Rhode Island Launches Tax Credit for Investment in Innovation-based Industries

Rhode Island will now offer a new tax credit to encourage investment in high-growth, high-wage innovation industries and support the state’s entrepreneurs. The Rhode Island Innovation Tax Credit, proposed by the Rhode Island Science and Technology Advisory Council, will offer investors up to a 50 percent credit on eligible investments, with a maximum tax credit of $100,000. [more]

Rhode Island Job Count Continues Impressive Growth

Rhode Island's unemployment rate for May fell to 4.5 percent, dropping well below the national average of 5.1 percent and the May 2006 Rhode Island unemployment rate of 5.3 percent. The job count increased by 200 payroll jobs to 498,000, representing a new high record. [more]

BIF-3 Early Registration Rate Ends June 30!

Don't miss your last chance to take advantage of the BIF-3 Summit early registration rate. With Wall Street Journal columnist Walt Mossberg and "Mavericks at Work" author Bill Taylor in the hosting hot seat, the October 10 and 11 event will be an unforgettable experience.

BIF-3 storytellers include Dallas Mavericks owner and entrepreneur Mark Cuban, Studiocom chief creative officer Juan Fernando Santos, entrepreneur, investor and technologist Ellen Levy, BzzAgent founder Dave Balter, founder of the gethuman project Paul English, Zipcar founder Robin Chase, MIT Age Lab director Joseph Coughlin, 37signals founder Jason Fried, Harvard Biz School's Clay Christensen and former head of Knowledge Management for the BBC Euan Semple, among many others.

Think these pairings seem odd? Think again. Tying together themes of innovation across industries and disciplines is what makes the BIF Summit so powerful.

[Hear What Others Say about the Summit Experience]
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Innovator Spotlight: BatchBlue

Prior to BatchBlue's software, BatchBook, contact management systems were designed for large corporations with large sales teams and had to be custom-built at great expense. The BatchBook online service makes it possible for micro-businesses to put a contact management system in place that caters to their specific needs. [more]

David Rowley: R.I. Good for Scientific Collaboration

As an associate professor of biomedical sciences, David Rowley reaps the benefits of scientific research at the University of Rhode Island. But he was struck by the amount of collaborative research happening right in Rhode Island displayed at a one-day forum hosted by the Rhode Island Science and Technology Advisory Council and Rhode Island’s Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research. [more]

PTAC, DoD Match Local Small Businesses with Government Contractors

The June 11 Spring Matchmaker at the Crowne Plaza in Warwick offered New England small businesses the opportunity to meet with more than 50 government agencies and contractors, securing viable contracts and subcontracts for the small business community. RIPTAC organized the event, which drew nearly 300 small businesses. [more]

RIEDC Awarded for Wellness Initiatives

The Worksite Wellness Council of Rhode Island has awarded the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation the Superior Award for Wellness Initiatives — the highest award they distribute — for RIEDC's efforts and accomplishments to create a healthy work environment. [more]

Every Second Counts

Founded in 1999, ER Card is a personal health record and care management program that provides an individual and professional caregiver with anytime, anywhere access to pertinent health information. With the ER Card, an individual's healthcare information and history is in one place and can be provided to a medical professional in a safe and secure manner. [more]

Alexion Opens New Biomanufacturing Facility in Smithfield

On June 21, Alexion Pharmaceuticals held its grand opening for the company's new biomanufacturing facility in Smithfield, Rhode Island. This facility represents a $50-million investment on the part of Alexion to manufacture Soliris™ (eculizumab) for the treatment of paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria. [more]

Quonset Proposed Site for $150-million Marine Facility

Island Global Yachting, a Florida developer, is in the preliminary stages of constructing a 43-acre, $150-million shipbuilding and repair yard at Quonset Point. The $150-million investment would surpass the total investment in Quonset during the past six years, and would create a strong catalyst for growth in the former Navy base. [more]

Tuition Tax Credit Expansion Approved

The Rhode Island Scholarship Alliance tuition tax credit expansion act was passed in the budget for fiscal year 2008. Now C and S corporations, along with LLCs and LLPs can receive a substantial tax credit for making contributions that provide economically disadvantaged children with scholarships to attend the school of their choice. These corporations can receive up to a 90 percent tax credit amounting to $100,000 annually on contributions. [more]

Pennsylvania Robotics Firm Relocates to R.I.

Thanks in part to a $500,000 seed investment from the Slater Technology Fund, Pennsylvania-based medical robotics firm Innovention Technologies has moved to Middletown. With the investment, the company has hired five employees in Rhode Island and plans to hire an additional 20 during the next three years. [more]

Cultural Organizations Contribute $110 million Annually to R.I.'s Economy

A national study conducted by Americans for the Arts, a Washington D.C. nonprofit organization for advancing the arts, found that Rhode Island's nonprofit arts and cultural organizations add more than $110 million annually into the state's economy and support nearly 3,000 fulltime jobs. The study indicated that these groups contributed more to the local economy than the national average. [more]

R.I. Technology Firm Develops Software for U.S. Port Security

Applied Science Associates, a science and technology solutions company based in Narragansett, has developed a software application used by planners to design and evaluate exercises according to established Department of Homeland Security practices conducted in 40 cities. [more]

Dial 2-1-1 for Essential Community Services

Sometimes you have a need, but you don’t know where to turn. Now Rhode Islanders can dial 2-1-1 for information on services from financial assistance on utility bills to finding an after-school program. The service offers a database of more than 2,700 services offered by more than 700 providers. [more]

URI Start-Up Nets $250,000 from Slater Fund

The Slater Technology Fund has become the first major investor in Vitrimark, a biomedical firm launched two years ago by a University of Rhode Island College of Pharmacy professor. The company focuses on developing new biomarkers for use in the drug development process. [more]

Exchange City Brings Real-World Learning to R.I. Students

Rhode Island's Exchange City officially opened for business on May 3, offering local middle school students access to the largest hands-on education program in the world. The Exchange City experience combines a seven-week curriculum taught in the schools with a field trip to Johnson and Wales University's Paramount Building, where Exchange City is housed. [more]

Brown Engineering Connecting to Rhode Island

The Division of Engineering at Brown University is establishing strong partnerships with businesses, entrepreneurs, technologists and state organizations with various programs such as an education outreach effort where faculty and students visit local schools and share knowledge and experiments with local teachers. [more]

Tall Ships Rhode Island

• When: June 27–July 1
• Where: Newport Harbor
• Contact: Rhode Island Tourism Division, 401-278-9100, jblanchette@riedc.com, www.visitrhodeisland.com; www.tallshipsrhodeisland.org

An international celebration of sail training and sea education, Tall Ships Rhode Island is the largest contingent of Tall Ships in Rhode Island since 1976. The festival will feature approximately 25 Tall Ships, an international village, integrated youth program, country exhibits, fireworks, a street parade of crew and cadets and a black tie ball.

PTAC Training Session

• When: July 19, 8:30–11 a.m.
• Where: Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation, 315 Iron Horse Way, Suite 101, Providence.
• Contact: Louis Francis, 401-278-9151, lfrancis@riedc.com, http://riptac.ecenterdirect.com

This month's training session focuses on opportunities in government subcontracting. One-on-one counseling is available by appointment.