IIB 
110TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5819 
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 
APRIL 24, 2008 
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Small Business and 
Entrepreneurship 
AN ACT 
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. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act’’. 
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 
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 award levels. 
Sec. 103. Establishment of SBIR advisory boards. 
Sec. 104. Increase in amount of technical assistance funds and option to pur-
chase technical assistance directly. 
Sec. 105. Increased number of research topic solicitations annually and short-
ened period for final decisions on applications. 
Sec. 106. Inclusion of energy-related research topics and rare-disease-related 
research topics as deserving ‘‘special consideration’’ as SBIR 
research topics. 
Sec. 107. Agencies should fund vital R&D projects with the potential for com-
mercialization. 
Sec. 108. Federal agency engagement with SBIR awardees that have been 
awarded multiple Phase One awards but have not been award-
ed Phase Two awards. 
Sec. 109. Limitation on certain awards. 
Sec. 110. Comptroller General audit of how Federal agencies calculate extra-
mural research budgets. 
Sec. 111. Providing explanations to unsuccessful applicants. 
TITLE II—VENTURE CAPITAL INVESTMENT STANDARDS 
Sec. 201. Ensuring that innovative small businesses with substantial investment 
from venture capital operating companies are able to partici-
pate 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. 
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Sec. 404. Increased partnerships between SBIR awardees and prime contrac-
tors, venture capital investment companies, and larger busi-
nesses. 
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 
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. 
Sec. 506. Priority for areas that have lost a major source of employment. 
Sec. 507. Veterans preference. 
Sec. 508. Initiative to publicize the SBIR program to veterans. 
Sec. 509. Preference for organizations that are making significant contributions 
towards energy efficiency. 
TITLE VI—IMPLEMENTATION 
Sec. 601. Conforming amendments to the SBIR and STTR policy directives. 
Sec. 602. National Research Council SBIR Study. 
Sec. 603. SBIR awardee business operations. 
Sec. 604. Prohibition of awards to aliens unlawfully present in the United 
States. 
Sec. 605. Prohibition on awards to firms in violation of immigration laws. 
TITLE I—MODERNIZING THE 
SBIR AND STTR PROGRAMS 
SEC. 101. EXTENSION OF TERMINATION DATES. 
(a) SBIR.—Section 9(m) of the Small Business Act 
(15 U.S.C. 638(m)) is amended by striking ‘‘2008’’ and 
inserting ‘‘2010’’. 
(b) STTR.—Section 9(n)(1)(A) of the Small Busi-
ness Act (15 U.S.C. 638(n)(1)(A)) is amended by striking 
‘‘2009’’ and inserting ‘‘2010’’. 
SEC. 102. INCREASED SBIR AND STTR AWARD LEVELS. 
(a) SBIR AWARD LEVEL.—Section 9(j)(2)(D) of the 
Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638(j)(2)(D)) is amended 
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by striking ‘‘$100,000’’ and ‘‘$750,000’’ and inserting 
‘‘$300,000’’ and ‘‘$2,200,000’’, respectively. 
(b) STTR AWARD LEVEL.—Section 9(p)(2)(B)(ix) of 
the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638(p)(2)(B)(ix)) is 
amended by striking ‘‘$100,000’’ and ‘‘$750,000’’ and in-
serting ‘‘$300,000’’ and ‘‘$2,200,000’’, respectively. 
(c) ANNUAL ADJUSTMENTS.—Section 9 of the Small 
Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (j)(2)(D), by striking ‘‘and an 
adjustment of such amounts once every 5 years to 
reflect economic adjustments and programmatic con-
siderations’’ and inserting ‘‘and a mandatory annual 
adjustment of such amounts to reflect economic ad-
justments and programmatic considerations’’; and 
(2) in subsection (p)(2)(B)(ix), by striking 
‘‘greater or lesser amounts’’ and inserting ‘‘with a 
mandatory annual adjustment of such amounts to 
reflect economic adjustments and programmatic con-
siderations, and with lesser amounts’’. 
(d) LIMITATION ON CERTAIN AWARDS.—Section 9 of 
the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638) is amended by 
adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(z) LIMITATION ON PHASE I AND II AWARDS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—No Federal agency shall 
issue an award under the SBIR program or the 
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STTR program if the size of the award exceeds the 
amounts established under subsections (j)(2)(D) and 
(p)(2)(B)(ix), except as provided in paragraph (2). 
‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—The prohibition in para-
graph (1) does not apply to an agency for a fiscal 
year if the head of the agency— 
‘‘(A) notifies the Administrator that the 
agency intends to issue awards in that fiscal 
year without regard to the prohibition in para-
graph (1); and 
‘‘(B) reports to the Committee on Small 
Business and the Committee on Science and 
Technology of the House of Representatives 
and the Committee on Small Business and En-
trepreneurship of the Senate at least annually 
the number of instances in which the agency 
issued an award that exceeds the amounts re-
ferred to in paragraph (1) and the justification 
for each such instance.’’. 
SEC. 103. ESTABLISHMENT OF SBIR ADVISORY BOARDS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 9 of the Small Business 
Act (15 U.S.C. 638) is amended by inserting after sub-
section (z) the following: 
‘‘(aa) SBIR ADVISORY BOARDS.— 
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‘‘(1) 
ADVISORY
BOARDS
REQUIRED.—Each 
Federal agency that is required by this section to 
conduct an SBIR program and that administers an-
nually $50,000,000 or more in SBIR grants shall 
have an SBIR advisory board. 
‘‘(2) MEMBERS.—For each advisory board re-
quired by paragraph (1), the members of the advi-
sory board shall include— 
‘‘(A) at least two individuals who are em-
ployees of the agency; 
‘‘(B) at least two representatives of private 
sector technology firms; 
‘‘(C) at least one individual who is a vet-
eran who owns a small business concern owned 
and controlled by veterans; and 
‘‘(D) such other individuals as the agency 
considers appropriate. 
‘‘(3) SECURITY CLEARANCES.—Where it is ap-
propriate to the work of an advisory board required 
by paragraph (1) that the members and staff of the 
advisory board have a security clearance, the appro-
priate departments and agencies of the executive 
branch shall cooperate with the advisory board to ex-
peditiously provide members and staff with appro-
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priate security clearances to the extent possible 
under applicable procedures and requirements. 
‘‘(4) MEETINGS.—Each advisory board required 
by paragraph (1) shall meet at least two times per 
year. 
‘‘(5) DUTIES.—Each advisory board required 
by paragraph (1) shall— 
‘‘(A) review the quarterly reports sub-
mitted under subsection (g)(8); 
‘‘(B) make recommendations to the agency 
about potential modifications to the agency’s 
SBIR program that are intended to— 
‘‘(i) encourage applications, particu-
larly applications from small business con-
cerns owned and controlled by women, 
small business concerns owned and con-
trolled by minorities, small business con-
cerns owned and controlled by service-dis-
abled veterans, and small business con-
cerns in States and regions that histori-
cally receive few SBIR awards; and 
‘‘(ii) support commercialization of 
Federal research funded by SBIR awards; 
and 
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‘‘(C) submit to the Committee on Small 
Business and the Committee on Science and 
Technology of the House of Representatives 
and the Committee on Small Business and En-
trepreneurship of the Senate an annual report 
on the SBIR program conducted by the agency. 
‘‘(6) CONTENTS OF ANNUAL REPORT.—The an-
nual report required by paragraph (5)(C) shall in-
clude a description of how that agency’s SBIR pro-
gram is functioning and any recommendations of the 
advisory board for strengthening that agency’s SBIR 
program. The annual report shall also state the 
number and dollar amount of awards under the 
agency’s SBIR program, and under the agency’s 
STTR program, that were made to small business 
concerns owned and controlled by women, small 
business concerns owned and controlled by minori-
ties, small business concerns owned and controlled 
by veterans, and small business concerns in States 
and regions that historically receive few SBIR 
awards. 
‘‘(7) NON-APPLICABILITY OF FACA.—The Fed-
eral Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall 
not apply to an advisory board required by para-
graph (1).’’. 
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(b) 
AGENCY
REPORTS
TO
SBIR 
ADVISORY 
BOARDS.—Section 9(g)(8) of the Small Business Act (15 
U.S.C. 638(g)(8)) is amended by inserting before the 
semicolon at the end the following: ‘‘and, if the agency 
is required by subsection (aa) to have an SBIR advisory 
board, submit a quarterly report on the SBIR program 
to that SBIR advisory board’’. 
SEC. 104. INCREASE IN AMOUNT OF TECHNICAL ASSIST-
ANCE FUNDS AND OPTION TO PURCHASE 
TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE DIRECTLY. 
