(c) In developing the guidelines, the commission shall follow the policies of the Colorado commission on higher education regarding service areas and regional education providers.
(2) No later than December 1, 2015, the commission shall determine which of the state's counties are distressed counties. If a distressed county is interested in participating in the rural jump-start zone program, the distressed county shall provide the commission with a resolution described in section 39-30.5-106.
(3) Each distressed county shall retain its designation as a distressed county for three years from the date of the designation. After the three-year period, the commission shall review the designation. If the commission determines that the county is no longer distressed, the new business and the new hires retain the benefits specified in section 39-30.5-105 for the remaining portion of the four-year period outlined in that section, or the remaining extended period if the commission grants an extension of the period pursuant to section 39-30.5-105 (1)(a)(II), (2)(a)(II), or (3)(b).
(4) (a) A state institution of higher education or an economic development organization intending to participate in the rural jump-start zone program shall adopt a conflict of interest policy. The conflict of interest policy must provide that:
(I) A representative of the state institution of higher education or the economic development organization may not use the relationship between the state institution of higher education or the economic development organization and the new business as a means for inurement or private benefit to the representative of the state institution of higher education or the economic development organization, any relative of such representative, or any business interests of such representative;
(II) A person who engages in the business of selling goods or services to a state institution of higher education or to an economic development organization, an employee of such person, or a person with a business interest in such person's business shall not vote on or participate in the administration by the state institution of higher education or by the economic development organization of any transaction with such business; and
(III) (A) Upon becoming aware of an actual or potential conflict of interest, a representative of the state institution of higher education or the economic development organization shall advise the chief academic officers or executive director of the institution or the executive director of the economic development organization of the conflict.
(B) Each state institution of higher education and each economic development organization shall maintain a written record of all disclosures made pursuant to subsection (4)(a)(III)(A) of this section.
(C) By January 31, 2016, and by January 31 of each year thereafter, each state institution of higher education and each economic development organization shall provide the record maintained under subsection (4)(a)(III)(B) of this section to the commission.
(b) For the purposes of a conflict-of-interest policy developed under subsection (4)(a) of this section:
(I) Business interest means that a representative:
(A) Owns or controls ten percent or more of the stock of the entity; or
(B) Serves as an officer, director, or partner of the entity.
(II) Relative means any person living in the same household as the representative of the state institution of higher education or of the economic development organization, any person who is a direct descendant of the representative's grandparents, or the spouse of such representative.
(III) Representative of the state institution of higher education or of the economic development organization means any employee with decision-making authority over the rural jump-start zone program.
(4.5) An economic development organization intending to participate in the rural jump-start zone program must be approved by the commission as established in the commission's guidelines.
(5) A new business must apply to a state institution of higher education or an economic development organization to participate in a rural jump-start zone program. The state institution of higher education or economic development organization shall require the new business to provide documentation that the new business meets the definition of new business as specified in section 39-30.5-103
(7) and that the new hires will meet the definition of new hire as specified in section 39-30.5-103 (8). If the state institution of higher education or economic development organization approves the new business, then the state institution of higher education or economic development organization shall apply to the commission for the approval of a rural jump-start zone as specified in subsection (6) of this section and approval of the new business for the rural jump-start zone program benefits as specified in subsection (7) of this section.
(6) (a) Upon approving a new business as specified in subsection (5) of this section, the state institution of higher education or economic development organization shall submit a complete written application for approval for a rural jump-start zone to the commission by the deadline established in the commission's guidelines. The application must include:
(I) Either the identification of:
(A) The state institution of higher education and identification of either the distressed county in which a campus is located or the distressed county that is included in the community college's service area or the regional education provider's service area; or
(B) The economic development organization and identification of the distressed county in which the organization is located or serves;
(II) Identification of the new business and documentation indicating that requirements for the new business have been met, including an estimate of the number of new hires that the new business anticipates it will hire;
(III) Satisfactory documentation that there exists a relationship between the new business and the state institution of higher education or between the new business and the economic development organization. Such documentation must show that:
(A) The relationship will result in positive benefits to the community and the local economy; and
(B) The mission and activities of the new business align with or further either the academic mission of the state institution of higher education or the mission of the economic development organization.
(IV) Identification of the municipalities with boundaries wholly or partly within the distressed county's boundaries;
(V) A resolution as described in section 39-30.5-106 from each interested municipality;
(VI) A description of the rural jump-start zone boundaries; and
(VII) Any other information that the commission deems necessary as specified in the commission's guidelines.
