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[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1396 Reported in Senate (RS)]

<DOC>

                                                       Calendar No. 169
118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1396

To improve commercialization activities in the SBIR and STTR programs, 
                        and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 2, 2023

  Mr. Coons (for himself, Mr. Rubio, and Ms. Cantwell) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                  Small Business and Entrepreneurship

                             July 25, 2023

               Reported by Mr. Cardin, with an amendment
 [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed 
                               in italic]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
To improve commercialization activities in the SBIR and STTR programs, 
                        and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

<DELETED>SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    This Act may be cited as the ``Research Advancing to 
Market Production for Innovators Act''.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 2. IMPROVEMENTS TO COMMERCIALIZATION SELECTION.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) In General.--Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 
U.S.C. 638) is amended--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) in subsection (g)--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) in paragraph (4)(B)(i), by striking 
                ``1 year'' and inserting ``180 days'';</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) in paragraph (16), by striking ``and'' 
                at the end;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (C) in paragraph (17), by striking the 
                period at the end and inserting ``; and''; 
                and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (D) by adding at the end the 
                following:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(18) with respect to peer review carried out 
        under the SBIR program, to the extent practicable, include in 
        the peer review--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) the likelihood of commercialization 
                in addition to scientific and technical merit and 
                feasibility; and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) not less than 1 reviewer with 
                commercialization expertise who is capable of assessing 
                the likelihood of commercialization.'';</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) in subsection (o)--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) in paragraph (4)(B)(i), by striking 
                ``1 year'' and inserting ``180 days'';</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) in paragraph (20), by striking ``and'' 
                at the end;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (C) in paragraph (21), by striking the 
                period at the end and inserting ``; and''; 
                and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (D) by adding at the end the 
                following:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(22) with respect to peer review carried out 
        under the STTR program, to the extent practicable, include in 
        the peer review--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) the likelhood of commercialization 
                in addition to scientific and technical merit and 
                feasibility; and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) not less than 1 reviewer with 
                commercialization expertise who is capable of assessing 
                the likelihood of commercialization.'';</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) in subsection (cc)--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) by striking ``During fiscal years 2012 
                through 2025, the National Institutes of Health, the 
                Department of Defense, and the Department of 
                Education'' and inserting the following:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(1) In general.--During fiscal years 2024 
        through 2029, each Federal agency with an SBIR or STTR 
        program''; and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) by adding at the end the 
                following:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(2) Limitation.--The total value of awards 
        provided by a Federal agency under this subsection in a fiscal 
        year shall be--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) except as provided in subparagraph 
                (B), not more than 10 percent of the total funds 
                allocated to the SBIR and STTR programs of the Federal 
                agency during that fiscal year; and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) with respect to the National 
                Institutes of Health, not more than 15 percent of the 
                total funds allocated to the SBIR and STTR programs of 
                the National Institutes of Health during that fiscal 
                year.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(3) Extension.--During fiscal years 2028 and 
        2029, each Federal agency with an SBIR or STTR program may 
        continue phase flexibility as described in this subsection only 
        if the reports required under subsection (tt)(1) have been 
        submitted to the appropriate committees.'';</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (4) in subsection (hh)(2)(A)(i), by inserting 
        ``application process and requirements'' after ``simplified and 
