Section 213. Definitions

When  used  in this article, unless a different
  meaning clearly appears from the context, the following terms shall have
  the following meanings:
    1. "Authorized depositor" means the comptroller with respect to linked
  deposits made by the comptroller and the commissioner  of  taxation  and
  finance  with  respect  to  linked  deposits made by the commissioner of
  taxation and finance.
    2. "Census" means the decennial census performed by the bureau of  the
  census of the United States department of commerce.
    3. "Census bureau" means the bureau of the census of the United States
  department of commerce.
    4.  "Certified  business"  means  a business located in an empire zone
  created pursuant to article eighteen-B of the general municipal law  and
  certified pursuant to such article as eligible for the benefits referred
  to in section nine hundred sixty-six of such article.
    5.  "Certified minority-or women-owned business" means any minority-or
  women-owned business enterprise as defined in section three hundred  ten
  of  the  executive  law  and certified pursuant to section three hundred
  fourteen of the executive law.
    6. "Comptroller" means the comptroller of the state of New York.
    7. "Defense industry  manufacturer"  means  a  manufacturing  firm  as
  defined  in subdivision eighteen of this section, twenty-five percent or
  more of the gross revenues of which derive, either directly as  a  prime
  contractor  or indirectly as a subcontractor of a prime contractor, from
  department of defense or other military contracts.
    8. "Department" means the department of economic development.
    9. "Department of defense"  means  the  United  States  department  of
  defense.
    10.  "Empire  zone"  means  an empire zone created pursuant to article
  eighteen-B of the general municipal law.
    11. "Eligible business" means:
    (a) a manufacturing firm which employs five hundred or fewer employees
  within the state on a full-time basis; or
    (b) any certified business in an empire zone  which  business  employs
  one hundred or fewer employees within the state on a full-time basis; or
    (c)  any  firm  seeking  financing  through  the program for an export
  project, which firm employs one hundred or fewer  employees  within  the
  state on a full-time basis; or
    (d) any business located in a highly distressed area, which business:
    (i)  is  not  a retail business, unless financing provided through the
  program would promote the preservation of existing jobs or  an  increase
  in the overall number of retail jobs in the area; and
    (ii)  employs  one  hundred  or  fewer employees within the state on a
  full-time basis; or
    (e) any certified minority-or women-owned business  seeking  financing
  necessary  to  carry  out  a  procurement  contract  with  an  agency or
  authority or other entity of the state or federal government; or
    (f) any service business that is independently owned and operated,  is
  not  dominant  in  its  field, employs one hundred or fewer persons on a
  full-time basis within the state, and is seeking financing  through  the
  program  for  a project that will result in the retention or creation of
  permanent private sector jobs within the state, other  than  a  business
  that  sells a service rendered at a facility personally by an individual
  for another individual, directly, without the intervention  of  a  third
  party,  or  a  professional  service  business  such  as  health, legal,
  accounting, engineering, or architectural services.
    12. "Eligible projects" means:

    (a) export projects designed to increase a firm's  export  activities;
  or
    (b)  for  manufacturing  and service firms, projects which involve the
  preparation  of  strategic  plans   for   improving   productivity   and
  competitiveness;   the   introduction  of  modern  equipment  and/or  an
  expansion  of  facilities  as  part  of  a   modernization   plan;   the
  introduction  of  advanced  technologies  to  improve  productivity  and
  quality;  improvements   in   production   processes   and   operations;
  introduction of computerized information, reporting and control systems;
  reorganization or improvement of work place systems and the introduction
  of  total  quality  and employee participation programs; development and
  introduction of new products;  identification  and  development  of  new
  markets,  including  entry into foreign markets; financial restructuring
  for purposes of enabling modernization  activities;  buyouts  of  viable
  companies  by  employees  or local owners residing in the state; and the
  provision of working capital for  other  modernization  activities  that
  will  improve  the competitiveness and productivity of a firm and result
  in the creation or retention of jobs; or
    (c) for certified businesses located in empire zones, and  for  retail
  businesses located in highly distressed areas, projects that will create
  or  retain  full-time,  permanent  jobs within the empire zone or highly
  distressed area, as the case may be; or
    (d) for defense industry manufacturers, projects  designed  to  reduce
  dependence  on department of defense and other military contracts and to
  change or diversify production in order to take advantage of any  market
  other  than  that  serving  the  department of defense or other military
  procurers; or
    (e) for certified minority-and  women-owned  businesses,  projects  to
  provide  financing necessary to carry out a procurement contract with an
  agency or authority or other entity of the state or federal government.
    13. "Highly distressed area" means: (a) a census tract  or  tracts  or
  block  numbering  area  or areas or such census tract or block numbering
  area contiguous thereto which, according to the most recent census  data
  available, has:
    (i)  a  poverty  rate of at least twenty percent for the year to which
  the data relates or at least twenty percent of the households  receiving
  public assistance; and
    (ii)  an  unemployment  rate  of  at  least  one  and  twenty-five one
  hundredths times the statewide unemployment rate for the year  to  which
  the data relates; or
    (b) a city, town, village or county within a city with a population of
  one  million or more for which: (i) the ratio of the full value property
  wealth, as determined by  the  comptroller  for  the  most  recent  year
  determined,  per  resident  to the statewide average full value property
  wealth per resident; and (ii) the ratio of the income per  resident,  as
  shown  in  the  most  recent  census to the statewide average income per
  resident; are each fifty-five percent or less of the statewide  average;
  provided,  however, that an empire zone shall not be considered a highly
  distressed area for purposes of this article.
    14. "Lender" means:
    (a)  any  commercial  bank  which  is  or  shall  become  an  approved
  depository  of  state  funds under the provisions of section one hundred
  five of this chapter and which agrees to participate in the program; or
    (b) any thrift which an authorized depositor determines is eligible to
  accept linked deposits based upon criteria  applied  by  the  authorized
  depositor  in  making  determinations  under section one hundred five of
  this chapter, and which agrees to participate in the  program,  provided
  that  any  linked  deposit  in  such thrift shall be secured in the same

