I 

110TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5819 

To amend the Small Business Act to improve the Small Business Innovation 

Research (SBIR) program and the Small Business Technology Transfer 

(STTR) program, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 16, 2008 

Ms. VELA ́ZQUEZ (for herself, Mr. GRAVES, and Mr. SESTAK) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Small Business, 

and in addition to the Committee on Science and Technology, for a period 

to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 

concerned 

A BILL 

To amend the Small Business Act to improve the Small 

Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program and the 

Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—MODERNIZING THE SBIR AND STTR PROGRAMS 

Sec. 101. Extension of termination dates. 

Sec. 102. Increased SBIR and STTR set-asides. 

Sec. 103. Increased SBIR and STTR award levels. 

Sec. 104. Establishment of SBIR advisory boards. 

Sec. 105. Increase in amount of technical assistance funds and option to purchase technical assistance directly. 

Sec. 106. Increased number of research topic solicitations annually and shortened period for final decisions on applications. 

Sec. 107. Inclusion of energy-related research topics and rare-disease-related 

research topics as deserving ‘‘special consideration’’ as SBIR 

research topics. 

Sec. 108. Agencies should fund vital R&D projects with the potential for commercialization. 

Sec. 109. Federal agency engagement with SBIR awardees that have been 

awarded multiple Phase One awards but have not been awarded Phase Two awards. 

Sec. 110. Limitation on certain awards. 

Sec. 111. Comptroller General audit of how Federal agencies calculate extramural research budgets. 

TITLE II—VENTURE CAPITAL INVESTMENT STANDARDS 

Sec. 201. Ensuring that innovative small businesses with substantial investment 

from venture capital operating companies are able to participate in the SBIR program. 

TITLE III—SBIR AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 

Sec. 301. Reauthorization and modernization of Federal and State Technology 

Partnership Program (FAST). 

Sec. 302. Obtaining SBIR applicant’s consent to release contact information to 

economic development organizations. 

TITLE IV—ADVANCING COMMERCIALIZATION OF SBIR–FUNDED 

RESEARCH 

Sec. 401. Clarifying the definition of ‘‘Phase Three’’. 

Sec. 402. Agency research goals. 

Sec. 403. Express authority for an agency to award sequential Phase Two 

awards for SBIR-funded projects. 

Sec. 404. Increased partnerships between SBIR awardees and prime contractors, venture capital investment companies, and larger businesses. 

Sec. 405. Express authority to ‘‘fast-track’’ Phase Two awards for promising 

Phase One research. 

Sec. 406. Commercialization programs. 

Sec. 407. Report on efforts to enhance manufacturing activities. 

TITLE V—SUPPORTING PROGRAM UTILIZATION 


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Sec. 501. Agency databases to support program evaluation. 

Sec. 502. Agency databases to support technology utilization. 

Sec. 503. Interagency Policy Committee. 

Sec. 504. Nanotechnology-related research topics. 

Sec. 505. Rural preference. 

TITLE VI—IMPLEMENTATION 

Sec. 601. Conforming amendments to the SBIR and STTR policy directives. 

Sec. 602. National Research Council SBIR Study. 

1 TITLE I—MODERNIZING THE 

2 SBIR AND STTR PROGRAMS 

3 SEC. 101. EXTENSION OF TERMINATION DATES. 

4 (a) SBIR.—Section 9(m) of the Small Business Act 

5 (15 U.S.C. 638(m)) is amended by striking ‘‘2008’’ and 

6 inserting ‘‘2010’’. 

7 (b) STTR.—Section 9(n)(1)(A) of the Small Busi8 ness Act (15 U.S.C. 638(n)(1)(A)) is amended by striking 

9 ‘‘2009’’ and inserting ‘‘2010’’. 

10 SEC. 102. INCREASED SBIR AND STTR SET-ASIDES. 

11 (a) SBIR.—Section 9(f)(1) of the Small Business Act 

12 (15 U.S.C. 638(f)(1)) is amended— 

13 (1) in subparagraph (B) by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

14 the end; 

15 (2) in subparagraph (C) by striking ‘‘in each 

16 fiscal year thereafter,’’ and inserting ‘‘in each of fis17 cal years 1997 through 2008; and’’ and 

18 (3) by adding after subparagraph (C) the fol19 lowing: 

20 ‘‘(D) not less than 3.0 percent of such 

21 budget in each fiscal year thereafter,’’. 


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1 (b) STTR.—Section 9(n)(1)(B) of the Small Busi2 ness Act (15 U.S.C. 638(n)(1)(B)) is amended— 

3 (1) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

4 (2) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘fiscal year 2004 

5 and each fiscal year thereafter.’’ and inserting ‘‘each 

6 of fiscal years 2004 through 2008; and’’; and 

7 (3) by adding after clause (ii) the following new 

8 clause: 

9 ‘‘(iii) 0.6 percent for fiscal year 2009 

10 and each fiscal year thereafter.’’. 

11 SEC. 103. INCREASED SBIR AND STTR AWARD LEVELS. 

12 (a) SBIR AWARD LEVEL.—Section 9(j)(2)(D) of the 

13 Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638(j)(2)(D)) is amended 

14 by striking ‘‘$100,000’’ and ‘‘$750,000’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘$300,000’’ and ‘‘$2,200,000’’, respectively. 

16 (b) STTR AWARD LEVEL.—Section 9(p)(2)(B)(ix) of 

17 the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638(p)(2)(B)(ix)) is 

18 amended by striking ‘‘$100,000’’ and ‘‘$750,000’’ and in19 serting ‘‘$300,000’’ and ‘‘$2,200,000’’, respectively. 

20 (c) ANNUAL ADJUSTMENTS.—Section 9 of the Small 

21 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638) is amended— 

22 (1) in subsection (j)(2)(D), by striking ‘‘and an 

23 adjustment of such amounts once every 5 years to 

24 reflect economic adjustments and programmatic con25 siderations’’ and inserting ‘‘and a mandatory annual 


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1 adjustment of such amounts to reflect economic ad2 justments and programmatic considerations’’; and 

3 (2) in subsection (p)(2)(B)(ix), by striking 

4 ‘‘greater or lesser amounts’’ and inserting ‘‘with a 

5 mandatory annual adjustment of such amounts to 

6 reflect economic adjustments and programmatic con7 siderations, and with lesser amounts’’. 