        standardized''; and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (5) by adding at the end the following:</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(yy) Technology Commercialization Official.--Each 
Federal agency participating in the SBIR or STTR program shall 
designate a Technology Commercialization Official in the Federal 
agency, who shall--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(1) have sufficient commercialization 
        experience;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(2) provide assistance to SBIR and STTR program 
        awardees in commercializing and transitioning 
        technologies;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(3) identify SBIR and STTR program technologies 
        with sufficient technology and commercialization readiness to 
        advance to Phase III awards or other non-SBIR or STTR program 
        contracts;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(4) coordinate with the Technology 
        Commercialization Officials of other Federal agencies to 
        identify additional markets and commercialization pathways for 
        promising SBIR and STTR program technologies;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(5) submit to the Administration an annual 
        report on the number of technologies from the SBIR or STTR 
        program that have advanced commercialization activities, 
        including information required in the commercialization impact 
        assessment under subsection (aaa);</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(6) submit to the Administration an annual 
        report on actions taken by the Federal agency, and the results 
        of those actions, to simplify, standardize, and expedite the 
        application process and requirements, procedures, and contracts 
        as required under subsection (hh) and described in subsection 
        (aaa)(1)(E); and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(7) carry out such other duties as the Federal 
        agency determines necessary.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Small Business 
Administration shall submit to the Committee on Small Business and 
Entrepreneurship of the Senate and the Committee on Small Business of 
the House of Representatives summarizing the metrics relating to and an 
evaluation of the authority provided under section 9(cc) of the Small 
Business Act, as amended by subsection (a), which shall include the 
size and location of the small business concerns receiving awards under 
the SBIR or STTR program.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 3. IMPROVEMENTS TO TECHNICAL AND BUSINESS ASSISTANCE; 
              COMMERCIALIZATION IMPACT ASSESSMENT; PATENT 
              ASSISTANCE.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638), as 
amended by section 2, is amended--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) in subsection (q)--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) in paragraph (1), in the matter 
                preceding subparagraph (A)--</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    (i) by striking ``may enter into 
                        an agreement with 1 or more vendors selected 
                        under paragraph (2)(A)'' and inserting ``shall 
                        authorize recipients of awards under the SBIR 
                        or STTR program to select, if desired, 
                        commercialization activities provided under 
                        subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of paragraph 
                        (2)''; and</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    (ii) by inserting ``, 
                        cybersecurity assistance'' after ``intellectual 
                        property protections'';</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) in paragraph (2), by adding at the end 
                the following:</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(C) Staff.--A small business concern 
                may, by contract or otherwise, use funding provided 
                under this section to hire new staff, augment staff, or 
                direct staff to conduct or participate in training 
                activities consistent with the goals listed in 
                paragraph (1).'';</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (C) in paragraph (3), by striking 
                subparagraphs (A) and (B) and inserting the 
                following:</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) Phase i.--A Federal agency described 
                in paragraph (1) shall authorize a recipient of a Phase 
                I SBIR or STTR award to utilize not more than $6,500 
                per project, included as part of the award of the 
                recipient or in addition to the amount of the award of 
                the recipient as determined appropriate by the head of 
                the Federal agency, for the services described in 
                paragraph (1)--</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(i) provided through a vendor 
                        selected under paragraph (2)(A);</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(ii) provided through a vendor 
                        other than a vendor selected under paragraph 
                        (2)(A);</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(iii) achieved through the 
                        activities described in paragraph (2)(C); 
                        or</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(iv) provided or achieved 
                        through any combination of clauses (i), (ii), 
                        and (iii).</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) Phase ii.--A Federal agency 
                described in paragraph (1) shall authorize a recipient 
