Archive for June, 2018
Friday, June 29th, 2018
 Parades and fireworks highlight the 4th of July holiday period in New Hampshire. More than 1 million out-of-state visitors are expected to spend in excess of $155 million over the Fourth of July holiday, according to the Division of Travel and Tourism Development.
Spanning nine days between June 29 and July 8, the holiday period officially kicks off New Hampshire’s busiest travel season. Overall, DTTD expects a record-breaking 2018 summer travel season drawing more than 3.4 million visitors who will spend $1.8 billion.
“The Fourth of July is a critical time for businesses and attractions throughout New Hampshire that draw visitors to experience outdoor adventures such as kayaking, biking, ATVing, and camping that are so popular during the summer months, as well as the state’s tax-free shopping,” said DTTD Director Victoria Cimino. “We’re looking forward to welcoming visitors from throughout the Northeast and beyond.”
The majority of people visiting the state during this holiday period will travel from New England and the Middle Atlantic states. Outdoor recreation, patriotic events and visiting friends and relatives are popular activities during the Fourth of July period.
Tags: 4th of July, Division of Travel and Tourism Development, holiday travel
Posted in NH Business Matters | Comments Off on Sunshine, Spending Forecasted for New Hampshire’s July 4 Holiday Week
Thursday, June 28th, 2018
 Commissioner Caswell, left; Gov. Sununu; Attorney General Gordon MacDonald Governor Chris Sununu will ask the Executive Council next month to approve a proclamation declaring a special session this summer, calling back lawmakers to consider legislation to protect Granite State businesses from improper attempts by other states to force them to collect sales and use taxes.
Sununu was joined by Senate President Chuck Morse; House Speaker Gene Chandler; Attorney General Gordon MacDonald; Commissioners Taylor Caswell and Lindsey Stepp, and business owners from around the state in announcing New Hampshire’s plan to respond to the US Supreme Court’s decision last week in the case of South Dakota v. Wayfair, Inc.
Pursuant to the authority granted to the Governor and Executive Council in Part 2, Article 50 of the New Hampshire Constitution, Sununu will ask the Council to approve a proclamation declaring a special legislative session at its meeting July 11.
The Governor’s office is working with legislative leadership and the Attorney General’s office to craft legislation. While final details are still being worked out, New Hampshire will erect every possible and constitutionally permissible legal and procedural hurdle to prevent other states from forcing our businesses to collect sales and use taxes. Some of the provisions the state will enact:
- Any out of state taxing authority seeking to audit or impose tax collection obligations on a New Hampshire business will be required to notify the New Hampshire Department of Justice;
- Before proceeding, the out of state taxing authority will be required to receive a written determination, from the New Hampshire Department of Justice, that the authority’s statutes provide certain protections and meet strict requirements;
- These protections and requirements will include a safe harbor for a certain amount of sales, a prohibition against retroactive enforcement, a safe harbor for small businesses, and other strict requirements. In addition, an out of state taxing authority will have to show that its laws will not impose an unconstitutional burden on New Hampshire businesses;
- The New Hampshire Department of Justice will be empowered to file an expedited suit to block any attempt to impose tax collection obligations undertaken in violation of this new law.
“With this proposal, we will send a message to every out of state taxing jurisdiction and authority. If you try to come into our state and force our businesses to collect a sales tax in manner that violates our laws or the United States Constitution, you will be in for the fight of your life,” Sununu said. “Live free or die is not just a slogan on a license plate. It is the very essence of who we are. Our State Constitution says that ‘the people of this State have the sole and exclusive right of governing themselves as a free, sovereign, and independent State.’ Working together, we will do everything in our power to prevent other States from violating this principle by imposing arcane sales and use tax obligations on New Hampshire businesses.”
The US Supreme Court decision last week in the Wayfair case, said Attorney General Gordon MacDonald displaces 50 years of precedent.
“My office stands ready to carefully monitor the development of the law in the wake of this decision, and to assist the Governor and legislative leaders in crafting legislation that seeks to protect New Hampshire’s citizens and businesses,” he said.
