10 V.S.A. § 6: Rural Industry Development Grant Program

(a) Creation; purpose.

(1) The Rural Industry Development Grant Program is created within the Agency of Commerce and Community Development to provide grant funding through local development corporations for the purpose of business relocation and expansion activities set forth in subsection (d) of this section.

(2) To the extent funding is appropriated, the Agency shall make grants through the Program fund to assist local development corporations with business relocation and expansion efforts throughout Vermont.

(3) As used in this section, “federally impacted property” means real property that is:

(A) owned by the United States or by any federal agency or an instrumentality thereof; or

(B) under the custody or control of a federally appointed receiver, trustee, or conservator, and includes property subject to federal court jurisdiction.

(b) Grant considerations. In making grant awards, the Agency shall consider:

(1) the real estate needs of growing and relocating businesses, including nonprofit organizations, in the applicant’s region;

(2) the ability of the proposed project to meet the site-specific needs of businesses considering whether to expand or locate in this State;

(3) the funding that the applicant has identified, or secured, to leverage a grant award; and

(4) the readiness of an applicant to move a project forward.

(c) Eligible applicants; priority.

(1) To be eligible for a grant, an applicant must be a local development corporation, as defined in subdivision 212(10) of this title, located within this State.

(2) The Secretary of Commerce and Community Development may designate projects and agreements as first priority based on rural communities that continue to experience insufficient economic and grand list growth.

(d) Eligible activities. A grant recipient shall use any funding provided through this section only for the following:

(1) to purchase real property for potential industrial, commercial, or, in the case of a federally impacted property, residential use;

(2) for the costs of site development, permitting, or providing infrastructure for property the recipient owns;

(3) for a project that supports future commercial or industrial development as outlined in a development agreement;

(4) for the equity investment required for a loan transaction through the Vermont Economic Development Authority under chapter 12, subchapter 3 of this title;

(5) for the matching requirement of another State or federal grant consistent with this section; or

(6) for the purchasing, holding, and renovation of property for the repurposing or redevelopment of a federally impacted property.

(e) Application; market assessment.

(1) An applicant shall include in its application a local and regional market assessment that demonstrates reasonable need for the proposed development and identifies imminent, potential, or existing business growth opportunities.

(2) An applicant shall submit the following to demonstrate a readiness to begin and complete the proposed project:

(A) community and regional support for the project;

(B) that grant funding is needed to complete the proposed project;

(C) an ability to manage the project, with requisite experience and a plan for fiscal viability; and

(D) a description of the permitting required to proceed with the project and a plan for obtaining the permits.

(f) Awards; amount.

(1)(A) An award shall not exceed the lesser of $1,000,000.00 or 50 percent of the total project cost, subject to the exception in subdivision (B) of this subdivision (1).

(B) An award may exceed $1,000,000.00 but shall not exceed $2,000,000.00 if the property is classified as a federally impacted property and the Secretary certifies that the project is located in:

(i) a designated downtown development district; and

(ii) a rural economic area partnership program (REAP Zone); or

(iii) a federally declared natural disaster area, provided the declaration was made not more than five years from the application date.

(2) A recipient may combine grant funds with funding from other sources.

(3) The Agency shall release grant funds upon determining that the applicant has met all application conditions and requirements.

(4) A grant recipient may apply for additional grant funds if future amounts are appropriated for the Program and the funds are for a separate but eligible use.

(g) Deed restrictions. Any deed restriction requiring a Rural Industry Development Grant Program award recipient to return to the State the principal amount of the grant or a percentage of the sales profit is void and shall not be enforced.