                of a Phase II SBIR or STTR award to utilize not more 
                than $50,000 per project, included as part of the award 
                of the recipient or in addition to the amount of the 
                award of the recipient as determined appropriate by the 
                head of the Federal agency, for the services described 
                in paragraph (1)--</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(i) provided through a vendor 
                        selected under paragraph (2)(A);</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(ii) provided through a vendor 
                        other than a vendor selected under paragraph 
                        (2)(A);</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(iii) achieved through the 
                        activities described in paragraph (2)(C); 
                        or</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(iv) provided or achieved 
                        through any combination of clauses (i), (ii), 
                        and (iii).''; and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (D) by adding at the end the 
                following:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(5) Targeted review.--A Federal agency may 
        perform targeted reviews of technical and business assistance 
        funding as described in subsection (mm)(1)(F).''; and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) by adding at the end the following:</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(zz) I-Corps Participation.--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(1) In general.--Each Federal agency that is 
        required to conduct an SBIR or STTR program with an Innovation 
        Corps (commonly known as `I-Corps') program shall--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) provide an option for participation 
                in an I-Corps teams course by recipients of an award 
                under the SBIR or STTR program; and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) authorize the recipients described 
                in subparagraph (A) to use an award provided under 
                subsection (q) to provide additional technical 
                assistance for participation in the I-Corps teams 
                course.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(2) Cost of participation.--The cost of 
        participation by a recipient described in paragraph (1)(A) in 
        an I-Corps course may be provided by--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) an I-Corps team grant;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) funds awarded to the recipient under 
                subsection (q);</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(C) the participating teams or other 
                sources as appropriate; or</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(D) any combination of sources described 
                in subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C).</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(aaa) Commercialization Impact Assessment.--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(1) In general.--The Administrator shall 
        coordinate with each Federal agency with an SBIR or STTR 
        program to develop an annual commercialization impact 
        assessment report of the Federal agency, which shall measure, 
        for the 5-year period preceding the report--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) for Phase II contracts--</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(i) the total amount of sales of 
                        new products and services to the Federal 
                        Government or other commercial 
                        markets;</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(ii) the total outside 
                        investment from partnerships, joint ventures, 
                        or other private sector funding 
                        sources;</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(iii) the total number of 
                        technologies licensed to other 
                        companies;</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(iv) the total number of 
                        acquisitions of small business concerns 
                        participating in the SBIR program or the STTR 
                        program that are acquired by other 
                        entities;</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(v) the total number of new 
                        spin-out companies;</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(vi) the total outside 
                        investment from venture capital or angel 
                        investments;</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(vii) the total number of patent 
                        applications;</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(viii) the total number of 
                        patents acquired;</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(ix) the year of first Phase I 
                        award and the total number of employees at time 
                        of first Phase I award;</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(x) the total number of 
                        employees from the preceding completed year; 
                        and</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(xi) the percent of revenue, as 
                        of the date of the report, generated through 
                        SBIR or STTR program funding;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) the total number and value of 
                subsequent Phase II awards, as described in subsection 