Business and Economic Affairs Commissioner Taylor Caswell said, “The Governor’s action today should send a clear message to the NH business community and beyond that this state will aggressively defend our pro-growth low-tax economy.”
Senate President Chuck Morse stated, “New Hampshire’s freedom from an income or sales tax is something we take great pride in because it makes our state competitive for businesses and supports a quality of life our citizens are accustomed to. The South Dakota v Wayfair decision attempts to strip our state of this distinction and may impose burdensome tax obligations on our businesses and our citizens. This decision does not recognize how sales tax-free states like New Hampshire have drawn many citizens to live, work and start a business here for that very reason. I support Governor Sununu’s plan to fight back against this decision because of the untold effect it would have on our state’s economy and small businesses. Swift action must be taken to defend our business’ freedom from collecting taxes for other states in which they have no physical presence. I look forward to working with our Senate and House colleagues to establish these protections in statue as soon as possible.”
This proposal will provide the maximum protection possible under state and federal law.
Tags: NH constitution, tax free NH, taxation without representation, Wayfair
Posted in NH Business Matters | Comments Off on Tax-free NH Fights Back: Governor Announces Strategy in Sales Tax Case
Wednesday, June 27th, 2018
 Norwegian-based AutoStore Systems celebrates the opening of its U.S. headquarters in Derry this week. Increased growth in its North American market has led a Norwegian-based company to establish its U.S. headquarters in Derry and this week, AutoStore System celebrated the expansion with a grand opening.
 AutoStore is a high-density cube storage system. AutoStore is a high-density cube storage system, consisting of five standard modules: Robot, port or workstation, grid, bin, and controller. The robots drive on the top of the grid to access inventory store in the bins below. The bins are retrieved, put away and delivered to ports or workstations as requested.
“Due to the continued increase in activity in the North American market, we felt the only decision was to open an office close to this market,” said Paul Roy, managing director – North America.
The new 20,000-square-foot facility, at 3 Corporate Park Dr., will house a U.S.- based team to support the North American market and showcase a fully operational AutoStore grid. The facility will also store spare parts for faster deliveries, as well as offer customer service support, training programs and sales support.
“Having a fully operational grid with eight robots in our Derry facility will allow us to not only store and retrieve our own parts for delivery to our NA partners but also provide a realistic demonstration and training environment for potential customers and partners needing all levels of training,” Roy said.
Tags: AutoSore Systems, business expansion, Derry NH, US Headquarters
Posted in NH Business Matters | Comments Off on Norwegian-based AutoStore Systems Opens U.S. Headquarters in New Hampshire
Monday, June 25th, 2018
 POS is the leader in cleanroom laundry services, which is important to industries such as aerospace and life sciences that need 21st century cleanliness in their processes. Prudential Cleanroom Services, a world leader in cleanroom laundry service systems, celebrated the opening of its Nashua cleanroom laundry processing facility, an event bringing together state and local dignitaries, as well as the employees.
 NH Economic Development Director Will Arvelo “We are very pleased to welcome Prudential Cleanroom Services to Nashua,” said Will Arvelo, director of the Division of Economic Development. “The capabilities it provides are vital to the many companies whose advanced manufacturing processes require high tech industrial laundry services. We look forward to watching them grow and prosper in New Hampshire.”
PCS is a division of California-based Prudential Overall Supply. When the company went looking for a loction to expand, Nashua quickly became an obvious choice because of its location and infrastructure. Cynthia Harrington, business development manager at DED, assisted the company with its expansion.
The company is building a 131,371-square-foot commercial laundry facility at 45 Simon St., on a 14-acre tract. Prudential completed the first of three phases; building a one-story 70,000 square foot facility, which includes offices, industrial space, employee areas and loading docks with 136 parking spaces on site for staff.
The next phase will be followed by a 45,000-square-foot section and, the last phase will be a 16,280-square-foot addition.
