An Act
ENROLLED HOUSE
BILL NO. 4354 By: Hill, Phillips, and Dollens
of the House
and
Kidd of the Senate
An Act relating to economic development; enacting the
Oklahoma Research and Deve lopment Attraction Act;
imposing duty on Oklahoma Center for the Ad vancement
of Science and Technology; requiring development of
Research and Development Attraction Program;
authorizing award of matching funds; specifying
amount of match; imposing d ollar limit; specifying
conditions required for eligibility; imposing
requirement related to eligible projects; specifying
factors in selection; requiring Oklahoma Center for
the Advancement of Science and Technology to adopt
rules; specifying required con tent for rules;
providing for codification; and providing an
effective date.
SUBJECT: Economic development
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPL E OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 5003.10f of Title 74, unless
there is created a duplication in numberin g, reads as follows:
This act shall be known and may be cited as the "Oklahoma
Research and Development Attraction Act".
SECTION 2. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 5003.10g of Title 74, unless
there is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
A. The Oklahoma Center for the Advancement o f Science and
Technology (OCAST) shall create a Research and Development
Attraction Program (Program), to be administered in accordance with ENR. H. B. NO. 4354 Page 2
this section for the purpose of fostering research and development
in key industry clusters, leading to the creation of new products
and services that are brought to market by Oklahoma-based companies,
or brought to market by relocating companies financially sponsored
by an Oklahoma-based capital provider and which conduct a
substantial portion of total business activity in the State of
Oklahoma.
B. OCAST may award matching funds to eligible businesses to
offset a portion of expenses incurred through a collaborative
research and development project engagement with an Oklahoma
institution of highe r education or nonprofit research institution.
C. OCAST may award matching funds up to fifty percent (50%) of
the cost of the project, not to exceed One Hundred Thousand Dollars
($100,000.00). A business may receive only one matching award under
this section per year.
D. In order to be eligible for matching funds under this
section, a business must satisfy all of th e following conditions:
1. The business must be an Oklahoma-based small business. For
the purposes of this section, "Oklahoma-based" means a business that
has its principal place of business in this state or a business that
has, in the preceding twelve ( 12) months, raised an equity round not
less than Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($500,000.00) with an
Oklahoma-based capital provider investing n ot less than ten percent
(10%) of such equity round, that commits to spend all eligible
Program funds in the Sta te of Oklahoma, and that has filed a
certificate of qualification with the Oklahoma Secretary of State.
For the purposes of this section, "small business" means a business
entity that employs not more than one hundred (100) persons;
2. In accordance with the Oklahoma Office of Science and
Innovation's 2021-2026 strategic plan, the business must operate in
one of the state's three strategic industry cluster s, including
aerospace and autonomous systems, life sciences, and energy
diversification;
3. The research and development service provider which partners
with the business must be an Oklahoma-based research entity. For
the purposes of this section, "Oklahoma-based research entity" means
an institution of higher education or another nonprofit organization
that primarily provides research services, and which has its main
physical campus in this state. For the purposes of this section, ENR. H. B. NO. 4354 Page 3
"research services" means research and development, technology
exploration, technical development, product development, an d
commercialization intended to foster innovation in eligible small
businesses;
4. The research and development project for which matching
funds are provided must be conducted physical ly within the State of
Oklahoma for the duration of the engagement wit h the Oklahoma-based
research entity; and
5. To be awarded matching funds under the Program , an Oklahoma-
based small business must file an applicatio n with OCAST attesting
to the total cost of the project and demonstrating available and
unrestricted private capital to meet at least fifty percent (50%) of
the total project cost. Matching funds may be used only to purchase
research services, as defined in this section, from an Oklahoma -
based research entity.
E. When administering the Program under this section, OCAST
shall select eligible projects to qualify for matching funds within
the Oklahoma Research and Development Attraction Act based on
factors including, but not limited to:
1. The amount of private capital the matching funds will induce
to be spent in Oklahoma;
2. The total market size of the Oklahoma -based small
businesses' product or service offering;
3. Third-party validation of the Oklahoma -based small
businesses' intellectual assets, including but not limited to equity
raised from venture capital or private equity firms, federal
commercialization grants t hrough the Small Business Innovation
Research or Small Business Technology Trans fer Programs, or
competitive federal research aw ards through National Institutes of
Health, National Science Foundation, Department of Defense,
Department of Energy, and others;
4. The projected future job creation impact of the Oklahoma-
based small business for the state;
5. Other economic benefits t o the state, including through
increased state and local revenues and growth in private investment;
ENR. H. B. NO. 4354 Page 4
6. The need of the Oklahoma-based small business to acquire
specialized services and resources in Oklahoma;
7. The alignment of the project within Oklahom a's identified
cluster strategies; and
8. The impact on Oklahoma-based research entities, including
through increased revenue, exposure to new technologies, and
increased attraction opportunities for students, researchers, and
professional staff.
SECTION 3. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 5003.10h of Title 74, unless
there is created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
OCAST shall promulgate rules to enforce the provisions of the
Research and Development Attraction Program, including the
following:
1. The application process for applying for matching funds;
2. The criteria to be used by OCAST to evaluate matching funds
applications from Oklahoma -based small businesses and to determine
the amount of the award;
3. OCAST shall include in its annual report the evaluation
metrics which will be gathered to report efficacy of this Program
back to the State of Ok lahoma, which may include, but will not be
limited to, volume of applications, technological dive rsity of
companies taking up the Program, the success of Oklahoma-based small
businesses at raising follow-on capital rounds or advancing in
technological readiness level (TRL), and follow-on capital spent in
the state and at Oklahoma -based research entities; and
4. The agreements that Oklahoma-based small businesses must
enter into in regard to claiming matching funds and to ensur e
compliance in spending of matching funds.
SECTION 4. This act shall become effective November 1, 2022.
ENR. H. B. NO. 4354 Page 5
Passed the House of Representat ives the 18th day of May, 2022.
Presiding Officer of the House
of Representatives
Passed the Senate the 27th day of April, 2022.
Presiding Officer of the Senate
OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
Received by the Office of the Governor this _________ ___________
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By: _________________________________
Approved by the Governor of the State of Oklahoma this _____ ____
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
_________________________________
Governor of the State of Oklahoma
OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE
Received by the Office of the Secretary of State this __________
day of ___________________, 20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By: _________________________________