How TRIF benefits Arizona
TRIF investment creates an ecosystem that empowers businesses to succeed in our state. Arizona’s long-term commitment to research attracts and generates companies that advance emerging technologies and helps them stay ahead of disruptive trends.
Our universities provide the talent, knowledge and infrastructure companies need to thrive in competitive industries. In turn, they create stable, high-wage jobs and invest in their communities — a “virtuous cycle” of economic growth and human well-being for generations to come.
TRIF impact at Arizona State University
At ASU, TRIF funding supports projects and initiatives in health, sustainability, national security and space exploration, and workforce development. ASU transforms these investments into big gains for Arizona. Programs seeded by TRIF go on to attract significant federal and philanthropic funding, recruit exceptional talent, and create new products and businesses that generate high-quality jobs.
$2.94 billion
in external funding attracted, a threefold return on investment
20,500+
graduate students and postdocs and 11,000+ undergraduate students trained
1,022
U.S. patents issued
272
startup companies launched
TRIF news
Learn more about TRIF impact
How TRIF is funded
In 2000, Arizona voters approved a 0.6 cent sales tax increase to raise funds for education through Proposition 301. In 2018, Gov. Doug Ducey extended the sales tax increase for an additional 20 years by signing SB 1390. While the majority of the revenue goes to K-12 education, a small portion of the fund fuels research, workforce development and technology transfer at Arizona’s three public universities through TRIF, which is administered by the Arizona Board of Regents.