8 (d) LIMITATION ON CERTAIN AWARDS.—Section 9 of 

9 the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638) is amended by 

10 adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(z) LIMITATION ON PHASE I AND II AWARDS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—No Federal agency shall 

13 issue an award under the SBIR program or the 

14 STTR program if the size of the award exceeds the 

15 amounts established under subsections (j)(2)(D) and 

16 (p)(2)(B)(ix), except as provided in paragraph (2). 

17 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—The prohibition in para18 graph (1) does not apply to an agency for a fiscal 

19 year if the head of the agency— 

20 ‘‘(A) notifies the Administrator that the 

21 agency intends to issue awards in that fiscal 

22 year without regard to the prohibition in 

23 paragaph (1); and 

24 ‘‘(B) reports to the Committee on Small 

25 Business and the Committee on Science and 


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1 Technology of the House of Representatives 

2 and the Committee on Small Business and En3 trepreneurship of the Senate at least annually 

4 the number of instances in which the agency 

5 issued an award that exceeds the amounts re6 ferred to in paragraph (1) and the justification 

7 for each such instance.’’. 

8 SEC. 104. ESTABLISHMENT OF SBIR ADVISORY BOARDS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 9 of the Small Business 

10 Act (15 U.S.C. 638) is amended by inserting after sub11 section (z) the following: 

12 ‘‘(aa) SBIR ADVISORY BOARDS.— 

13 ‘‘(1) ADVISORY BOARDS REQUIRED.—Each 

14 Federal agency that is required by this section to 

15 conduct an SBIR program and that administers an16 nually $50,000,000 or more in SBIR grants shall 

17 have an SBIR advisory board. 

18 ‘‘(2) MEMBERS.—For each advisory board re19 quired by paragraph (1), the members of the advi20 sory board shall include— 

21 ‘‘(A) at least two individuals who are em22 ployees of the agency; 

23 ‘‘(B) at least two representatives of private 

24 sector technology firms; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) such other individuals as the agency 

2 considers appropriate. 

3 ‘‘(3) SECURITY CLEARANCES.—Where it is ap4 propriate to the work of an advisory board required 

5 by paragraph (1) that the members and staff of the 

6 advisory board have a security clearance, the appro7 priate departments and agencies of the executive 

8 branch shall cooperate with the advisory board to ex9 peditiously provide members and staff with appro10 priate security clearances to the extent possible 

11 under applicable procedures and requirements. 

12 ‘‘(4) MEETINGS.—Each advisory board required 

13 by paragraph (1) shall meet at least two times per 

14 year. 

15 ‘‘(5) DUTIES.—Each advisory board required 

16 by paragraph (1) shall— 

17 ‘‘(A) review the quarterly reports sub18 mitted under subsection (g)(8); 

19 ‘‘(B) make recommendations to the agency 

20 about potential modifications to the agency’s 

21 SBIR program that are intended to— 

22 ‘‘(i) encourage applications, particu23 larly applications from small business con24 cerns owned and controlled by women, 

25 small business concerns owned and conVerDate Aug 31 2005 04:12 Apr 17, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5819.IH H5819

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1 trolled by minorities, and small business 

2 concerns in States and regions that histori3 cally receive few SBIR awards; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) support commercialization of 

5 Federal research funded by SBIR awards; 

6 and 

7 ‘‘(C) submit to the Committee on Small 

8 Business and the Committee on Science and 

9 Technology of the House of Representatives 

10 and the Committee on Small Business and En11 trepreneurship of the Senate an annual report 

12 on the SBIR program conducted by the agency. 

13 ‘‘(6) CONTENTS OF ANNUAL REPORT.—The an14 nual report required by paragraph (5)(C) shall in15 clude a description of how that agency’s SBIR pro16 gram is functioning and any recommendations of the 

17 advisory board for strengthening that agency’s SBIR 

18 program. The annual report shall also state the 

19 number and dollar amount of awards under the 

20 agency’s SBIR program, and under the agency’s 

21 STTR program, that were made to small business 

22 concerns owned and controlled by women, small 

23 business concerns owned and controlled by minori24 ties, small business concerns owned and controlled 

25 by veterans, and small business concerns in States 


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1 and regions that historically receive few SBIR 

2 awards. 

3 ‘‘(7) NON-APPLICABILITY OF FACA.—The Fed4 eral Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall 

5 not apply to an advisory board required by para6 graph (1).’’. 

7 (b) AGENCY REPORTS TO SBIR ADVISORY

8 BOARDS.—Section 9(g)(8) of the Small Business Act (15 

9 U.S.C. 638(g)(8)) is amended by inserting before the 

10 semicolon at the end the following: ‘‘and, if the agency 

11 is required by subsection (aa) to have an SBIR advisory 

12 board, submit a quarterly report on the SBIR program 

13 to that SBIR advisory board’’. 

14 SEC. 105. INCREASE IN AMOUNT OF TECHNICAL ASSIST15 ANCE FUNDS AND OPTION TO PURCHASE 

16 TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE DIRECTLY. 

17 Section 9(q) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

18 638(q)) is amended— 

19 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

20 (A) by striking ‘‘paragraph (2)’’ and in21 serting ‘‘paragraph (2)(A), or another Federal 

22 agency under paragraph (2)(B),’’; 

23 (B) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of sub24 paragraph (C); 


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1 (C) by striking the period at the end of 

2 subparagraph (D) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

3 (D) by adding at the end the following new 

4 subparagraph: 

5 ‘‘(E) implementing manufacturing proc6 esses and production strategies for utilization.’’; 

7 (2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as fol8 lows: 

9 ‘‘(2) ASSISTANCE PROVIDERS.— 

10 ‘‘(A) VENDOR SELECTION.—Each agency 

11 may select a vendor to assist small business 

12 concerns to meet the goals listed in paragraph 

13 (1) for a term not to exceed 3 years. Such se14 lection shall be competitive and shall utilize 

15 merit-based criteria. 

