The extensive final report of the New York State Commission on Higher Education includes at least two recommendations specifically relevant to business-incubation programs at campuses of the State University of New York and the City University of New York:

• Amend state law to permit SUNY to lease and transfer property to entities other than the SUNY Construction Fund and the New York State Dormitory Authority. As is already the case at CUNY, this would allow SUNY campuses to lease SUNY-owned property to non-profits or other intermediaries that can be more rapidly responsive the needs of commercial research partners and incubator tenants.
• Recognize a capital-budget "tier" for economic-development projects that may be co-funded by state economic-development programs, a capital-matching program, or public-private partnerships. Business incubators on SUNY and CUNY campuses would fall into this category.

The full report is available at the link in the first paragraph. A list of our member incubators including those associated with campuses of SUNY, CUNY and the state's independent colleges is available at the Our Members tab above or by clicking here. Some SUNY-affiliated incubators are on SUNY-owned land, while others are projects of the respective campus's philanthropic foundation.

State Senator Catherine Young (R — Jamestown, S.D. 57) has introduced S08063, which would authorize NYSTAR to issue a competitive RFP to select an operator for a "virtual incubator" serving entrepreneurs in agribusiness and food processing, emphasizing value-added uses of the state's crops and forest products.

The virtual incubator would target entrepreneurs who operate in rural areas too remote to be well served by existing physical incubators. Click the bill number in the first paragraph for access to the full bill text and to track its progress through the Legislature. The association has taken no position on the bill as of this posting.

Rep. Jerry McNerney (D-11th District of CA) has introduced H.R. 5681 to simplify the federal R&D Tax credit. Hat tip: National Dialogue on Entrepreneurship.

Incubator-stage companies with access to New York City will be interested in a free briefing at CUNY on the new Technology Innovation Program at the National Institute of Standards and Technology. This outreach event, hosted by the CUNY Institute of Software Design and Development at the CUNY Graduate Center, follows a similar event held last fall at Syracuse University. For information, click the calendar link in the left-hand column or view the invitation attached below as a pdf.

Several recent legislative actions early this year have implications for incubators and their tenant/clients.

The state Senate passed with bipartisan support the "Upstate NOW" package (S05953 sponsored by Sen. Bruno with numerous cosponsors). This long and complex bill includes authorization of assistance grants for incubators as part of regional economic-development partnerships; a proposed sales tax exemption for equipment purchased by companies located in certain incubators; certain preferences under the Qualified Emerging Technology Company tax credit for incubator graduates; and establishment of a "virtual incubator" program serving rural areas and agricultural or food businesses.

The Upstate NOW package will serve as a counterpart and negotiating position for the Senate with respect to the Administration's Executive Budget for economic development, which also referenced incubation. It was sent to the Assembly and referred to the Ways and Means Committee. Language which in previous sessions referred narrowly and unclearly to "academic incubators" has been clarified and broadened in parts of the bill to include other incubators "funded by the state."

S3430, sponsored by Sen. Skelos with several cosponsors, was returned to the Senate in early January after dying in the Assembly. It would remove the sunset on the QETC "facilities, operations and training credit" and increase the amount of the credit.

Also in January, Assemblyman Schimminger introduced A03022 (also with cosponsors), which was referred to the Ways and Means Committee. It allows companies still in the development stage to trade unused net operating losses and R&D tax credits to profitable companies that can use them to offset taxes owed. This bill, which would be welcomed by many incubator-stage companies, is a re-introduction of legislation introduced every session since 1999-2000.