I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2702 
To amend the Small Business Act to establish a commercialization assistance 
pilot program under the SBIR program, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 25, 2017 
Mr. LAWSON of Florida introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
the Committee on Small Business, and in addition to the Committee on 
Science, Space, and Technology, for a period to be subsequently deter-
mined 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 establish a commer-
cialization assistance pilot program under the SBIR pro-
gram, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘SBIR Commercializa-
tion Assistance Act of 2017’’. 
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SEC. 2. COMMERCIALIZATION ASSISTANCE PILOT PRO-
GRAM. 
Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638) 
is amended by adding at the end the following new sub-
section: 
‘‘(tt) COMMERCIALIZATION ASSISTANCE PILOT PRO-
GRAMS.— 
‘‘(1) PILOT PROGRAMS IMPLEMENTED.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 
subparagraph (B), not later than one year after 
the date of the enactment of this subsection, a 
covered agency shall implement a commer-
cialization assistance pilot program, under 
which an eligible entity may receive a subse-
quent Phase II SBIR award. 
‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—If the Administrator 
determines that a covered agency has a pro-
gram that is sufficiently similar to the commer-
cialization assistance pilot program established 
under this subsection, such covered agency shall 
not be required to implement a commercializa-
tion assistance pilot program under this sub-
section. 
‘‘(2) PERCENT OF AGENCY FUNDS.—The head 
of each covered agency may allocate not more than 
5 percent of the funds allocated to the SBIR pro-
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gram of the covered agency for the purpose of mak-
ing a subsequent Phase II SBIR award under the 
commercialization assistance pilot program. 
‘‘(3) TERMINATION.—A commercialization as-
sistance pilot program established under this sub-
section shall terminate on September 30, 2022. 
‘‘(4) APPLICATION.—To be selected to receive a 
subsequent Phase II SBIR award under a commer-
cialization assistance pilot program, an eligible enti-
ty shall submit to the covered agency implementing 
such pilot program an application at such time, in 
such manner, and containing such information as 
the covered agency may require, including— 
‘‘(A) an updated Phase II commercializa-
tion plan; and 
‘‘(B) the source and amount of the match-
ing funding required under paragraph (5). 
‘‘(5) MATCHING FUNDING.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The Administrator 
shall require, as a condition of any subsequent 
Phase II SBIR award made to an eligible entity 
under this subsection, that a matching amount 
(excluding any fees collected by the eligible enti-
ty receiving such award) equal to the amount of 
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such award be provided from an eligible third- 
party investor. 
‘‘(B) INELIGIBLE
SOURCES.—An eligible 
entity may not use funding from ineligible 
sources to meet the matching requirement of 
subparagraph (A). 
‘‘(6) AWARD.—A subsequent Phase II SBIR 
award made to an eligible entity under this sub-
section— 
‘‘(A) may not exceed the limitation de-
scribed under subsection (aa)(1); and 
‘‘(B) shall be disbursed during Phase II. 
‘‘(7) USE OF FUNDS.—The funds awarded to 
an eligible entity under this subsection may only be 
used for research and development activities that 
build on eligible entity’s Phase II program and en-
sure the research funded under such Phase II is 
rapidly progressing towards commercialization. 
‘‘(8) SELECTION.—In selecting eligible entities 
to participate in a commercialization assistance pilot 
program under this subsection, the head of a covered 
agency shall consider— 
‘‘(A) the extent to which such award could 
aid the eligible entity in commercializing the re-
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search funded under the eligible entity’s Phase 
II program; 
‘‘(B) whether the updated Phase II com-
mercialization plan submitted under paragraph 
(4) provides a sound approach for establishing 
technical feasibility that could lead to commer-
cialization of such research; 
‘‘(C) whether the proposed activities to be 
conducted under such updated Phase II com-
mercialization plan further improve the likeli-
hood that such research will provide societal 
benefits; 
‘‘(D) whether the small business concern 
has progressed satisfactorily in Phase II to jus-
tify receipt of a subsequent Phase II SBIR 
award; 
‘‘(E) the expectations of the eligible third- 
party investor that provides matching funding 
under paragraph (5); and 
‘‘(F) the likelihood that the proposed ac-
tivities to be conducted under such updated 
Phase II commercialization plan using matching 
funding provided by such eligible third-party in-
vestor will lead to commercial and societal ben-
efit. 
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‘‘(9) EVALUATION REPORT.—Not later than 3 
years after the date of the enactment of this sub-
section, the Comptroller General of the United 
States shall submit to the Committee on Science, 
Space, and Technology and the Committee on Small 
Business of the House of Representatives, and the 
Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship 
of the Senate, a report including— 
‘‘(A) a summary of the activities of com-
mercialization assistance pilot programs carried 
out under this subsection; 
‘‘(B) a detailed compilation of results 
achieved by such commercialization assistance 
pilot programs, including the number of eligible 
entities that received awards under such pro-
grams; 
‘‘(C) the rate at which each eligible entity 
that received a subsequent Phase II SBIR 
award under this subsection commercialized re-
search of the recipient; 
‘‘(D) the growth in employment and rev-
enue of eligible entities that is attributable to 
participation in a commercialization assistance 
pilot program; 
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‘‘(E) a comparison of commercialization 
success of eligible entities participating in a 
commercialization assistance pilot program with 
recipients of an additional Phase II SBIR 
award under subsection (ff); 
‘‘(F) demographic information, such as 
ethnicity and geographic location, of eligible en-
tities participating in a commercialization as-
sistance pilot program; 
‘‘(G) an accounting of the funds used at 
each covered agency that implements a commer-
cialization assistance pilot program under this 
subsection; 
‘‘(H) the amount of matching funding pro-
vided by eligible third-party investors, set forth 
separately by source of funding; 
‘‘(I) an analysis of the effectiveness of the 
commercialization assistance pilot program im-
plemented by each covered agency; and 
‘‘(J) recommendations for improvements to 
the commercialization assistance pilot program. 
‘‘(10) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this sub-
section: 
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‘‘(A) COVERED AGENCY.—The term ‘cov-
ered agency’ means a Federal agency required 
to have an SBIR program. 
‘‘(B) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘eligi-
ble entity’ means a small business concern that 
has received a Phase II award under an SBIR 
program and an additional Phase II SBIR 
award under subsection (ff) from the covered 
agency to which such small business concern is 
applying for a subsequent Phase II SBIR 
award. 
‘‘(C) ELIGIBLE THIRD-PARTY INVESTOR.— 
The term ‘eligible third-party investor’ means a 
small business concern other than an eligible 
entity, a venture capital firm, an individual in-
vestor, a non-SBIR Federal, State or local gov-
ernment, or any combination thereof. 
‘‘(D) INELIGIBLE
SOURCES.—The term 
‘ineligible sources’ means the following: 
‘‘(i) The eligible entity’s internal re-
search and development funds. 
‘‘(ii) Funding in forms other than 
cash, such as in-kind or other intangible 
assets. 
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‘‘(iii) Funding from the owners of the 
eligible entity, or the family members or 
affiliates of such owners. 
‘‘(iv) Funding attained through loans 
or other forms of debt obligations. 
‘‘(E) 
SUBSEQUENT
PHASE
II
SBIR 
AWARD.—The term ‘subsequent Phase II SBIR 
award’ means an award granted to an eligible 
entity under this subsection to carry out further 
commercialization activities for research con-
ducted pursuant to an SBIR program.’’. 
Æ 
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