16 ‘‘(B) INTERAGENCY COLLABORATION.—In 

17 addition, each agency may enter into a collabo18 rative agreement with the technical extension or 

19 assistance programs of other Federal agencies 

20 in order to provide the assistance described in 

21 paragraph (1).’’; and 

22 (3) in paragraph (3)— 

23 (A) in subparagraph (A) by striking 

24 ‘‘$4,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$5,000’’; 


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1 (B) by amending subparagraph (B) to read 

2 as follows: 

3 ‘‘(B) SECOND PHASE.—Each agency re4 ferred to in paragraph (1) may provide directly, 

5 or authorize any second phase SBIR award re6 cipient to purchase with funds available from 

7 their SBIR awards, services described in para8 graph (1), in an amount equal to not more than 

9 $8,000 per year, per award.’’; and 

10 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(C) AUTHORITY TO OPT OUT.—The Ad12 ministrator shall establish guidelines under 

13 which an award recipient eligible to receive 

14 services under subparagraph (A) may decline 

15 those services and receive instead an amount 

16 equal to not more than $2,500, which shall be 

17 in addition to the amount of the recipient’s 

18 award and which shall be used to purchase 

19 services described in paragraph (1).’’. 

20 SEC. 106. INCREASED NUMBER OF RESEARCH TOPIC SO21 LICITATIONS ANNUALLY AND SHORTENED 

22 PERIOD FOR FINAL DECISIONS ON APPLICA23 TIONS. 

24 (a) INCREASED NUMBER OF RESEARCH TOPIC SO25 LICITATIONS.—Section 9(g)(2) of the Small Business Act 


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1 (15 U.S.C. 638(g)(2)) is amended by inserting before the 

2 semicolon at the end the following: ‘‘, but not less often 

3 than twice per year’’. 

4 (b) SHORTENED PERIOD FOR FINAL DECISIONS ON

5 APPLICATIONS.—Section 9(g)(4) of that Act (15 U.S.C. 

6 638(g)(4)) is amended— 

7 (1) by inserting before the semicolon at the end 

8 the following: ‘‘: Provided, That if the agency is re9 quired by subsection (aa) to have an SBIR advisory 

10 board—’’; and 

11 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(A) a final decision on each proposal shall 

13 be rendered not later than 90 days after the 

14 date on which the solicitation closes; 

15 ‘‘(B) the SBIR advisory board may, on a 

16 case by case basis, extend the 90 days to 180 

17 days; and 

18 ‘‘(C) the SBIR advisory board shall include 

19 in each annual report to Congress under sub20 section (aa) a statement identifying how many 

21 times a decision was not rendered in 90 days, 

22 how many times an extension was granted, and 

23 how many times a decision was not rendered in 

24 180 days;’’. 


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1 SEC. 107. INCLUSION OF ENERGY-RELATED RESEARCH 

2 TOPICS AND RARE-DISEASE-RELATED RE3 SEARCH TOPICS AS DESERVING ‘‘SPECIAL 

4 CONSIDERATION’’ AS SBIR RESEARCH TOP5 ICS. 

6 Section 9(g)(3) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

7 638(g)(3)) is amended— 

8 (1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) 

9 by inserting after ‘‘critical technologies’’ the fol10 lowing: ‘‘or pressing research priorities’’; 

11 (2) at the end of subparagraph (A) by striking 

12 ‘‘or’’; and 

13 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(C) the National Academy of Sciences, in 

15 the final report issued by the ‘America’s Energy 

16 Future: Technology Opportunities, Risks, and 

17 Tradeoffs’ project, and in subsequent reports 

18 issued by the National Academy of Sciences on 

19 sustainability, energy, and alternative fuels; 

20 ‘‘(D) the National Institutes of Health, in 

21 the annual report on the rare diseases research 

22 activities of the National Institutes of Health 

23 for fiscal year 2005, and in subsequent reports 

24 issued by the National Institutes of Health on 

25 rare diseases research activities; or’’. 


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1 SEC. 108. AGENCIES SHOULD FUND VITAL R&D PROJECTS 

2 WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR COMMERCIALIZA3 TION. 

4 Section 9(j)(2) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

5 638(j)(2)), as amended by section 103, is further amend6 ed— 

7 (1) in subparagraph (H) by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

8 the end; 

9 (2) in subparagraph (I) by striking the period 

10 at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

11 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(J) procedures to ensure that the Admin13 istrator, on an annual basis, submits to the 

14 Committee on Small Business and the Com15 mittee on Science and Technology of the House 

16 of Representatives and the Committee on Small 

17 Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate a 

18 list identifying each small business concern 

19 that, for the period covered by the preceding 5 

20 fiscal years, received 15 or more first phase 

21 SBIR awards and no second phase SBIR 

22 awards.’’. 


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1 SEC. 109. FEDERAL AGENCY ENGAGEMENT WITH SBIR 

2 AWARDEES THAT HAVE BEEN AWARDED MUL3 TIPLE PHASE ONE AWARDS BUT HAVE NOT 

4 BEEN AWARDED PHASE TWO AWARDS. 

5 Section 9(j) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

6 638(j)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(4) REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO FEDERAL

8 AGENCY ENGAGEMENT WITH CERTAIN FIRST PHASE

9 SBIR AWARDEES.—The Administrator shall modify 

10 the policy directives issued pursuant to this sub11 section to provide for each Federal agency required 

12 by this section to conduct an SBIR program to en13 gage with SBIR awardees that have been awarded 

14 multiple first phase SBIR awards but have not been 

15 awarded any second phase SBIR awards and to de16 velop performance metrics to measure awardee pro17 gression in the SBIR program.’’. 

18 SEC. 110. LIMITATION ON CERTAIN AWARDS. 

19 Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638) 

20 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(bb) SUBSEQUENT PHASES.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A small business concern 

23 which received an award from a Federal agency 

24 under this section shall be eligible to receive an 

25 award for a subsequent phase from another Federal 

26 agency, if the head of each relevant Federal agency 


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1 makes a written determination that the topics of the 

2 relevant awards are the same. 

3 ‘‘(2) CROSSOVER BETWEEN PROGRAMS.—A 

4 small business concern which received an award 

5 under this section under the SBIR program or the 

6 STTR program may, at the discretion of the grant7 ing agency, receive an award under this section for 

8 a subsequent phase in either the SBIR program or 

9 the STTR program. 