  manner as moneys deposited pursuant to section one hundred five of  this
  chapter  and  such thrifts shall pledge assets or furnish other security
  satisfactory in form and amount to  the  authorized  depositor  for  the
  repayment  of moneys. Until April first, nineteen hundred ninety-six, in
  the determination of thrifts eligible to  accept  linked  deposits,  the
  authorized  depositor  shall  give  priority  to  applications  by those
  thrifts seeking to make linked loans in economic development regions  in
  which  fewer  than  ten  linked  loans have been made on or before April
  first,  nineteen  hundred  ninety-five.  Provided,  however,  that   the
  granting  of  such  priority  shall  in  no  way  relieve  an authorized
  depositor of his or  her  duty  and  obligation  to  review  all  thrift
  applications  from  all  economic  development regions in the state on a
  timely basis.
    (c) any farm credit system institution which agrees to participate  in
  the program.
    (d) the New York business development corporation.
    15.  "Linked  deposit"  means  a  deposit,  or  for farm credit system
  institutions and  the  New  York  business  development  corporation  an
  investment eligible to be held by such institution or corporation placed
  with  a  lender  by  the comptroller or the commissioner of taxation and
  finance for a period of four years at the linked deposit interest  rate,
  provided the lender agrees to:
    (a)  lend the equivalent value of such deposit to an eligible business
  at the interest rate provided in section two hundred  eighteen  of  this
  article; and
    (b)  permit  the  deposit  to  be  comprised of a series of ninety day
  deposits each bearing an interest  rate  equal  to  the  linked  deposit
  interest rate fixed at the time the original deposit is placed.
    This  article  and  the related statutes that refer to this article do
  not grant thrifts, farm credit  system  institutions  or  the  New  York
  business  development  corporation eligibility to accept public funds or
  public moneys from public entities for  investment  purposes.  For  farm
  credit  system institutions, the linked deposit program is available for
  loans with an agricultural purpose as defined by the farm credit act  of
  nineteen  hundred  seventy-one,  as  amended and regulations promulgated
  thereunder. A linked deposit is intended to enable a lender  to  make  a
  linked loan to an eligible business and such deposit earns a yield lower
  than posted rates in order to accomplish the goals of this article.
    16. "Linked deposit interest rate" means:
    (a)  for  a  linked deposit made in connection with a linked loan to a
  certified business in an empire zone or to an eligible business  located
  in  a  highly  distressed  area  or a certified minority- or women-owned
  business enterprise for an eligible project defined in paragraph (e)  of
  subdivision twelve of this section or to a defense industry manufacturer
  for  a  project  defined  in paragraph (d) of subdivision twelve of this
  section, a fixed rate of interest which is three  hundred  basis  points
  below  the  lender's posted four year certificate of deposit rate or, if
  the lender does not offer a four year certificate of deposit,  is  three
  hundred  basis  points  below  the  average statewide rate for four year
  certificates of deposit as determined by the  commissioner  of  economic
  development;
    (b) for a linked deposit made in connection with any linked loan other
  than  those specified in paragraph (a) of this subdivision, a fixed rate
  of interest which is two hundred basis points below the lender's  posted
  four year certificate of deposit rate, or if the lender does not offer a
  four  year certificate of deposit, is two hundred basis points below the
  average  statewide  rate  for  four  year  certificates  of  deposit  as
  determined by the commissioner of economic development.

    17. "Linked loan" means a loan for purposes of an eligible project, in
  an  amount  equal to a linked deposit and bearing interest for the first
  four years at the interest rate provided in section two hundred eighteen
  of this article.
    18.  "Manufacturing  firm"  means  a  firm  involved  with extracting,
  smelting, recovering, developing,  preparing,  compounding,  converting,
  assembling or producing in any manner, minerals, raw materials, products
  or  substances  of  any  kind  or  nature,  and shall include facilities
  related thereto for storage, warehousing or distribution,  for  research
  and  development  or  for  the  discovery  of new, and the refinement of
  known, substances, processes, and products.
    19. "Program" means the excelsior linked deposit program.
    20. "Thrift" means any savings bank or savings and  loan  association,
  federal savings bank or federal savings and loan association.
    21.  "Economic  development  region"  shall  refer  to  those  regions
  established by  the  department  of  economic  development  pursuant  to
  section two hundred thirty of the economic development law.