                (bb), awarded for each particular project or 
                technology;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(C) the total number and value of Phase 
                III awards awarded subsequent to a Phase II 
                award;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(D) the total number and value of non-
                SBIR and STTR program Federal awards and contracts; 
                and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(E) actions taken by the Federal agency, 
                and the results of those actions, relating to 
                developing a simplified and standardized application 
                process and requirements, procedures, and model 
                contracts throughout the Federal agency for Phase I, 
                Phase II, and Phase III SBIR program awards in 
                subsection (hh).</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(2) Publication.--A commercialization impact 
        assessment report described in paragraph (1) of a Federal 
        agency shall be--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) included in the annual report of the 
                Federal agency required under this section; 
                and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) published on the website of the 
                Administration.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(bbb) Patent Assistance.--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(1) Definitions.--In this subsection--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) the term `Director' means the Under 
                Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and 
                Director of the USPTO; and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) the term `USPTO' means the United 
                States Patent and Trademark Office.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(2) Assistance.--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(A) In general.--The Administrator shall 
                enter into an interagency agreement with the Director 
                under which the Director shall assist recipients of an 
                award under the SBIR or STTR program (in this paragraph 
                referred to as `SBIR and STTR recipients') relating to 
                intellectual property protection by establishing a 
                prioritized patent examination program for SBIR and 
                STTR recipients.</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(B) Program details.--The program 
                established by the Director under subparagraph (A) 
                shall have the following characteristics:</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(i) The program shall 
                        incorporate all existing (as of the date on 
                        which the Director establishes the program) 
                        benefits under the procedures for prioritized 
                        examination described in section 11(h) of the 
                        Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (35 U.S.C. 41 
                        note).</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(ii) Under the program, with 
                        respect to prioritized examination, an SBIR or 
                        STTR recipient shall not be required to pay any 
                        prioritized examination fee or processing fee 
                        otherwise required under section 11(h) of the 
                        Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (35 U.S.C. 41 
                        note).</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(iii) Under the program, the 
                        Director shall ensure that, of the total number 
                        of requests for prioritized examination 
                        accepted by the USPTO in a fiscal year, the 
                        greater of the following shall be reserved for 
                        prioritized examinations for SBIR and STTR 
                        recipients:</DELETED>
                                <DELETED>    ``(I) 5 percent of the 
                                total number of such requests that may 
                                be accepted during that fiscal 
                                year.</DELETED>
                                <DELETED>    ``(II) 500 requests for 
                                prioritized examination.</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(iv) Under the program, the 
                        Director may not grant more than 2 prioritized 
                        examination requests to any individual 
                        recipient.</DELETED>
                        <DELETED>    ``(v) Under the program, the 
                        Director may increase the number of requests 
                        for prioritized examination that may be 
                        accepted in any fiscal year (as described in 
                        section 1.102(e) of title 37, Code of Federal 
                        Regulations, or any successor regulation) by 
                        the number determined under clause (iii) for 
                        that fiscal year.</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    ``(C) Rules.--The Director shall issue 
                rules to carry out the prioritized patent examination 
                program established under this paragraph.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    ``(3) Outreach.--The Administrator shall 
        coordinate with the Director to provide outreach regarding the 
        Pro Se Assistance Program of, and scam prevention services 
        provided by, the USPTO.''.</DELETED>