10 ‘‘(3) PHASE II SBIR APPLICATIONS.—An agency 

11 may permit an applicant to apply directly for a 

12 Phase II award, as described in subsection 

13 (e)(4)(B), without first completing a Phase I award, 

14 as described in subsection (e)(4)(A), if the applicant 

15 can demonstrate that project feasibility was achieved 

16 without SBIR or other Federal funding. 

17 ‘‘(4) PHASE II STTR APPLICATIONS.—An agen18 cy may permit an applicant to submit proposals for 

19 Phase II awards, as described in subsection 

20 (e)(6)(B), without first completing a Phase I award, 

21 as described in subsection (e)(6)(A), if the applicant 

22 can demonstrate it has accomplished Phase I 

23 through cooperative research and development 

24 achieved without STTR or other Federal funding. 


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1 ‘‘(cc) WAIVER OF MINIMUM WORK REQUIREMENT.— 

2 A Federal agency making an SBIR or STTR award under 

3 this section may waive the minimum small business con4 cern or research institution work requirements under sub5 section (e)(7) if the agency determines that to provide 

6 such waiver would be consistent with the purposes of this 

7 section and consistent with achieving the objectives of the 

8 award proposal.’’. 

9 SEC. 111. COMPTROLLER GENERAL AUDIT OF HOW FED10 ERAL AGENCIES CALCULATE EXTRAMURAL 

11 RESEARCH BUDGETS. 

12 The Comptroller General of the United States shall 

13 carry out a detailed audit of how Federal agencies cal14 culate extramural research budgets for purposes of calcu15 lating the size of the agencies’ Small Business Innovation 

16 Research and Small Business Technology Transfer budg17 ets. Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 

18 of this Act, the Comptroller General shall submit to the 

19 Committee on Small Business and the Committee on 

20 Science and Technology of the House of Representatives 

21 and the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneur22 ship of the Senate a report on the results of the audit. 


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1 TITLE II—VENTURE CAPITAL 

2 INVESTMENT STANDARDS 

3 SEC. 201. ENSURING THAT INNOVATIVE SMALL BUSI4 NESSES WITH SUBSTANTIAL INVESTMENT 

5 FROM VENTURE CAPITAL OPERATING COM6 PANIES ARE ABLE TO PARTICIPATE IN THE 

7 SBIR PROGRAM. 

8 Section 9(e) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

9 638(e)) is amended by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para10 graph (8), striking the period at the end of paragraph (9) 

11 and inserting ‘‘; and’’, and adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(10) for purposes of determining whether a 

13 small business concern is independently owned and 

14 operated under section 3(a)(1) or meets the small 

15 business size standards instituted under section 

16 3(a)(2), the Administrator shall not consider a busi17 ness concern to be affiliated with a venture capital 

18 operating company (or with any other business that 

19 the venture capital operating company has financed) 

20 if— 

21 ‘‘(A) the venture capital operating com22 pany does not own 50 percent or more of the 

23 business concern; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) employees of the venture capital oper2 ating company do not constitute a majority of 

3 the board of directors of the business concern; 

4 ‘‘(11) a business concern shall be deemed to be 

5 ‘independently owned and operated’ if— 

6 ‘‘(A) it is owned in majority part by one or 

7 more natural persons or venture capital oper8 ating companies; 

9 ‘‘(B) there is no single venture capital op10 erating company that owns 50 percent or more 

11 of the business concern; and 

12 ‘‘(C) there is no single venture capital op13 erating company the employees of which con14 stitute a majority of the board of directors of 

15 the business concern; and 

16 ‘‘(12) the term ‘venture capital operating com17 pany’ means a business concern— 

18 ‘‘(A) that— 

19 ‘‘(i) is a Venture Capital Operating 

20 Company, as that term is defined in regu21 lations promulgated by the Secretary of 

22 Labor; or 

23 ‘‘(ii) is an entity that— 


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1 ‘‘(I) is registered under the In2 vestment Company Act of 1940 (15 

3 U.S.C. 80a–51 et seq.); or 

4 ‘‘(II) is an investment company, 

5 as defined in section 3(c)(14) of such 

6 Act (15 U.S.C. 80a–3(c)(14)), which 

7 is not registered under such Act be8 cause it is beneficially owned by less 

9 than 100 persons; and 

10 ‘‘(B) that is not controlled by any business 

11 concern that is not a small business concern 

12 within the meaning of section 3; and 

13 ‘‘(C) that has fewer than 500 employees; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(D) that is itself incorporated and domi16 ciled in the United States, or is controlled by a 

17 business concern that is incorporated and domi18 ciled in the United States.’’. 

19 TITLE III—SBIR AND ECONOMIC 

20 DEVELOPMENT 

21 SEC. 301. REAUTHORIZATION AND MODERNIZATION OF 

22 FEDERAL AND STATE TECHNOLOGY PART23 NERSHIP PROGRAM (FAST). 

24 Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638) 

25 is amended by inserting after subsection (r) the following: 


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1 ‘‘(s) OUTREACH AND SUPPORT ACTIVITIES.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the other provi3 sions of this subsection, the Administrator shall 

4 make grants on a competitive basis to organizations, 

5 to be used by the organizations to do one or both 

6 of the following: 

7 ‘‘(A) To conduct outreach efforts to in8 crease participation in the programs under this 

9 section. 

10 ‘‘(B) To provide application support and 

11 entrepreneurial and business skills support to 

12 prospective participants in the programs under 

13 this section. 

14 ‘‘(2) PROGRAM AUTHORITY.—Of the amounts 

15 made available to carry out this section for each of 

16 fiscal years 2009 through 2010, the Administrator 

17 may expend not more than $10,000,000 in each 

18 such fiscal year to carry out paragraph (1). 

19 ‘‘(3) AMOUNT OF ASSISTANCE.—For each of 

20 subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (1), the 

21 amount of assistance provided to an organization 

22 under that subparagraph in any fiscal year— 

23 ‘‘(A) shall be equal to the total amount of 

24 matching funds from non-Federal sources pro25 vided by the organization; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) shall not exceed $250,000. 

2 ‘‘(4) DIRECTION.—An organization receiving 

3 funds under paragraph (1) shall, in using those 

4 funds, direct its activities at one or both of the fol5 lowing: 

6 ‘‘(A) Small business concerns located in 

7 geographic areas that are underrepresented in 

8 the programs under this section. 

9 ‘‘(B) Small business concerns owned and 

10 controlled by women, small business concerns 

11 owned and controlled by service-disabled vet12 erans, and small business concerns owned and 

13 controlled by minorities. 

14 ‘‘(5) ADVISORY BOARD.— 

15 ‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 90 

16 days after the date of the enactment of this 

17 subsection, the Administrator shall establish an 

18 advisory board for the activities carried out 

19 under this subsection. 

20 ‘‘(B) NON-APPLICABILITY OF FACA.—The 

21 Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. 

22 App.) shall not apply to the advisory board. 

23 ‘‘(C) MEMBERS.—The members of the ad24 visory board shall include the following: 


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1 ‘‘(i) The Administrator (or the Ad2 ministrator’s designee). 

3 ‘‘(ii) For each Federal agency re4 quired by this section to conduct an SBIR 

5 program, the head of the agency (or the 

6 designee of the head of the agency). 

7 ‘‘(iii) Representatives of small busi8 ness concerns that are current or former 

9 recipients of SBIR awards, or representa10 tives of organizations of such concerns. 

11 ‘‘(iv) Representatives of service pro12 viders of SBIR outreach and assistance, or 

13 representatives of organizations of such 

14 service providers. 

15 ‘‘(D) DUTIES.—The advisory board shall 

16 have the following duties: 

17 ‘‘(i) To develop guidelines for awards 

18 under paragraph (1)(A), including guide19 lines relating to award sizes, proposal re20 quirements, metrics for monitoring award21 ee performance, and metrics for measuring 

22 overall value of the activities carried out by 

23 the awardees. 

24 ‘‘(ii) To identify opportunities for co25 ordinated outreach, technical assistance, 


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1 and commercialization activities among 

2 Federal agencies, the recipients of the 

3 awards under paragraph (1)(A), and appli4 cants and recipients of SBIR awards, in5 cluding opportunities such as— 

6 ‘‘(I) podcasting or webcasting for 

7 conferences, training workshops, and 

8 other events; 

9 ‘‘(II) shared online resources to 

10 match prospective applicants with the 

11 network of paragraph (1)(A) recipi12 ents; and 

13 ‘‘(III) venture capital conferences 

14 tied to technologies and sectors that 

15 cross agencies. 

16 ‘‘(iii) To review and recommend revi17 sions to activities under paragraph (1)(A). 

18 ‘‘(iv) To submit to the Committee on 

19 Small Business and Entrepreneurship of 

20 the Senate and the Committee on Small 

21 Business and the Committee on Science 

22 and Technology of the House of Represent23 atives an annual report on the activities 

24 carried out under paragraph (1)(A) and 


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1 the effectiveness and impact of those ac2 tivities. 

3 ‘‘(6) SELECTION CRITERIA.—In awarding 

4 grants under this subsection, the Administrator shall 

5 use selection criteria developed by the advisory board 

6 established under paragraph (5). The criteria shall 

7 include— 

8 ‘‘(A) criteria designed to give preference to 

9 applicants who propose to carry out activities 

10 that will reach either an underperforming geo11 graphic area or an underrepresented population 

12 group (as measured by the number of SBIR ap13 plicants); 

14 ‘‘(B) criteria designed to give preference to 

15 applicants who propose to carry out activities 

16 that complement, and are integrated into, the 

17 existing public-private innovation support sys18 tem for the targeted region or population; and 

19 ‘‘(C) criteria designed to give preference to 

20 applicants who propose to measure the effec21 tiveness of the proposed activities. 

22 ‘‘(7) PEER REVIEW.—In awarding grants under 

23 this subsection, the Administrator shall use a peer 

24 review process. Reviewers shall include— 


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1 ‘‘(A) SBIR program managers for agencies 

2 required by this section to conduct SBIR pro3 grams; and 

4 ‘‘(B) private individuals and organizations 

5 that are knowledgeable about SBIR, the innova6 tion process, technology commercialization, and 

7 State and regional technology-based economic 

8 development programs. 

9 ‘‘(8) PER-STATE LIMITATIONS.— 

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to re11 ceive a grant under this subsection, the appli12 cant must have the written endorsement of the 

13 Governor of the State where the targeted re14 gions or populations are located (if the regions 

15 or populations are located in more than one 

16 State, the applicant must have the written en17 dorsement of the Governor of each such State). 

18 Such an endorsement must indicate that the 

19 Governor will ensure that the activities to be 

20 carried out under the grant will be integrated 

21 with the balance of the State’s portfolio of in22 vestments to help small business concerns com23 mercialize technology. 

24 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—Each fiscal year, a 

25 Governor may have in effect not more than one 


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1 written endorsement for a grant under para2 graph (1)(A), and not more than one written 

3 endorsement for a grant under paragraph 

4 (1)(B). 

5 ‘‘(9) SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS FOR FAST

6 AWARDS.—In making awards under paragraph 

7 (1)(A) (to be known as ‘FAST’ awards) the Admin8 istrator shall ensure the following: 

9 ‘‘(A) GOALS.—Priority shall be given ap10 plications that address one or more of the fol11 lowing goals: 

12 ‘‘(i) Increasing the number of SBIR 

13 applications from underperforming geo14 graphic areas (as measured by the number 

15 of SBIR applicants). 

16 ‘‘(ii) Increasing the number of SBIR 

17 applications from underrepresented popu18 lation groups (as measured by the number 

19 of SBIR applicants). 

20 ‘‘(B) DURATION.—Each award shall be for 

21 a period of 2 fiscal years. The Administrator 

22 shall establish rules and performance goals for 

23 the disbursement of funds for the second fiscal 

24 year, and funds shall not be disbursed to a re25 cipient for such a fiscal year until after the adVerDate Aug 31 2005 04:12 Apr 17, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5819.IH H5819

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1 visory board established under this subsection 

2 has determined that the recipient is in compli3 ance with the rules and performance goals.’’. 

4 SEC. 302. OBTAINING SBIR APPLICANT’S CONSENT TO RE5 LEASE CONTACT INFORMATION TO ECO6 NOMIC DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATIONS. 

7 Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638) 

8 is amended in subsection (s) (as added by this title) by 

9 adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(5) CONSENT TO RELEASE CONTACT INFORMA11 TION TO ORGANIZATIONS.— 

12 ‘‘(A) ENABLING CONCERN TO GIVE CON13 SENT.—Each Federal agency required by this 

14 section to conduct an SBIR program shall en15 able a small business concern that is an SBIR 

16 applicant to indicate to the agency whether the 

17 agency has its consent to— 

18 ‘‘(i) identify the concern to appro19 priate local and State-level economic devel20 opment organizations as an SBIR appli21 cant; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) release the concern’s contact in23 formation to such organizations. 

24 ‘‘(B) RULES.—The Administrator shall es25 tablish rules to implement this paragraph. The 


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1 rules shall include a requirement that the agen2 cy include in its SBIR application forms a pro3 vision through which the applicant can indicate 

4 consent for purposes of subparagraph (A).’’. 

5 TITLE IV—ADVANCING COMMER6 CIALIZATION OF SBIR–FUND7 ED RESEARCH 

8 SEC. 401. CLARIFYING THE DEFINITION OF ‘‘PHASE 

9 THREE’’. 

10 Section 9(e) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

11 638(e)) is amended— 

12 (1) in paragraph (4)(C)— 

13 (A) in the matter preceding clause (i) by 

14 inserting after ‘‘a third phase’’ the following: ‘‘, 

15 which shall consist of work that derives from, 

16 extends, or logically concludes efforts performed 

17 under prior SBIR funding agreements (which 

18 may be referred to as ‘Phase III’)’’; and 

19 (B) in clause (i) by inserting after ‘‘non20 SBIR Federal funding awards’’ the following: 

21 ‘‘: Provided, That for purposes of this clause, 

22 such sources of capital and such funding 

23 awards include private investment, private re24 search, development, testing, and evaluation 

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1 ernment RDT&E contracts and awards, and 

2 government sales’’; 

3 (2) in paragraph (8) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

4 end; 

5 (3) in paragraph (9) by striking the period at 

6 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

7 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(10) the term ‘commercialization’ means the 

9 process of developing marketable products or serv10 ices and producing and delivering products or serv11 ices for sale (whether by the originating party or by 

12 others) to government or commercial markets.’’. 

13 SEC. 402. AGENCY RESEARCH GOALS. 

14 Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638) 

15 is amended by striking subsection (h) and inserting the 

16 following: 

17 ‘‘(h) AGENCY RESEARCH GOALS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In addition to the require19 ments of subsection (f), each Federal agency that is 

20 required by this section to have an SBIR program 

21 and that awards annually $5,000,000,000 or more 

22 in procurement contracts shall, effective for fiscal 

23 year 2009 and each fiscal year thereafter, establish 

24 annual goals for commercialization of projects fund25 ed by SBIR awards. 


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1 ‘‘(2) SPECIFIC GOALS.—The goals required by 

2 paragraph (1) shall include specific goals for each of 

3 the following: 

4 ‘‘(A) The percentage of SBIR projects that 

5 receive funding for the third phase (as defined 

6 in subsection (e)(4)(C)). 

7 ‘‘(B) The percentage of SBIR projects that 

8 are successfully integrated into a program of 

9 record. 

10 ‘‘(C) The amount of Federal dollars re11 ceived by SBIR projects through Federal con12 tracts, not including dollars received through 

13 the SBIR program. 

14 ‘‘(3) SUBMISSION TO ADVISORY BOARD.—For 

15 each fiscal year for which goals are required by 

16 paragraph (1), the agency shall submit to the agen17 cy’s SBIR advisory board— 

18 ‘‘(A) not later than 60 days after the be19 ginning of the fiscal year, the goals; and 

20 ‘‘(B) not later than 90 days after the end 

21 of the fiscal year, data on the extent to which 

22 the goals were met and a description of the 

23 methodology used to collect that data.’’. 


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1 SEC. 403. EXPRESS AUTHORITY FOR AN AGENCY TO AWARD 

2 SEQUENTIAL PHASE TWO AWARDS FOR SBIR3 FUNDED PROJECTS. 

4 Section 9(j) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

5 638(j)) is amended by adding after paragraph (4) (as 

6 added by section 109) the following: 

7 ‘‘(5) REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO ADDI8 TIONAL SECOND PHASE SBIR AWARDS.—The Admin9 istrator shall modify the policy directives issued pur10 suant to this subsection to provide the following: 

11 ‘‘(A) A small business concern that re12 ceives a second phase SBIR award for a project 

13 remains eligible to receive additional second 

14 phase SBIR awards. 

15 ‘‘(B) Agencies are expressly authorized to 

16 provide additional second phase SBIR awards 

17 for testing and evaluation assistance for the in18 sertion of SBIR technologies into technical or 

19 weapons systems. 

20 ‘‘(C) Each agency that is required by sub21 section (aa) to have an SBIR advisory board 

22 shall include in the quarterly reports submitted 

23 under subsection (g)(8) the number of projects 

24 that have received additional second phase 

25 SBIR awards and the total dollar amount of 

26 those additional second phase SBIR awards.’’. 


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1 SEC. 404. INCREASED PARTNERSHIPS BETWEEN SBIR 

2 AWARDEES AND PRIME CONTRACTORS, VEN3 TURE CAPITAL INVESTMENT COMPANIES, 

4 AND LARGER BUSINESSES. 

5 Section 9(j) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

6 638(j)) is amended by adding after paragraph (5) (as 

7 added by section 403) the following: 

8 ‘‘(6) INCREASED PARTNERSHIPS.—Each agency 

9 required by this section to conduct an SBIR pro10 gram shall establish initiatives by which the agency 

11 encourages partnerships between SBIR awardees 

12 and prime contractors, venture capital investment 

13 companies, and larger businesses, for the purpose of 

14 facilitating the progress of the SBIR awardees to 

15 the third phase. If the agency is required by sub16 section (aa) to have an SBIR advisory board, the 

17 advisory board shall include in each report submitted 

18 under subsection (aa) a description of the initiatives 

19 established and an assessment of the effectiveness of 

20 such initiatives.’’. 

