STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2678

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE:    S.B. No. 3110

       S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Twenty-Eighth State Legislature

Regular Session of 2016

State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committees on Economic Development, Environment, and Technology and Ways and Means, to which was referred S.B. No. 3110 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO TECHNOLOGY,"

beg leave to report as follows:

     The purpose and intent of this measure is to extend the appropriation to the Department of Business, Economic Development, and Technology for the High Technology Development Corporation to provide grants to businesses with a federal Phase II or III Small Business Innovation Research award through fiscal year 2016-2017.

     Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the High Technology Development Corporation, Chamber of Commerce Hawaii, and Hawaii Aquaculture and Aquaponics Association.

     Your Committees find that since 1989, the High Technology Development Corporation has been assisting Phase I Small Business Innovation Research award recipients to reach their commercial potential through the provision of grants.  This has proven to be successful for both the businesses awarded a grant and the State:  every dollar invested through this grant program has been leveraged to attract approximately $20 in federal funds as well as additional commercialization funding.  Your Committees find that expanding the scope of the grant program for Phase II and Phase III awards will allow for more companies to achieve commercialization and increase the beneficial economic impacts of this program to the State.

     Your Committees have amended this measure by retaining the fiscal year 2015-2016 appropriation but providing that the sum appropriated shall not lapse at the end of fiscal year 2015-2016 and that all monies that are unencumbered as of June 30, 2017, shall lapse as of that date.

     As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Economic Development, Environment, and Technology and Ways and Means that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 3110, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 3110, S.D. 1, and be placed on the calendar for Third Reading.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Economic Development, Environment, and Technology and Ways and Means,

________________________________ JILL N. TOKUDA, Chair

________________________________ GLENN WAKAI, Chair