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Research Advancing to Market 
Production for Innovators Act''.

SEC. 2. IMPROVEMENTS TO COMMERCIALIZATION SELECTION.

    (a) In General.--Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
638) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (g)--
                    (A) in paragraph (4)(B)(i), by striking ``1 year'' 
                and inserting ``180 days'';
                    (B) in paragraph (16), by striking ``and'' at the 
                end;
                    (C) in paragraph (17), by striking the period at 
                the end and inserting ``; and''; and
                    (D) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(18) with respect to peer review carried out under the 
        SBIR program, to the extent practicable, include in the peer 
        review--
                    ``(A) the likelihood of commercialization in 
                addition to scientific and technical merit and 
                feasibility; and
                    ``(B) not less than 1 reviewer with 
                commercialization expertise who is capable of assessing 
                the likelihood of commercialization.'';
            (2) in subsection (o)--
                    (A) in paragraph (4)(B)(i), by striking ``1 year'' 
                and inserting ``180 days'';
                    (B) in paragraph (20), by striking ``and'' at the 
                end;
                    (C) in paragraph (21), by striking the period at 
                the end and inserting ``; and''; and
                    (D) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(22) with respect to peer review carried out under the 
        STTR program, to the extent practicable, include in the peer 
        review--
                    ``(A) the likelihood of commercialization in 
                addition to scientific and technical merit and 
                feasibility; and
                    ``(B) not less than 1 reviewer with 
                commercialization expertise who is capable of assessing 
                the likelihood of commercialization.'';
            (3) in subsection (cc)--
                    (A) by striking ``During fiscal years 2012 through 
                2025, the National Institutes of Health, the Department 
                of Defense, and the Department of Education'' and 
                inserting the following:
            ``(1) In general.--During fiscal years 2024 and 2025, each 
        Federal agency with an SBIR or STTR program''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) Limitation.--The total value of awards provided by a 
        Federal agency under this subsection in a fiscal year shall 
        be--
                    ``(A) except as provided in subparagraph (B), not 
                more than 10 percent of the total funds allocated to 
                the SBIR and STTR programs of the Federal agency during 
                that fiscal year; and
                    ``(B) with respect to the National Institutes of 
                Health, not more than 15 percent of the total funds 
                allocated to the SBIR and STTR programs of the National 
                Institutes of Health during that fiscal year.
            ``(3) Extension.--During fiscal year 2025, each Federal 
        agency with an SBIR or STTR program may continue phase 
        flexibility as described in this subsection only if the reports 
        required under subsection (tt)(1) have been submitted to the 
        appropriate committees.'';
            (4) in subsection (hh)(2)(A)(i), by striking ``simplified 
        and standardized procedures and model contracts'' and inserting 
        ``a simplified and standardized application process and 
        requirements, procedures, and model contracts''; and
            (5) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(yy) Technology Commercialization Official.--Each Federal agency 
participating in the SBIR or STTR program shall designate a Technology 
Commercialization Official in the Federal agency, who shall--
            ``(1) have sufficient commercialization experience;
            ``(2) provide assistance to SBIR and STTR program awardees 
        in commercializing and transitioning technologies;
            ``(3) identify SBIR and STTR program technologies with 
        sufficient technology and commercialization readiness to 
        advance to Phase III awards or other non-SBIR or STTR program 
        contracts;
            ``(4) coordinate with the Technology Commercialization 
        Officials of other Federal agencies to identify additional 
        markets and commercialization pathways for promising SBIR and 
        STTR program technologies;
            ``(5) submit to the Administration an annual report on the 
        number of technologies from the SBIR or STTR program that have 
        advanced commercialization activities, including information 
        required in the commercialization impact assessment under 
        subsection (aaa);
            ``(6) submit to the Administration an annual report on 
        actions taken by the Federal agency, and the results of those 
        actions, to simplify, standardize, and expedite the application 
        process and requirements, procedures, and contracts as required 
        under subsection (hh) and described in subsection (aaa)(1)(E); 
        and
            ``(7) carry out such other duties as the Federal agency 
        determines necessary.''.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Administrator of the Small Business Administration shall 
submit to the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship of the 
Senate and the Committee on Small Business of the House of 
Representatives a report summarizing the metrics relating to and an 
evaluation of the authority provided under section 9(cc) of the Small 
Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638(cc)), as amended by subsection (a), which 
shall include the size and location of the small business concerns (as 
defined in section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632)) 
receiving awards under the SBIR or STTR program.

SEC. 3. IMPROVEMENTS TO TECHNICAL AND BUSINESS ASSISTANCE; 
              COMMERCIALIZATION IMPACT ASSESSMENT; PATENT ASSISTANCE.

    Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638), as amended by 
section 2, is amended--
            (1) in subsection (q)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1), in the matter preceding 
                subparagraph (A)--
                            (i) by striking ``may enter into an 
                        agreement with 1 or more vendors selected under 
                        paragraph (2)(A) to provide small business 
                        concerns engaged in SBIR or STTR projects with 
                        technical and business assistance services'' 
                        and inserting ``shall authorize recipients of 
                        awards under the SBIR or STTR program to 
                        select, if desired, technical and business 
                        assistance provided under subparagraph (A), 
                        (B), or (C) of paragraph (2) with respect to 
                        SBIR or STTR projects'';
                            (ii) by inserting ``cybersecurity 
                        assistance,'' after ``intellectual property 
                        protections,''; and
                            (iii) by striking ``such concerns'' and 
                        inserting ``such recipients'';
                    (B) in paragraph (2), by adding at the end the 
                following:
                    ``(C) Staff.--A small business concern may, by 
                contract or otherwise, use funding provided under this 
                section to hire new staff, augment staff, or direct 
                staff to conduct or participate in training activities 
                consistent with the goals listed in paragraph (1).'';
                    (C) in paragraph (3), by striking subparagraphs (A) 
                and (B) and inserting the following:
                    ``(A) Phase i.--A Federal agency described in 
                paragraph (1) shall authorize a recipient of a Phase I 
                SBIR or STTR award to utilize not more than $6,500 per 
                project, included as part of the award of the recipient 
                or in addition to the amount of the award of the 
                recipient as determined appropriate by the head of the 
                Federal agency, for the services described in paragraph 
                (1)--
                            ``(i) provided through a vendor selected 
                        under paragraph (2)(A);
                            ``(ii) provided through a vendor other than 
                        a vendor selected under paragraph (2)(A);
                            ``(iii) achieved through the activities 
                        described in paragraph (2)(C); or
                            ``(iv) provided or achieved through any 
                        combination of clauses (i), (ii), and (iii).
                    ``(B) Phase ii.--A Federal agency described in 
                paragraph (1) shall authorize a recipient of a Phase II 
                SBIR or STTR award to utilize not more than $50,000 per 
                project, included as part of the award of the recipient 
                or in addition to the amount of the award of the 
                recipient as determined appropriate by the head of the 
                Federal agency, for the services described in paragraph 
                (1)--
                            ``(i) provided through a vendor selected 
                        under paragraph (2)(A);
                            ``(ii) provided through a vendor other than 
                        a vendor selected under paragraph (2)(A);
                            ``(iii) achieved through the activities 
                        described in paragraph (2)(C); or
                            ``(iv) provided or achieved through any 
                        combination of clauses (i), (ii), and (iii).''; 
                        and
                    (D) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(5) Targeted review.--A Federal agency may perform 
        targeted reviews of technical and business assistance funding 
        as described in subsection (mm)(1)(F).''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(zz) I-Corps Participation.--
            ``(1) In general.--Each Federal agency that is required to 
        conduct an SBIR or STTR program with an Innovation Corps 
        (commonly known as `I-Corps') program shall--
                    ``(A) provide an option for participation in an I-
                Corps teams course by recipients of an award under the 
                SBIR or STTR program; and
                    ``(B) authorize the recipients described in 
                subparagraph (A) to use an award provided under 
                subsection (q) to provide additional technical 
                assistance for participation in the I-Corps teams 
                course.
            ``(2) Cost of participation.--The cost of participation by 
        a recipient described in paragraph (1)(A) in an I-Corps course 
        may be provided by--
                    ``(A) an I-Corps team grant;
                    ``(B) funds awarded to the recipient under 
                subsection (q);
                    ``(C) the participating teams or other sources as 
                appropriate; or
                    ``(D) any combination of sources described in 
                subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C).
    ``(aaa) Commercialization Impact Assessment.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Administrator shall coordinate with 
        each Federal agency with an SBIR or STTR program to develop an 
        annual commercialization impact assessment report of the 
        Federal agency, which shall measure, for the 5-year period 
        preceding the report (except with respect to subparagraph 
        (A)(x))--
                    ``(A) for Phase II contracts--
                            ``(i) the total amount of sales of new 
                        products and services to the Federal Government 
                        or other commercial markets;
                            ``(ii) the total outside investment from 
                        partnerships, joint ventures, or other private 
                        sector funding sources;
                            ``(iii) the total number of technologies 
                        licensed to other companies;
                            ``(iv) the total number of acquisitions of 
                        small business concerns participating in the 
                        SBIR program or the STTR program that are 
                        acquired by other entities;
                            ``(v) the total number of new spin-out 
                        companies;
                            ``(vi) the total outside investment from 
                        venture capital or angel investments;
