North Carolina HB 283: Small Business Investment Grant Program.

Bill Text

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2025
H 1
HOUSE BILL 283

Short Title: Small Business Investment Grant Program. (Public)
Sponsors: Representatives Reives, Bell, Ross, and T. Brown (Primary Sponsors).
For a complete list of sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly web site.
Referred to: Commerce and Economic Development, if favorable, Finance, if favorable, Rules,
Calendar, and Operations of the House
March 5, 2025
*H283-v-1*
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
AN ACT TO RENAME THE ONE NORTH CAROLINA SMALL BUSINESS ACCOUNT 2
THE SMALL BUSINESS RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY ACCOUNT AND TO 3
CREATE A SMALL BUSINESS INVESTMENT GRANT PROGRAM WITHIN THE ONE 4
NORTH CAROLINA FUND. 5
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 6
SECTION 1.(a) G.S. 143B-437.71 reads as rewritten: 7
"§ 143B-437.71. One North Carolina Fund established as a special revenue fund. 8
(a) Establishment. – The One North Carolina Fund is established as a special revenue 9
fund in the Department of Commerce. 10
(b) Purposes. – Moneys in the One North Carolina Fund may only be allocated pursuant 11
to this subsection. Moneys may be allocated to (i) local governments for use in connection with 12
securing commitments for the recruitment, expansion, or retention of new and existing businesses 13
and to businesses, (ii) the One North Carolina Small Business Account Small Business Research 14
and Technology Account created pursuant to subsection (c) of this section in an amount not to 15
exceed three million dollars ($3,000,000). ($3,000,000), and (iii) the Small Business Investment 16
Grant Account created pursuant to subsection (d) of this section in an amount not to exceed ten 17
million dollars ($10,000,000). Moneys in the One North Carolina Fund allocated to local 18
governments under this subsection shall be used for the following purposes only: 19
(1) Installation or purchase of equipment. 20
(2) Structural repairs, improvements, or renovations to existing buildings to be 21
used for expansion. 22
(3) Construction of or improvements to new or existing water, sewer, gas, or 23
electric utility distribution lines or equipment for existing buildings. 24
(4) Construction of or improvements to new or existing water, sewer, gas, or 25
electric utility distribution lines or equipment for new or proposed buildings 26
to be used for manufacturing and industrial operations. 27
(5) Any other purposes specifically provided by an act of the General Assembly. 28
(b1) Awards. – The amounts committed in Governor's Letters issued in a single fiscal year 29
may not exceed seventeen million dollars ($17,000,000). Of the amount authorized in this 30
subsection, three million dollars ($3,000,000) is reserved for agreements with local governments 31
located in development tier three areas, as defined in G.S. 143B-437.08, with total employment 32
of 115,000 or less, using the data specified in G.S. 143B-437.52(c)(3). 33

General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
Page 2 House Bill 283-First Edition
(c) Small Business Research and Technology Account. – There is created in the One 1
North Carolina Fund a special account, the One North Carolina Small Business Account, Small 2
Business Research and Technology Account, to be used for the North Carolina SBIR/STTR 3
Incentive Program and the North Carolina SBIR/STTR Matching Funds Program, as specified in 4
Part 2I of Article 10 of Chapter 143B of the General Statutes. 5
(d) Small Business Investment Grant Account. – There is created in the One North 6
Carolina Fund a special account, the Small Business Investment Grant Account (SBIG), to be 7
used to provide competitive grants to eligible small businesses to offset costs associated with 8
establishing a new facility or expanding an existing facility in the State, in accordance with this 9
subsection. The Department shall administer the program and shall prioritize grants to recipients 10
that the Department determines will have the greatest net economic benefit at the regional and 11
State levels. Grants to a recipient under this subsection may not exceed (i) five hundred thousand 12
dollars ($500,000) in any single calendar year, (ii) two million five hundred thousand dollars 13
($2,500,000) total, and (iii) a term of distribution greater than five years. An eligible small 14
business is a business that meets all of the following requirements: 15
(1) Has 250 or fewer full-time employees, including full-time equivalents or has 16
less than five million dollars ($5,000,000) in annual gross revenue. 17
(2) Will invest at least ten million dollars ($10,000,000), but not more than thirty 18
million dollars ($30,000,000) in private funds, and hire not more than 250 new 19
employees, as defined in G.S. 143B-437.51, in this State. 20
(3) Pays employees an average weekly wage that is at least equal to one hundred 21
ten percent (110%) of the average wage for all insured private employers in 22
the county." 23
SECTION 1.(b) G.S. 143B-437.80(a) reads as rewritten: