Vermont Rolls Out New Initiative to Spur Software Industry

Gov. Jim Douglas recently announced Vermont will roll out a suite of grants and incentives to strengthen the state’s software industry. The initiative includes state-funded low-interest loans to software businesses, employment growth incentives and a tax credit for software research. In his unveiling of the software initiative at Champlain College’s new Emergent Media Center, Gov. Douglas explained that state agencies will use these new measures in conjunction with the Center to help build a local software development cluster.

Under the new initiative, the state will provide $150,000 to the Vermont Center for Emerging Technologies to support student entrepreneurs. The money will fund three low-interest loans to help state university and college students start new software design companies. A $47,000 grant to the Vermont Software Developers Alliance, the statewide software trade association, will help provide support for existing businesses.

Gov. Douglas also announced his intention to expand Vermont’s Employment Growth Incentive. The change will expand the cash incentive to companies that create new software jobs. Vermont’s Department of Labor will start giving priority to software and related technology firms in coming rounds of awards. Also, the state will introduce a new R&D tax credit that mirrors the federal R&D tax credit at the state level.

Read the Governor’s press release on the software initiative at: http://governor.vermont.gov/tools/index.php?topic=GovPressReleases&id=3181&v=Article

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