(b) A state institution of higher education or economic development organization may also submit a complete written application for approval for a rural jump-start zone to the commission by the deadlines established in the commission's guidelines when such state institution of higher education or economic development organization has not yet approved a new business as specified in subsection (5) of this section. In this case, the application must include:
(I) (A) Identification of the state institution of higher education and identification of either the distressed county in which a campus is located or the distressed county that is included in the community college's service area or the regional education provider's service area; or
(B) Identification of the economic development organization and identification of the distressed county in which the organization is located or serves.
(II) Identification of the municipalities with boundaries wholly or partly within the distressed county's boundaries;
(III) A resolution as described in section 39-30.5-106 from each interested municipality;
(IV) A description of the rural jump-start zone boundaries; and
(V) Any other information that the commission deems necessary as specified in the commission's guidelines.
(7) (a) The commission shall, at a public meeting properly noticed, review each application for a rural jump-start zone submitted by a state institution of higher education or an economic development organization. Based on the application submitted and the commission's guidelines, the commission may approve the rural jump-start zone and may approve the new business for the rural jump-start zone program benefits specified in section 39-30.5-105; except that the commission may not approve more than three rural jump-start zones for the 2016 calendar year and may not approve any rural jump-start zones or approve any new businesses for the rural jump-start zone program benefits on and after January 1, 2031. The commission may only approve a new business for the rural jump-start zone program benefits if the commission is satisfied that the new business meets the definition of new business as specified in section 39-30.5-103 (7), that the new hires will meet the definition of new hire as specified in section 39-30.5-103 (8), and that the new business will be located in the rural jump-start zone for which the state institution of higher education or economic development organization sought approval.
(b) (I) A new business that receives approval as specified in subsection (7)(a) of this section for the rural jump-start zone program benefits must submit a request for the issuance of a credit certificate by the deadlines established in the commission's guidelines. The request must include an estimated amount, as calculated by the new business, of the income tax credits for the new business and any new hires and the sales and use tax refunds allowed in section 39-30.5-105 and an estimated amount, as calculated by the new business, of incentive payments, exemptions, or refunds provided by local governments as specified in section 39-30.5-106.
(II) The office of economic development shall not issue more than a total of two hundred credit certificates in one income tax year for all new hires employed by all new businesses in each rural jump-start zone that receive approval as specified in subsection (7)(a) of this section; except that the office of economic development has the discretion to increase this limit to six hundred credit certificates if the new business is in one of the fourteen industries that the office of economic development targets for economic development in the state.
(III) If the benefit is for new hires, the commission shall provide the credit certificates for such new hires directly to the new business, and the new business shall provide a copy of the credit certificate to the new hire with their federal form W-2.
(IV) If the commission determines the new business or new hire no longer meets the requirements set forth in this article, the commission shall not issue credit certificates for the income tax credits allowed in section 39-30.5-105 (1) and
(2) and shall not notify the department that the new business is eligible for the sales and use tax refund allowed in section 39-30.5-105 (3).
(c) (I) A new business that receives approval as specified in subsection (7)(a) of this section for the rural jump-start zone program benefits may be awarded grants, at the commission's discretion:
(A) For the establishment of operations in a rural jump-start zone; and
(B) For each new hire who meets the requirements of section 39-30.5-103
(8), and who is either hired by the new business upon establishing operations in a rural jump-start zone, or in the years after establishing operations in a rural jump-start zone; except that the grants allowed in this subsection (7)(c)(I)(B) must be calculated on an annual basis and may only be awarded one time for each new hire based on the new hire's federal form W-2.
(II) The commission may issue grants, subject to subsection (7)(c)(I) of this section and subject to available appropriations, as follows:
(A) Up to twenty thousand dollars to new businesses to establish operations;
(B) Up to forty thousand dollars to new businesses to establish operations in a tier one transition community;
(C) Up to two thousand five hundred dollars to new businesses for each new hire; or
(D) Up to five thousand dollars to new businesses for each new hire who is hired by the new business that is located in a tier one transition community.
(III) The commission may establish additional terms and conditions that it deems appropriate in awarding grants under this subsection (7)(c).
(IV) Grants allowed under this subsection (7)(c) may only be awarded to a new business if the new business meets the eligibility requirements for the tax benefits set forth in this article 30.5.