21 SEC. 405. EXPRESS AUTHORITY TO ‘‘FAST-TRACK’’ PHASE 

22 TWO AWARDS FOR PROMISING PHASE ONE 

23 RESEARCH. 

24 Section 9(j)(2)(G) of the Small Business Act (15 

25 U.S.C. 638(j)(2)(G)) is amended by inserting before the 

26 semicolon at the end the following: ‘‘, and to encourage 


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1 agencies to develop ‘fast-track’ programs to eliminate that 

2 delay by issuing second phase SBIR awards as soon as 

3 practicable, including in appropriate cases simultaneously 

4 with the issuance of the first phase SBIR award’’. 

5 SEC. 406. COMMERCIALIZATION PROGRAMS. 

6 Section 9(j) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

7 638(j)) is amended by adding after paragraph (6) (as 

8 added by section 404) the following: 

9 ‘‘(7) COMMERCIALIZATION PROGRAMS.—Each 

10 agency required by this section to conduct an SBIR 

11 program shall establish a commercialization program 

12 that supports the progress of SBIR awardees to the 

13 third phase. The commercialization program may in14 clude activities such as partnership databases, part15 nership conferences, multiple second phases, men16 toring between prime contractors and SBIR award17 ees, multiple second phases with matching private 

18 investment requirements, jumbo awards, SBIR 

19 helpdesks, and transition assistance programs. The 

20 agency shall include in its annual report an analysis 

21 of the various activities considered for inclusion in 

22 the commercialization program and a statement of 

23 the reasons why each activity considered was in24 cluded or not included, as the case may be. If the 

25 agency is required by subsection (aa) to have an 


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1 SBIR advisory board, the advisory board shall in2 clude in each report under subsection (aa) a state3 ment identifying the number of SBIR awardees that 

4 successfully progressed to the third phase. 

5 ‘‘(8) FUNDING FOR COMMERCIALIZATION PRO6 GRAMS.— 

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made 

8 available to carry out this paragraph, the Ad9 ministrator may, on petition by agencies re10 quired by this section to conduct an SBIR pro11 gram, transfer funds to such agencies to sup12 port the commercialization programs of such 

13 agencies. 

14 ‘‘(B) PETITIONS.—The Administrator shall 

15 establish rules for making transfers under sub16 paragraph (A). The initial set of rules shall be 

17 promulgated not later than 90 days after the 

18 date of the enactment of this paragraph. 

19 ‘‘(C) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIA20 TIONS.—There is authorized to be appropriated 

21 to the Administrator to carry out this para22 graph $27,500,000 for fiscal year 2009 and 

23 each fiscal year thereafter. 

24 ‘‘(9) FUNDING LIMITATION.—For payment of 

25 expenses incurred to administer the commercializaVerDate Aug 31 2005 04:12 Apr 17, 2008 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00035 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5819.IH H5819

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1 tion programs described in paragraphs (7) and (8), 

2 the head of the agency may use not more than an 

3 amount equal to 1 percent of the funds available to 

4 the agency pursuant to the Small Business Innova5 tion Research program. Such funds— 

6 ‘‘(A) shall not be subject to the limitations 

7 on the use of funds in subsection (f)(2); and 

8 ‘‘(B) shall not be used for the purpose of 

9 funding costs associated with salaries and ex10 penses of employees of the United States Gov11 ernment.’’. 

12 SEC. 407. REPORT ON EFFORTS TO ENHANCE MANUFAC13 TURING ACTIVITIES. 

14 Section 9(j) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

15 638(j)) is amended by adding after paragraph (9) (as 

16 added by section 406) the following: 

17 ‘‘(10) EFFORTS TO ENHANCE MANUFACTURING

18 ACTIVITIES.—If an agency is required by subsection 

19 (aa) to have an SBIR advisory board, the advisory 

20 board shall include in each report under subsection 

21 (aa) a part relating to efforts to enhance manufac22 turing activities, which shall include— 

23 ‘‘(A) a comprehensive description of the 

24 actions undertaken each year by the SBIR and 


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1 STTR programs of that agency in support of 

2 Executive Order 13329; 

3 ‘‘(B) an assessment of the effectiveness of 

4 such actions toward enhancing the research and 

5 development of manufacturing technologies and 

6 processes; and 

7 ‘‘(C) any recommendations that the pro8 gram managers of the SBIR and STTR pro9 grams consider appropriate for additional ac10 tions to be undertaken in order to increase the 

11 effectiveness toward enhancing manufacturing 

12 activities within the defense industrial base.’’. 

13 TITLE V—SUPPORTING 

14 PROGRAM UTILIZATION 

15 SEC. 501. AGENCY DATABASES TO SUPPORT PROGRAM 

16 EVALUATION. 

17 Section 9(k) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

18 638(k)) is amended— 

19 (1) in paragraph (2)(A)— 

20 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause 

21 (ii); 

22 (B) by inserting ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause 

23 (iii); and 

24 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

25 clause: 


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1 ‘‘(iv) information on the ownership 

2 structure of award recipients, both at the 

3 time of receipt of the award and upon com4 pletion of the award period;’’; 

5 (2) by amending paragraph (3) to read as fol6 lows: 

7 ‘‘(3) UPDATING INFORMATION FOR DATA8 BASE.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A Federal agency 

10 shall not make a Phase I or Phase II payment 

11 to a small business concern under this section 

12 unless the small business concern has provided 

13 all information required under this subsection 

14 with respect to the award under which the pay15 ment is made, and with respect to any other 

16 award under this section previously received by 

17 the small business concern or a predecessor in 

18 interest to the small business concern. 

19 ‘‘(B) APPORTIONMENT.—In complying 

20 with this paragraph, a small business concern 

21 may apportion sales or additional investment 

22 information relating to more than one second 

23 phase award among those awards, if it notes 

24 the apportionment for each award. 