“This facility now provides over 85 well-paying jobs for the greater Nashua community, and provides our customers with world class cleanroom laundry services throughout the Northeast,” said Stefan Schurter, Prudential’s senior vice president commented at the ceremony,
Tags: business expansion, City of Nashua, Prudential Cleanroom Services
Posted in NH Business Matters | Comments Off on Prudential Cleanroom Services Expands to Nashua, Celebrates Opening the Largest Cleanroom Laundry in the US
Thursday, June 21st, 2018
Commissioner Taylor Caswell’s statement on the South Dakota v. Wayfair decision handed down by the U.S. Supreme Court.
“The Wayfair decision handed down today by the United States Supreme Court tells New Hampshire businesses that they now must collect taxes for politicians in other states that they did not elect. This is unacceptable.
“New Hampshire businesses have never, ever, collected a sales tax and New Hampshire residents have never, ever, paid an income tax. Imposing this new requirement on us isn’t just an administrative burden, it goes against what New Hampshire stands for: Live Free or Die.
“The thousands of small businesses that drive our economy must not be forced to become tax collectors for other states. I am working with state leaders to determine a path forward aimed at defending New Hampshire’s business community from this modern-day taxation without representation scheme.”
Taylor Caswell
Commissioner
NH Department of Business and Economic Affairs
Tags: Commissioner Taylor Caswell, Live Free, no income tax, no sales tax
Posted in NH Business Matters | Comments Off on Commissioner Caswell’s Statement on South Dakota v. Wayfair U.S. Supreme Court Decision
Wednesday, June 20th, 2018
 Commissioner Taylor Caswell Last year, Governor Sununu proposed the division of the Department of Resources and Economic Development, creating the Department of Business and Economic Affairs. Since its approval by the Legislature, this new agency has been a catalyst for increasing opportunities for New Hampshire to modernize and vastly improve the focus and practice of how we do economic development.
This couldn’t have happened at a better time. The practice of economic development has changed drastically over the past decade. States and cities are moving away from the longstanding focus on government-run business recruitment and standard worker ‘unemployment training’ programs that gave little thought to what might come next for those workers.
What does this mean for New Hampshire?
It means we can hone in on the needs of our businesses here first, and leverage our business community with our state’s regional strengths to develop a compelling case for new businesses to come here.
It means we build new, more innovative strategies to recruit talent to our state.
It means connecting education and training directly to employers and jobs.
It means a new, more aggressive entry into the global marketplace to find opportunity for our small businesses seeking new markets.
It means refreshed, meaningful relationships with our state’s incredible network of public and private academic institutions, linking them with state policymakers and business leaders statewide.
It means working to update and increase the predictability of the state’s regulatory environment and use our small and agile government as a true advantage.
It means constructing new partnerships and collaborations across a broad universe of stakeholders to focus on building communities where people want to live and work and telling that story effectively and to as many people outside the state as we can.
New Hampshire’s economy is growing fast. Companies are expanding or moving here, and people are working. In fact, in 2017, New Hampshire’s economy was the second fastest growing economy in the nation and our unemployment rate remains low.
My goal is to build this new system and create an economy that is resilient, vibrant, collaborative, intentional, and protects what we love best about New Hampshire.
The new Department of Business and Economic Affairs has the tools it needs to get there. We have the widely-respected Division of Travel & Tourism Development, which has a marketing team that is among the best in the nation and stokes the engine of New Hampshire’s crucial hospitality economy. In 2017, its work helped generate 2.23 million visitor trips to New Hampshire, which yielded $5.5 billion in spending, maintaining 48,000 jobs, and generating $269 million in tax revenue for the state.
Our Division of Economic Development helps businesses connect to, and fund, job training; works with existing and new business leaders to finance and expand their economic footprint; guides companies seeking to access global markets or win government contracts, and helps drive our entrepreneurial economy. Its work has direct impact on the profitability of our state’s employers and creates value for the state and residents.
The combined teams are creating new stakeholder collaborations, integrating marketing efforts and strategies, and working hard to establish New Hampshire as a leader in holistic, collaborative state economic development.
I look forward to working with you.
