Thanks to many lobbying efforts from the major research universities, the legislature approved a one-time General Fund appropriation of $10,000,000 for the Oregon Business Development Department (OBDD) to deposit in the University Innovation Research Fund (UIRF) established in HB 2377. The UIRF will support grants to public universities and the Oregon Health and Science University to match competitive federal research awards, increasing the competitiveness of Oregon universities for federal research funds, leveraging federal grants that require matching funds, and supporting innovation and research capacity. Grants will be targeted in priority industries, such as advanced manufacturing, high technology, outdoor gear and apparel, health care innovation, food and beverage, and forestry and wood products. Large collaborative grants among the universities will be one of the selection criteria we will consider to select the proposals to match.