§ 15-3-705. Eligibility

(a) To be eligible for a matching grant under this subchapter, an applicant shall:

1. (1) Be an eligible business; and

2. (2) Certify that:

   1. (A) The eligible business:

      1. (i) For Phase I applications, has received a Small Business Innovation Research grant from a sponsoring agency in response to a specific federal solicitation; or

      2. (ii) For Phase II applications, has:

         1. (a) Submitted a final Phase I report to the sponsoring agency;

         2. (b) Demonstrated that the sponsoring agency has interest in the Phase II proposal; and

         3. (c) Submitted a Phase II proposal to the sponsoring agency; and

   2. (B) All federal Small Business Innovation Research grant requirements will be met.

(b) An eligible business awarded a matching grant under this subchapter shall:

1. (1) Remain in Arkansas for the duration of the matching grant project;

2. (2) Designate an Arkansas resident or employee as the principal investigator/project manager during the duration of the matching grant; and

3. (3) Be principally engaged in one (1) or more of the following targeted business activities:

   1. (A) Advanced materials and manufacturing systems;

   2. (B) Agriculture, food, and environmental sciences;

   3. (C) Biotechnology, bioengineering, and life sciences;

   4. (D) Information technology;

   5. (E) Transportation logistics; and

   6. (F) Bio-based products.