Section 9(q) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
638(q)) is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (1)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘paragraph (2)’’ and in-
serting ‘‘paragraph (2)(A), or another Federal 
agency under paragraph (2)(B),’’; 
(B) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of sub-
paragraph (C); 
(C) by striking the period at the end of 
subparagraph (D) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(D) by adding at the end the following new 
subparagraph: 
‘‘(E) implementing manufacturing proc-
esses and production strategies for utilization.’’; 
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(2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as fol-
lows: 
‘‘(2) ASSISTANCE PROVIDERS.— 
‘‘(A) VENDOR SELECTION.—Each agency 
may select a vendor to assist small business 
concerns to meet the goals listed in paragraph 
(1) for a term not to exceed 3 years. Such se-
lection shall be competitive and shall utilize 
merit-based criteria. 
‘‘(B) INTERAGENCY COLLABORATION.—In 
addition, each agency may enter into a collabo-
rative agreement with the technical extension or 
assistance programs of other Federal agencies 
in order to provide the assistance described in 
paragraph (1).’’; and 
(3) in paragraph (3)— 
(A) in subparagraph (A) by striking 
‘‘$4,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$5,000’’; 
(B) by amending subparagraph (B) to read 
as follows: 
‘‘(B) SECOND
PHASE.—Each agency re-
ferred to in paragraph (1) may provide directly, 
or authorize any second phase SBIR award re-
cipient to purchase with funds available from 
their SBIR awards, services described in para-
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graph (1), in an amount equal to not more than 
$8,000 per year, per award.’’; and 
(C) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(C) AUTHORITY TO OPT OUT.—The Ad-
ministrator shall establish guidelines under 
which an award recipient eligible to receive 
services under subparagraph (A) may decline 
those services and receive instead an amount 
equal to not more than $2,500, which shall be 
in addition to the amount of the recipient’s 
award and which shall be used to purchase 
services described in paragraph (1).’’. 
SEC. 105. INCREASED NUMBER OF RESEARCH TOPIC SO-
LICITATIONS ANNUALLY AND SHORTENED 
PERIOD FOR FINAL DECISIONS ON APPLICA-
TIONS. 
(a) INCREASED NUMBER OF RESEARCH TOPIC SO-
LICITATIONS.—Section 9(g)(2) of the Small Business Act 
(15 U.S.C. 638(g)(2)) is amended by inserting before the 
semicolon at the end the following: ‘‘, but not less often 
than twice per year’’. 
(b) SHORTENED PERIOD FOR FINAL DECISIONS ON 
APPLICATIONS.—Section 9(g)(4) of that Act (15 U.S.C. 
638(g)(4)) is amended— 
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(1) by inserting before the semicolon at the end 
the following: ‘‘: Provided, That if the agency is re-
quired by subsection (aa) to have an SBIR advisory 
board—’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(A) a final decision on each proposal shall 
be rendered not later than 90 days after the 
date on which the solicitation closes; 
‘‘(B) the SBIR advisory board may, on a 
case by case basis, extend the 90 days to 180 
days; and 
‘‘(C) the SBIR advisory board shall include 
in each annual report to Congress under sub-
section (aa) a statement identifying how many 
times a decision was not rendered in 90 days, 
how many times an extension was granted, and 
how many times a decision was not rendered in 
180 days;’’. 
SEC. 106. INCLUSION OF ENERGY-RELATED RESEARCH 
TOPICS 
AND 
RARE-DISEASE-RELATED 
RE-
SEARCH TOPICS AS DESERVING ‘‘SPECIAL 
CONSIDERATION’’ AS SBIR RESEARCH TOP-
ICS. 
Section 9(g)(3) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
638(g)(3)) is amended— 
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(1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) 
by inserting after ‘‘critical technologies’’ the fol-
lowing: ‘‘or pressing research priorities’’; 
(2) at the end of subparagraph (A) by striking 
‘‘or’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(C) the National Academy of Sciences, in 
the final report issued by the ‘America’s Energy 
Future: Technology Opportunities, Risks, and 
Tradeoffs’ project, and in subsequent reports 
issued by the National Academy of Sciences on 
sustainability, energy, and alternative fuels; 
‘‘(D) the National Institutes of Health, in 
the annual report on the rare diseases research 
activities of the National Institutes of Health 
for fiscal year 2005, and in subsequent reports 
issued by the National Institutes of Health on 
rare diseases research activities; 
‘‘(E) the National Academy of Sciences, in 
the final report issued by the ‘Transit Research 
and Development: Federal Role in the National 
Program’ project and the ‘Transportation Re-
search, Development and Technology Strategic 
Plan (2006–2010)’ issued by the United States 
Department of Transportation Research and 
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Innovative Technology Administration, and in 
subsequent reports issued by the National 
Academy of Sciences and United States Depart-
ment of Transportation on transportation and 
infrastructure; or’’. 
