Investors seeking a portion of the $8 million available in FY 2013 for the State’s popular Biotechnology Investment Incentive Tax Credit submitted more than 125 registrations online Monday July 9, Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development (DBED) Secretary Christian S. Johansson announced. Online registration for the much-sought-after credits was rescheduled from Monday July 2 due to a State of Emergency declared by Governor Martin O’Malley and power outages as a result of a severe storm.
“Maryland’s Biotechnology Tax Credit continues to be one of most successful tools we have to grow our life sciences industry and create jobs,” said Governor O’Malley. “The credit has helped our early stage life sciences companies attract millions in private investment, which funds clinical trials and enables these companies to bring their innovative and life-saving discoveries to the commercial marketplace.”
The online system was launched two years ago to make the process easier, more efficient and eliminate the need for investors and biotech firms to line up in person in advance as they had done in past years. Registrations were taken on a first-come, first-served basis and investors will learn within 30 days if their prospective investment may be eligible for the credit. The tax credit program encourages investors to provide seed and early-stage funding to qualified, privately held Maryland biotechnology companies.
In calendar year 2011, 18 qualified Maryland biotechnology companies received investments from the program, which is a key part of Governor O’Malley’s BioMaryland 2020 plan, the 10-year, $1.3 billion strategy for moving the State’s life sciences industry forward and investing in programs and infrastructure to position Maryland as a global life sciences powerhouse. Since it was first funded in FY 2007, the program has issued $38 million in tax credits, assisting more than 50 Maryland biotechnology companies and leveraging $80 million in private investment.
For more on the program, visit www.MarylandBiocenter.org.
Companies receiving investments from the program in calendar year 2011 include 20/20 Gene Systems (Montgomery County); Alper Biotech (Montgomery County); Beta Cat Pharmaceuticals (Montgomery County); BioMarker Strategies (Baltimore City); Clarassance (Montgomery County); Creatv MicroTech (Montgomery County); CosmosID Inc. (Prince George’s County); CSA Medical (Baltimore City); Fyodor (Baltimore City); Gliknik (Baltimore City); Neogenix Oncology (Montgomery County); Noxilizer (Montgomery County); Otraces Inc. (Montgomery County); Personal Genome Diagnostics (Baltimore City); Rafagen (Montgomery County); Sequella (Montgomery County); Synergy America (Montgomery County); and Xcision Medical Systems (Howard County).
Dr. Jonathan Javitt, CEO and co-founder of Telcare Inc., said the tax credit program has helped him market his company’s unique wireless-enabled glucose monitoring system.
“Telcare’s participation in last year’s tax credit program was a bellwether event for our company,” said Dr. Javitt. “Because of the additional security afforded investors by this innovative program, Telcare was able to secure the critical early capital that funded our clinical trials and FDA clearance. Just 18 months later, our wireless-enabled glucose meter is cleared by FDA and FCC, fully commercialized and shipping to customers. The $1.1 million in tax credits enabled the creation of more than a dozen high-quality jobs.”
Douglas A. Doerfler, President and CEO of MaxCyte, Inc., said his company was able to leverage a total round of $7 dollars for every $1 dollar in tax credits their investors received in previous years.
"Especially in challenging times, the Maryland program makes the difference in catalyzing investments in life science companies,” said Doerfler. “Since the investment round, we have been able to expand our business globally and hire more employees locally.”
Frank Turano, CRO of Plant Sensory Systems, said the tax credit was instrumental in motivating a larger investment from an angel investor.
“The Maryland tax credit played a significant role in increasing the level of investment from an interested angel investor,” Turano said. “The additional funds helped the company to expand its IP portfolio, and Plant Sensory Systems was able to attract international commercial partners for its Nitrogen Use Efficiency and Stress Tolerance (NUEST) technology.”
To qualify, companies are required to: be less than 15 years old; have their headquarters and base of operations in Maryland; employ fewer than 50 people, and have a valid certification from the Department of Business and Economic Development. Investors are required to submit applications prior to making an investment. DBED reviews the applications and issues initial credit certifications within 30 calendar days.
ABOUT DBED
The Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development stimulates private investment and creates jobs by attracting new businesses, encouraging the expansion and retention of existing companies, and providing workforce training and financial assistance to Maryland companies. The Department promotes the State's many economic advantages and markets local products and services at home and abroad to spur economic development and international investment, trade and tourism. For more information, visit www.ChooseMaryland.org.
ABOUT THE MARYLAND BIOTECHNOLOGY CENTER
The Maryland Biotechnology Center (MBC), part of the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development, is a newly created organization by Governor Martin O’Malley and the Maryland Life Sciences Advisory Board. The MBC is a portal to resources and coordinated programs of entrepreneur and biotechnology infrastructure development, workforce training, connection to federal facilities, and marketing Maryland’s bioscience community. For more information, visit www.MarylandBiocenter.org.
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