Taylor Caswell
Commissioner
New Hampshire Department of Business and Economic Affairs
Tags: Commissioner Taylor Caswell, Department of Business and Economic Affairs, Division of Economic Development, Division of Travel and Tourism Development
Posted in NH Business Matters | Comments Off on A New Approach to Economic Development in New Hampshire
Thursday, June 7th, 2018
 1: The state of New Hampshire’s booth at the BIO International this week in Boston. 2: Shawn Cain, right, COO of LSNE Contract Manufacturing and BEA Commissioner Taylor Caswell. 3: Caswell and President/CEO Thomas Taylor, right, of Foxx Life Sciences. 4: Caswell and David Alward, right, Canada’s Consul General to New England. 5: The NH pavilion team: Business and Economic Affairs; the University of New Hampshire; the Advanced Regenerative Manufacturing Institute; the Community College System of New Hampshire; Dartmouth College and the New Hampshire High Tech Council. New Hampshire showcased its fast-growing biotech/medtech industry, its academic partners, and its quality of life at the annual BIO International Convention in Boston, Mass. this week. Now in its 25th year, the event draws over 17,000 people and 1,800 exhibitors from all over the world.
The Department of Business and Economic Affairs partnered with the University of New Hampshire; the Advanced Regenerative Manufacturing Institute; the Community College System of New Hampshire; Dartmouth College and the New Hampshire High Technology Council to present a collaborative and interactive experience for biotech companies, biotech talent, executives, startups, and other stakeholders for the three-day conference.
“This is a prestigious and respected trade show that’s been around for 25 years and it was time that New Hampshire got in front of an international audience to talk about what we have going on here,” said Taylor Caswell, commissioner of the Department of Business and Economic Affairs. “We have trailblazing companies that are changing healthcare around the world.”
Caswell visited with several New Hampshire companies taking part in the show, including Foxx Life Sciences of Salem, Lonza Biologics of Portsmouth, and LSNE Contract Manufacturing of Bedford.
“Each of these companies has a major footprint in New Hampshire and they are continuing to grow,” he said. “They are finding the talent they need here and a business climate conducive to growth, but we want to do everything we can to continue to support their goals and provide quality jobs for New Hampshire.”
Caswell also met with David Alward, Canada’s Consul General to New England for a wide ranging discussion about life sciences, trade and tariffs.
“We share a $5 billion border with Canada,” Caswell said, “and for many of our businesses, small or large, the relationship with Canada is critical. We need to do what we can to protect that.”
Throughout the three-day conference, New Hampshire’s team promoted the state’s exceptional business climate and lifestyle assets; from education pathways and life science startups to how to match up its outstanding academic institutions, their research, and their graduating workforces with companies across the state.
“New Hampshire is poised to be at the forefront of innovation and healthcare and the leaders of pharma and biotech from around the world got to see that the BIO International Convention,” Caswell said.
Tags: Advanced Regenerative Manufacturing Institute, BIO International Convention, Community College System of New Hampshire, Dartmouth College, Foxx Life Sciences, LSNE Contract Manufacturing, NH High Technology Council, University of New Hampshire
Posted in NH Business Matters | Comments Off on NH Recruits for High-Growth Biotech Talent at International Conference
Monday, June 4th, 2018
 Business and Economic Affairs Commissioner Taylor Caswell When Governor Sununu signed SB 564 into law last week, he set New Hampshire on course to becoming the global hub for regenerative manufacturing.
The science behind creating new tissue and organs, and manufacturing them commercially, may sound like something from the 22nd century, but that technology is already happening at the Advanced Regenerative Manufacturing Institute in the Manchester Millyard.
The potential impact on New Hampshire economy, the healthcare industry, and people’s lives across the planet is nothing short of colossal.
Scientists, visionaries and legislators came together in Manchester this week for the signing of this bill because it is that important to our 21st century economy. This new law exempts for 10 years qualified companies locating their regenerative manufacturing business in New Hampshire from state corporate taxes. It also establishes a $5 million student loan forgiveness program for those people who come here to work in and grow this amazing industry. After five years, the state will pay for their student loans.
