Washington, D.C.— Today, House Small Business Committee Chairwoman Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) released the following statement after the House passed the SBIR & STTR Extension Act of 2022, which would extend the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs for three fiscal years:
“Since their founding 40 years ago, SBIR and STTR have helped launch our nation’s most innovative enterprises and products that have made life better for Americans in a variety of ways. SBIR and STTR awardees are creating solutions to some of society’s most pressing problems, including climate change, fighting infectious diseases, and modernizing outdated technology. These programs are also essential components of the small business economy. Every year, SBIR and STTR deliver billions of dollars to small businesses developing technologies that make our country more secure, innovative, and prosperous.
“Stakeholders from individual entrepreneurs to the Department of Defense have warned for months that even a temporary program shutdown would be disastrous. This legislation will extend the SBIR and STTR programs and six related pilot programs for three years, avoiding a devastating lapse and saving thousands of jobs. The bill also includes provisions to strengthen federal research security by instituting reviews to prevents malign foreign countries from stealing technologies developed through the programs. In addition, this reauthorization will establish higher benchmarks for more experienced firms to commercialize their technologies. Most importantly, this legislation will provide small businesses and federal agencies with the certainty they need to continue their groundbreaking work.
“This hard-fought compromise was the result of months of bipartisan and bicameral negotiations to keep these critical programs open. This bill will provide stability for awardees and agencies, increase security within SBIR and STTR, and preserve the competitive and merit-based strength of these programs. At the same time, we still have work to do to optimize these initiatives for small businesses and I look forward to continuing our work to improve SBIR and STTR.”
For a copy of the SBIR & STTR Extension Act of 2022, click here.
For a section-by-section summary of the SBIR & STTR Extension Act of 2022, click here.
