology companies in Arizona, whose shared vision is for the state to be recognized as a top-tier center for technology-based businesses. The Council works to carry out this vision by driving partnerships, policies and programs that advance the business climate for Arizona's technology community and by representing, supporting and advocating for member companies through initiatives, advocacy, networking and effective communications. The Arizona Technology Council represents 30,000-plus employees at more than 475 of the leading technology companies across Arizona. Represented industries include advanced manufacturing, aerospace, biotechnology, e-learning, environmental technology, software, Internet applications, semiconductors and telecommunications. For more information, visit http://www.aztechcouncil.org. |
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