§ 250. Industrial infrastructure development program. 1. Definitions. As used in this article, unless a different meaning clearly appears from the context, the following terms shall have the following meanings:

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(a) "Eligible applicant". Eligible applicants may submit proposals to the appropriate regional office of the department and such applicant shall be any state agency involved in promoting the economic development of the state including, but not limited to, the departments of economic development, agriculture and markets, transportation, the urban development corporation and the job development authority, or a municipality, an industrial development agency or local development corporation.

(b) "Industrial infrastructure development project" shall mean a project for the design, acquisition of property, construction and/or reconstruction in connection with storm and sanitary sewers, electric and gas service distribution lines, water supply systems, drainage systems and site clearance, preparation, improvements, and demolition.

(c) "Industrial facility" shall mean any type of facility to be used or occupied by any person in an enterprise deemed to offer a reasonable likelihood for promoting the creation or retention of job opportunities in the state and includes, but is not limited to, industrial or manufacturing plants, facilities for research and development purposes, facilities for conducting wholesale, receiving and distributing operations, facilities for conducting office operations, warehousing operations, agricultural operations, or any other operation dealing in the exchange of goods, wares, services or other types of property of any type or description. Facilities supporting primarily retail commercial operations are not defined as industrial facilities.

(d) "State agency" shall mean an office, department, board, commission, bureau, division, public corporation, agency or instrumentality of the state.

2. Project eligibility. Eligible projects shall include industrial infrastructure projects which are an integral part of an economic development effort which will retain, attract, expand or revitalize an industrial facility. Projects on which construction has been initiated are ineligible for funding under this program.

3. Eligible costs. The following costs are eligible for funding through this program:

(a) industrial infrastructure development project design costs;

(b) costs for completing and updating plans, specifications and estimates where preliminary engineering or related planning has already been undertaken, and where additional engineering work or related planning is required to permit construction of the industrial infrastructure development project;

(c) costs associated with standard construction activities which are reasonable costs of construction work performed under contract; and

(d) acquisition of real property.

4. Ineligible costs. The following costs are not eligible for funding under this program:

(a) expenses or other engineering costs incurred prior to the industrial infrastructure development project initiation, related to administration, planning or estimates;

(b) any expense required to carry out the overall responsibilities of the eligible applicant, such as administrative costs; and

(c) municipal personal services costs of a regular and recurring nature.

5. Project costs. For any single industrial infrastructure development project, costs shall not exceed two hundred fifty thousand dollars of state funds.

6. Application process. Proposals shall include the following: (a) a description of the industrial infrastructure development project, including provisions for public use and maintenance for the useful life of the facility to be provided by the project, if appropriate; (b) a description of how the economic development project related to the industrial infrastructure development project is consistent with the regional economic development strategy and the state's economic development goals; (c) an estimation of the number of jobs to be created or retained by the economic development project; (d) a description of the financing and implementation schedule for the economic development project demonstrating the need for state participation in the industrial infrastructure development project component; (e) an affirmation by the responsible public or corporate official to the effect that existing funding programs are not available or appropriate for the industrial infrastructure development project due to funding availability; and (f) a description of the method or plans for repayment to the state of at least fifty percent of the industrial infrastructure development project costs.

7. Evaluation criteria. Applications shall be evaluated in accordance with the following criteria:

(a) the total number of jobs created or retained per dollar invested in the industrial infrastructure development project;

(b) consistency with the appropriate regional development strategy;

(c) the impact on existing and proposed economic development projects and programs and appropriateness of the proposed project concept;

(d) the impact on existing infrastructure facilities and services, if any;

(e) the availability of alternate funding sources;

(f) the repayment ability of the party who is designated to make such repayment; and

(g) demonstration by the industrial facility of its commitment and ability to carry out the economic development project related to the industrial infrastructure development project.

8. On or before October first, nineteen hundred eighty-eight and on or before October first of each year thereafter, the department shall submit to the governor and the legislature a report regarding the current status of the industrial infrastructure development program. Such report shall include, but not be limited to:

(a) the number of applications received;

(b) the number of applications approved;

(c) project descriptions including a description of the related economic development project, type of business assisted, location, amounts awarded, amounts expended, repayments to date, and projected completion date;

(d) jobs created and/or retained per project; and

(e) description of factors which demonstrate each project's consistency with regional economic development strategies and state economic development goals.

9. (a) The department shall submit to the director of the division of the budget, the chairperson of the senate finance committee and the chairperson of the assembly ways and means committee, an evaluation of program effectiveness prepared by an entity independent of the department. Such an evaluation shall be submitted on or before September first, two thousand five, and on or before September first every four years thereafter.

(b) Between evaluation due dates, the department shall maintain the necessary records and data required to satisfy such evaluation requirements and to satisfy information requests received from the director of the budget, the chairperson of the senate finance committee and the chairperson of the assembly ways and means committee between such evaluation due dates.