These are significant new tools that truly illustrate that New Hampshire is open for business. This legislation will help us recruit to our state, and retain, both businesses and the skilled workforce they need to grow and further evolve this science.
I can’t think of a more appropriate place for regenerative manufacturing to start changing the world than Manchester’s Millyard. A century ago, these very same buildings housed the largest and most technologically advanced textile mills on the planet. And now, here in 2018, these mills are on the precipice of once again being a globally critical manufacturing hub.
We’ve been here before. We can do it again.
Taylor Caswell
Commissioner
NH Business and Economic Affairs
Tags: Commissioner Taylor Caswell, Manchester, Manchester Millyard, regenerative manufacturing
Posted in NH Business Matters | Comments Off on Regenerative Manufacturing in Manchester Ready to Change the World
Friday, June 1st, 2018
Governor Chris Sununu this week signed SB 564 into law, a groundbreaking step in the state’s leadership in regenerative medicine. It provides an unprecedented 10-year tax exemption from both the state business profits tax, as well as the business enterprise tax, to for-profit companies that have at least 75 percent of their taxable activity in the Advanced Regenerative Manufacturing Institute (ARMI) project in Manchester.
The bill also includes a $5 million student loan repayment program for workers who devote at least five years to the project, which has been spearheaded by inventor Dean Kamen. Kamen’s vision attracted an $80 million grant from the U.S. Department of Defense to create the international hub of regenerative manufacturing, whose mission it is to make practical the large-scale manufacturing of engineered tissues and tissue-related technologies, to benefit existing industries and grow new ones.
In addition to Kamen, Sununu was joined by Taylor Caswell, commissioner of Business and Economic Affairs, as well Michael Golway, CEO of Advanced Solutions Life Sciences, and Martine Rothblatt, CEO of Lung BioTechnology, the leaders of two companies first to benefit from this legislation.
 Martine Rothblatt ~ CEO, Lung BioTechnology It is difficult to find the top talent we need. When Dean (Kamen) told me about the possibility that our graduates from the top schools throughout the country would have, after committing five years working here, their student loans paid for, “I said, ‘Dean, this would be something which is better than anyone else in the country has.’”
Our HR people said this is the silver bullet for getting the people you want to have here.
We have already moved our organ manufacturing group from Kendall Square, the hotspot if they are just graduating from MIT or Harvard. We will move them here because I believed that you would get this bill passed.
Because of this, I guarantee there is nothing better you can do than to create opportunity, get out of the way and let the organ manufacturers bring the talented individuals here and take the ball all the way.
“This legislation lays the groundwork to advance New Hampshire’s role in developing the ARMI network and the larger biotech community in our state,” Sununu said. “Veterans, children and people all over the world have the potential to benefit from this research, being done right here in southern New Hampshire.”
 Michael Golway, CEO, Advanced Solutions Life Sciences I’m an 18-year entrepreneur; I’ve done 10 acquisitions and six startups. I share this with you because we’ve had quite a bit of experience buying companies and starting companies around the country and I have never seen the speed with which this legislation was conceptualized and implemented. I applaud everyone who had a role.
From an entrepreneur’s standpoint, there’s an incredible vision with ARMI and what this could look like in the next several years. At its core value, if you think about what it could mean for this area; if you truly become the Silicon Valley for biofabrication, it is a course direction that will impact this area and region for many, many years to come.
This is a big deal; this is a material calculus of how we look at a strategy for this business, anytime you can get relief or mitigate the risks, that’s a good thing and this bill in particular does just that.
“By supporting the critical work being done by ARMI, New Hampshire’s biotech sector will continue to flourish, attracting innovative companies and employees to the Granite State,” Caswell said. “The student loan repayment program will competitively position the state as we continue to recruit and grow our workforce.”
Posted in NH Business Matters | Comments Off on Sununu Signs Groundbreaking Regenerative Manufacturing Law; New Hampshire Poised to Become Biofabrication Hub
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