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1 ‘‘(C) ANNUAL UPDATES UPON TERMI2 NATION.—A small business concern receiving an 

3 award under this section shall— 

4 ‘‘(i) in the case of a second phase 

5 award, update information in the data6 bases required under paragraphs (2) and 

7 (6) concerning that award at the termi8 nation of the award period; 

9 ‘‘(ii) in the case of award recipients 

10 not described in clause (iii), be requested 

11 to voluntarily update such information an12 nually thereafter for a period of 5 years; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(iii) in the case of a small business 

15 concern applying for a subsequent first 

16 phase or second phase award, be required 

17 to update such information annually there18 after for a period of 5 years.’’; and 

19 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

20 paragraph: 

21 ‘‘(6) AGENCY PROGRAM EVALUATION DATA22 BASES.—Each Federal agency required to establish 

23 an SBIR or STTR program under this section shall 

24 develop and maintain, for the purpose of evaluating 

25 such programs, a database containing information 


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•HR 5819 IH

1 required to be contained in the database under para2 graph (2). Each such database shall be designed to 

3 be accessible to other agencies that are required to 

4 maintain a database under this paragraph.’’. 

5 SEC. 502. AGENCY DATABASES TO SUPPORT TECHNOLOGY 

6 UTILIZATION. 

7 Section 9(k) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

8 638(k)), as amended by this Act, is further amended by 

9 adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

10 ‘‘(7) AGENCY DATABASES TO SUPPORT TECH11 NOLOGY UTILIZATION.—Each Federal agency with 

12 an SBIR or STTR program shall create and main13 tain a technology utilization database, which shall be 

14 available to the public and shall contain data sup15 plied by the award recipients specifically to help 

16 them attract customers for the products and services 

17 generated under the SBIR or STTR project, and to 

18 attract additional investors and business partners. 

19 Each database created under this paragraph shall 

20 include information on the other databases created 

21 under this paragraph by other Federal agencies. 

22 Participation in a database under this paragraph 

23 shall be voluntary, except that such participation is 

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1 mental payments from SBIR and STTR program 

2 funds above their initial Phase II award.’’. 

3 SEC. 503. INTERAGENCY POLICY COMMITTEE. 

4 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Director of the Office of 

5 Science and Technology Policy shall establish an Inter6 agency SBIR/STTR Policy Committee comprised of one 

7 representative from each Federal agency with an SBIR 

8 program. 

9 (b) COCHAIRS.—The Director of the Office of Science 

10 and Technology Policy and the Director of the National 

11 Institute of Standards and Technology shall jointly chair 

12 the Interagency Policy Committee. 

13 (c) DUTIES.—The Interagency Policy Committee 

14 shall review the following issues and make policy rec15 ommendations on ways to improve program effectiveness 

16 and efficiency: 

17 (1) The public and government databases de18 scribed in section 9(k)(1) and (2) of the Small Busi19 ness Act (15 U.S.C. 638(k)(1) and (2)). 

20 (2) Federal agency flexibility in establishing 

21 Phase I and II award sizes, and appropriate criteria 

22 to exercise such flexibility. 

23 (3) Commercialization assistance best practices 

24 in Federal agencies with significant potential to be 

25 employed by other agencies, and the appropriate 


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1 steps to achieve that leverage, as well as proposals 

2 for new initiatives to address funding gaps business 

3 concerns face after Phase II but before commer4 cialization. 

5 (d) REPORTS.—The Interagency Policy Committee 

6 shall transmit to the Committee on Science and Tech7 nology and the Committee on Small Business of the House 

8 of Representatives, and to the Committee on Small Busi9 ness and Entrepreneurship of the Senate— 

10 (1) a report on its review and recommendations 

11 under subsection (c)(1) not later than 1 year after 

12 the date of enactment of this Act; 

13 (2) a report on its review and recommendations 

14 under subsection (c)(2) not later than 18 months 

15 after the date of enactment of this Act; and 

16 (3) a report on its review and recommendations 

17 under subsection (c)(3) not later than 2 years after 

18 the date of enactment of this Act. 

19 SEC. 504. NANOTECHNOLOGY-RELATED RESEARCH TOPICS. 

20 (a) SBIR.—Section 9(g)(3) of the Small Business 

21 Act (15 U.S.C. 638(g)(3)), as amended by section 107, 

22 is further amended by adding at the end the following new 

23 subparagraph: 

24 ‘‘(E) the national nanotechnology strategic 

25 plan required under section 2(c)(4) of the 21st 


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1 Century Nanotechnology Research and Develop2 ment Act (15 U.S.C. 7501(c)(4)) and in subse3 quent reports issued by the National Science 

4 and Technology Council Committee on Tech5 nology, focusing on areas of nanotechnology 

6 identified in such plan;’’. 

7 (b) STTR.—Section 9(o)(1) of the Small Business 

8 Act (15 U.S.C. 638(o)(1)) is amended by inserting ‘‘, giv9 ing special consideration to topics that further 1 or more 

10 critical technologies, as identified by the national 

11 nanotechnology strategic plan required under section 

12 2(c)(4) of the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and 

13 Development Act (15 U.S.C. 7501(c)(4)) and in subse14 quent reports issued by the National Science and Tech15 nology Council Committee on Technology, focusing on 

16 areas of nanotechnology identified in such plan’’ after ‘‘its 

17 STTR program’’. 

18 SEC. 505. RURAL PREFERENCE. 

19 Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638) 

20 is amended by adding at the end the following new sub21 section: 

22 ‘‘(dd) RURAL PREFERENCE.—In making awards 

23 under this section, Federal agencies shall give priority to 

24 applications so as to increase the number of SBIR and 

25 STTR award recipients from rural areas.’’. 


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1 TITLE VI—IMPLEMENTATION 

2 SEC. 601. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS TO THE SBIR AND 

3 STTR POLICY DIRECTIVES. 

4 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

5 of this Act, the Administrator of the Small Business Ad6 ministration shall promulgate amendments to the SBIR 

7 and the STTR Policy Directives to conform such directives 

8 to this Act and the amendments made by this Act. 

9 SEC. 602. NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL SBIR STUDY. 

10 Section 108(d) of the Small Business Reauthoriza11 tion Act of 2000 is amended— 

12 (1) by striking ‘‘of the Senate’’ and all that fol13 lows through ‘‘not later than 3’’ and inserting ‘‘of 

14 the Senate, not later than 3’’; and 

15 (2) by striking ‘‘; and’’ and all that follows 

16 through ‘‘update of such report’’. 

Æ 


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