                            ``(vii) the total number of patent 
                        applications;
                            ``(viii) the total number of patents 
                        acquired;
                            ``(ix) the year of first Phase I award and 
                        the total number of employees at time of first 
                        Phase I award;
                            ``(x) the total number of employees, as of 
                        October 1 of the year preceding the year in 
                        which the report is submitted; and
                            ``(xi) the percent of revenue, as of the 
                        date of the report, generated through SBIR or 
                        STTR program funding;
                    ``(B) the total number and value of subsequent 
                Phase II awards, as described in subsection (bb), 
                awarded for each particular project or technology;
                    ``(C) the total number and value of Phase III 
                awards awarded subsequent to a Phase II award;
                    ``(D) the total number and value of non-SBIR and 
                STTR program Federal awards and contracts; and
                    ``(E) actions taken by the Federal agency, and the 
                results of those actions, relating to developing a 
                simplified and standardized application process and 
                requirements, procedures, and model contracts 
                throughout the Federal agency for Phase I, Phase II, 
                and Phase III SBIR program awards in subsection (hh).
            ``(2) Reporting by certain concerns.--For each fiscal year, 
        each small business concern that has received more than 50 
        Phase II awards on or after October 1 of the ninth fiscal year 
        before that fiscal year shall report to the Administration--
                    ``(A) the rate of transition of the small business 
                concern to Federal contracts outside of the SBIR and 
                STTR program; and
                    ``(B) the gross revenue of the small business 
                concern and the amount of gross revenue derived from 
                SBIR and STTR Phase I and Phase II awards.
            ``(3) Publication.--A commercialization impact assessment 
        report described in paragraph (1) of a Federal agency shall 
        be--
                    ``(A) included in the annual report of the Federal 
                agency required under this section; and
                    ``(B) published on the website of the 
                Administration.
    ``(bbb) Patent Assistance.--
            ``(1) Definitions.--In this subsection--
                    ``(A) the term `Director' means the Under Secretary 
                of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of 
                the USPTO; and
                    ``(B) the term `USPTO' means the United States 
                Patent and Trademark Office.
            ``(2) Assistance.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Administrator shall enter 
                into an interagency agreement with the Director under 
                which the Director shall assist recipients of an award 
                under the SBIR or STTR program (in this paragraph 
                referred to as `SBIR and STTR recipients') relating to 
                intellectual property protection by establishing a 
                prioritized patent examination program for SBIR and 
                STTR recipients.
                    ``(B) Program details.--The program established by 
                the Director under subparagraph (A) shall have the 
                following characteristics:
                            ``(i) The program shall incorporate all 
                        existing (as of the date on which the Director 
                        establishes the program) benefits under the 
                        procedures for prioritized examination 
                        described in section 11(h) of the Leahy-Smith 
                        America Invents Act (35 U.S.C. 41 note).
                            ``(ii) Under the program, with respect to 
                        prioritized examination, an SBIR or STTR 
                        recipient shall not be required to pay any 
                        prioritized examination fee or processing fee 
                        otherwise required under section 11(h) of the 
                        Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (35 U.S.C. 41 
                        note).
                            ``(iii) Under the program, the Director 
                        shall ensure that, of the total number of 
                        requests for prioritized examination accepted 
                        by the USPTO in a fiscal year, the greater of 
                        the following shall be reserved for prioritized 
                        examinations for SBIR and STTR recipients:
                                    ``(I) 5 percent of the total number 
                                of such requests that may be accepted 
                                during that fiscal year.
                                    ``(II) 500 requests for prioritized 
                                examination.
                            ``(iv) Under the program, the Director may 
                        not grant more than 2 prioritized examination 
                        requests to any individual recipient.
                            ``(v) Under the program, the Director may 
                        increase the number of requests for prioritized 
                        examination that may be accepted in any fiscal 
                        year (as described in section 1.102(e) of title 
                        37, Code of Federal Regulations, or any 
                        successor regulation) by the number determined 
                        under clause (iii) for that fiscal year.
                    ``(C) Rules.--The Director shall issue rules to 
                carry out the prioritized patent examination program 
                established under this paragraph.
            ``(3) Outreach.--The Administrator shall coordinate with 
        the Director to provide outreach regarding the Pro Se 
        Assistance Program of, and scam prevention services provided 
        by, the USPTO.''.
                                                       Calendar No. 169

118th CONGRESS

  1st Session

                                S. 1396

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

To improve commercialization activities in the SBIR and STTR programs, 
                        and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                             July 25, 2023

                       Reported with an amendment
```