§206M-15.1 Manufacturing development program; established. (a) There is established the manufacturing development program, through which the development corporation may provide grants to any business in Hawaii that is a manufacturer in the State and requires assistance for any of the following items:

(1) Purchasing of manufacturing equipment;

(2) Training of employees on the use of manufacturing equipment;

(3) Improving existing energy efficiency manufacturing equipment or the purchase of improved energy efficiency equipment in the manufacturing process; or

(4) Studying or planning the implementation of a new manufacturing facility;

provided that no grant shall exceed twenty per cent of the cost of any of the above items, and no company shall receive a grant exceeding $100,000 in any given year.

(b) All moneys necessary to carry out the purposes of this section shall be appropriated by the legislature through appropriations out of the state general fund.

(c) In reviewing grant applications pursuant to this section, the development corporation shall analyze each application to determine whether the item to be undertaken will be economically viable and beneficial to the State.

(d) The development corporation shall submit a report to the legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the regular session held in every even-numbered year. The report shall include the following items:

(1) The total number of grants provided;

(2) The sectors provided with grants;

(3) The total projected economic and employment growth facilitated by the grants provided; and

(4) The actual economic and employment growth that occurred as a result of the grants provided. [L 2015, c 215, §1]