Lawmakers Extend CO Bioscience Program, Approve New Funding Source

Lawmakers added another five years to the life of a bioscience program established in 2008 to encourage bioscience research and speed technology commercialization (see the May 14, 2008 issue of the Digest). Gov. John Hickenlooper this week signed into law HB 1283 extending the state's Bioscience Discovery Evaluation Grant program through July 2018. The enacted budget includes $5.5 million in FY12 from gambling tax revenues for the program to distribute proof-of-concept grants and provide support for early stage bioscience companies and infrastructure.

Another bill passed during the session will set up seed funding for bioscience companies using the growth of future income tax withholdings from the biotech and clean-tech industries. SB 47 takes 50 percent of the future growth of income tax withholdings from the clean-tech and bioscience industries and puts them in funds to be used as seed money for startup companies and inventions, reports the Denver Business Journal. It is expected to generate about $2 million per year for each industry. The measure awaits action from Gov. Hickenlooper.

The appropriations bill for FY12 signed into law by the governor also includes level funding of $2.7 million for Colorado First Customized Job Training and $764,397 for the Council on Creative Industries. This new division merged several agencies last year to establish an office for driving economic growth in Colorado's creative industry sectors.

SB 11-209 (the FY12 long bill) is available at: http://www.leg.state.co.us/.