Sec. 32-462. Limitation on the amount of financial assistance which may be awarded without specific approval by the General Assembly. Exception. - Connecticut Statutes

      Sec. 32-462. Limitation on the amount of financial assistance which may be awarded without specific approval by the General Assembly. Exception. (a) As used in this section:

      (1) "Agency" means the Department of Economic and Community Development, the Connecticut Development Authority or Connecticut Innovations, Incorporated.

      (2) "Financial assistance" means grants, loans, loan guarantees, contracts of insurance, investments, or combinations thereof, which are provided from the proceeds of bonds, notes or other obligations of the state or an agency which constitute a debt or liability of the state or which are secured by a special capital reserve fund payable from amounts appropriated or deemed appropriated from the General Fund.

      (3) "Applicant" means any eligible applicant seeking financial assistance from an agency for a business project. The term "applicant" shall not include any political subdivision of the state.

      (4) "Business project" means a business proposal undertaken by one or more applicants, but does not include housing unless undertaken in combination with another unrelated type of business.

      (5) "Biotechnology business project" means any commercial project to be used or occupied by any person to conduct laboratory activity relating to, or the research, development or manufacture of, biologically active molecules or devices that apply to, affect or analyze biological processes.

      (b) (1) No agency or agencies may award more than a total of ten million dollars of financial assistance during any two-year period to an applicant or for a business project unless such financial assistance is specifically authorized by an act of the General Assembly which has been enacted before, on or after July 1, 1994. (2) The provisions of subdivision (1) of this subsection shall not apply to any awards funded or to be funded by bonds authorized to be issued by the State Bond Commission before July 1, 1994.

      (c) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (b) of this section, no agency or agencies may award more than twenty million dollars of financial assistance for a biotechnology business project during any two-year period unless such financial assistance is specifically authorized by an act of the General Assembly which has been enacted before, on or after July 1, 2001.

      (May Sp. Sess. P.A. 94-2, S. 15, 203; Oct. Sp. Sess. P.A. 94-1, S. 19, 21; P.A. 95-250, S. 21, 42; 95-309, S. 11, 12; P.A. 96-211, S. 1, 5, 6; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-7, S. 22, 28.)

      History: May Sp. Sess. P.A. 94-2, S. 15, effective July 1, 1994; Oct. Sp. Sess. P.A. 94-1 amended Subsec. (a)(2) by adding "contracts of insurance" to the definition of "financial assistance" and by specifying that the several forms of financial assistance "are provided from the proceeds of bonds, notes or other obligations of the state or an agency which constitute a debt or liability of the state or which are secured by a special capital reserve fund payable from amounts appropriated or deemed appropriated from the general fund", amended Subsec. (a)(3) by excluding any political subdivision of the state from the term "applicant", and amended Subsec. (b) by making existing language Subdiv. (1) and adding a new Subdiv. (2) which excludes from the provisions of Subdiv. (1) "awards funded or to be funded by bonds authorized to be issued" before July 1, 1994, effective October 14, 1994; P.A. 95-250 and P.A. 96-211 redefined "agency" by replacing "Commissioner of Economic Development" with "Commissioner of Economic and Community Development" and redefined "business project" to exclude housing in business project unless combined with an unrelated business in Subdiv. (4); P.A. 95-309 changed effective date of P.A. 95-250 but did not affect this section; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 01-7 amended Subsec. (a) to define "biotechnology business project" and added new Subsec. (c) re limitation on state assistance to biotechnology business projects, effective July 1, 2001.