Nebraska Innovation Hub Act Designation Application

The Nebraska Legislature passed, and the Governor signed, Legislative Bill 450 during the 2022 Legislative Session creating the Nebraska Innovation Hub Act. The Legislature declared that Innovation hubs could serve as a vital resource for stimulating and supporting entrepreneurship and technology based small businesses in Nebraska. The Nebraska Innovation Hub Act selects the Nebraska Department of Economic Development (DED) to designate innovation hubs with in iHub areas to stimulate partnerships economic development and job creation by leveraging iHub partner assets to provide an innovation platform for startup businesses, economic development organizations, business groups, and venture capitalists. DED will make an application available to private nonprofit corporations to become designated as an iHub.

The Nebraska Legislature passed, and the Governor signed, Legislative Bill 1024 during the 2022 Legislative Session creating the Economic Recovery Act. Under the Economic Recovery Act, the Economic Recovery and Incentives Division of the Nebraska Department of Economic Development shall create a Qualified Census Tract (QCT) Recovery Grant Program to provide funding to public and private entities located within qualified census tracts throughout the state to respond to the negative impact of the COVID – 19 public health emergency. Please note, separate iHub grant funding guidance and an application process will be made available for nonprofit corporations designated as an iHub.

DED shall determine whether or not to approve the requested iHub designation by no later than July 1, 2023. Each iHub designation shall be for a term of five years. Once the application cycle opens, applications will be considered and designated every two months on a rolling basis until the cycle closes on June 1, 2023. Applications that do not include all of the documentation or attachments specified or have not been fully completed, will not be considered. At its discretion, the DED may request supplemental materials from applicants.

The application shall include but not be limited to, the following: 1. A statement of purpose. 2. A signed statement of cooperation and a description of the roles and relationships of each iHub partner. 3. A clear explanation and map conveying the iHub area. 4. A clearly identified central location for the iHub, which shall be a physical location. 5. A complete budget, including a description of secured funds, pending funds, and potential future funding sources. 6. A clearly articulated iHub management structure and plan, which may include a description of the capabilities, qualifications, and experience of the proposed management team, team leaders, or key personnel who are critical to achieving the proposed objectives. 7. A list of iHub assets and resources. 8. A clearly articulated industry focus area of the iHub, including industry sectors or other targeted areas for development and growth. 9. A list of specific resources available to support and guide startup companies. 10. A five-year plan, which shall include a clearly articulated list of goals to be achieved with the designation of the iHub. 11. Defined performance standards agreed upon by the applicant and the proposed iHub partners, which may include expectations for job development and business creation. 12. Evaluation procedures that will be used to measure the level of achievement for each stated goal. 13. A plan for sustainability. 14. Demonstrated experience with innovation programs, such as involvement with technology commercialization. 15. Evidence of community engagement and support. 16. An application fee of one thousand dollars. iHub Designation Criteria NDED shall establish a scoring system to evaluate applications for iHub designations. Such scoring system shall consider, at a minimum: 1. Whether the iHub is committed to serving underrepresented communities in the proposed iHub area. 2. Whether the iHub has a plan for marketing and outreach to underrepresented communities in the proposed iHub area. 3. Whether the iHub has signed statements of cooperation with at least three proposed iHub partners. 4. The quality of the iHub's five-year plan.

For program guidelines, please refer to: https://opportunity.nebraska.gov/programs/recovery/ihubs/

Eligible Partnerships An iHub shall form a collaborative relationship, through a signed statement of cooperation, with at least three iHub partners. An iHub partner may be any of the following: 1. A postsecondary educational institution 2. A bank or other financial institution 3. A municipal economic development division or department 4. A nonprofit economic development corporation 5. A federal government entity or agency focused on economic development 6. An inland port authority created pursuant to the Municipal Inland Port Authority Act 7. A business support organization, including a workforce development or training organization, an incubator or a business accelerator, a business technical assistance provider, a chamber of commerce, or a networking organization that supports innovation 8. An educational consortium, including technology transfer representatives 9. A venture capital network, including angel investors 10. A business foundation, innovation foundation, science foundation, laboratory research institution, federal laboratory, or research and development facility.

Resources: General and Program specific user guides and videos can be found at https://opportunity.nebraska.gov/amplifund/. Statewide Relay System: Individuals, who are hearing and/or speech impaired and have a TTY, may contact the Department through the Statewide Relay System by calling (800) 833-7352 (TTY) or (800) 833-0920 (voice). The relay operator should be asked to call DED at (800) 426-6505 or (402) 471-3111.

The iHub designation shall not be official until a memorandum of understanding is entered into by the applicant and the NDED. The memorandum of understanding shall include the goals and performance standards identified in the application and other related requirements as determined by the NDED.

iHub Reporting Requirements An iHub shall annually report to the NDED on its progress in meeting the goals and performance standards as described in the iHub application and the implementing memorandum of understanding with the NDED. The report shall also include information regarding the number of businesses served, the number of jobs created, and the amount of funds raised by the iHub. The NDED shall annually post the information from these reports on the NDED website and provide notice to the Governor and the Legislature that the information is available on the website.