SEC. 107. AGENCIES SHOULD FUND VITAL R&D PROJECTS 
WITH THE POTENTIAL FOR COMMERCIALIZA-
TION. 
Section 9(j)(2) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
638(j)(2)), as amended by section 103, is further amend-
ed— 
(1) in subparagraph (H) by striking ‘‘and’’ at 
the end; 
(2) in subparagraph (I) by striking the period 
at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(J) procedures to ensure that the Admin-
istrator, on an annual basis, submits to the 
Committee on Small Business and the Com-
mittee on Science and Technology of the House 
of Representatives and the Committee on Small 
Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate a 
list identifying each small business concern 
that, for the period covered by the preceding 5 
fiscal years, received 15 or more first phase 
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SBIR awards and no second phase SBIR 
awards.’’. 
SEC. 108. FEDERAL AGENCY ENGAGEMENT WITH SBIR 
AWARDEES THAT HAVE BEEN AWARDED MUL-
TIPLE PHASE ONE AWARDS BUT HAVE NOT 
BEEN AWARDED PHASE TWO AWARDS. 
Section 9(j) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
638(j)) is amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(4) REQUIREMENTS
RELATING
TO
FEDERAL 
AGENCY ENGAGEMENT WITH CERTAIN FIRST PHASE 
SBIR AWARDEES.—The Administrator shall modify 
the policy directives issued pursuant to this sub-
section to provide for each Federal agency required 
by this section to conduct an SBIR program to en-
gage with SBIR awardees that have been awarded 
multiple first phase SBIR awards but have not been 
awarded any second phase SBIR awards and to de-
velop performance metrics to measure awardee pro-
gression in the SBIR program.’’. 
SEC. 109. LIMITATION ON CERTAIN AWARDS. 
Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638) 
is amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(bb) SUBSEQUENT PHASES.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A small business concern 
which received an award from a Federal agency 
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under this section shall be eligible to receive an 
award for a subsequent phase from another Federal 
agency, if the head of each relevant Federal agency 
makes a written determination that the topics of the 
relevant awards are the same. 
‘‘(2) CROSSOVER
BETWEEN
PROGRAMS.—A 
small business concern which received an award 
under this section under the SBIR program or the 
STTR program may, at the discretion of the grant-
ing agency, receive an award under this section for 
a subsequent phase in either the SBIR program or 
the STTR program. 
‘‘(3) PHASE II SBIR APPLICATIONS.—An agency 
may permit an applicant to apply directly for a 
Phase II award, as described in subsection 
(e)(4)(B), without first completing a Phase I award, 
as described in subsection (e)(4)(A), if the applicant 
can demonstrate that project feasibility was achieved 
without SBIR or other Federal funding. 
‘‘(4) PHASE II STTR APPLICATIONS.—An agen-
cy may permit an applicant to submit proposals for 
Phase II awards, as described in subsection 
(e)(6)(B), without first completing a Phase I award, 
as described in subsection (e)(6)(A), if the applicant 
can demonstrate it has accomplished Phase I 
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through cooperative research and development 
achieved without STTR or other Federal funding. 
‘‘(cc) WAIVER OF MINIMUM WORK REQUIREMENT.— 
A Federal agency making an SBIR or STTR award under 
this section may waive the minimum small business con-
cern or research institution work requirements under sub-
section (e)(7) if the agency determines that to provide 
such waiver would be consistent with the purposes of this 
section and consistent with achieving the objectives of the 
award proposal.’’. 
SEC. 110. COMPTROLLER GENERAL AUDIT OF HOW FED-
ERAL AGENCIES CALCULATE EXTRAMURAL 
RESEARCH BUDGETS. 
The Comptroller General of the United States shall 
carry out a detailed audit of how Federal agencies cal-
culate extramural research budgets for purposes of calcu-
lating the size of the agencies’ Small Business Innovation 
Research and Small Business Technology Transfer budg-
ets. Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 
of this Act, the Comptroller General shall submit to the 
Committee on Small Business and the Committee on 
Science and Technology of the House of Representatives 
and the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneur-
ship of the Senate a report on the results of the audit. 
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SEC. 111. PROVIDING EXPLANATIONS TO UNSUCCESSFUL 
APPLICANTS. 
Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638) 
is amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(dd) PROVIDING EXPLANATIONS TO UNSUCCESS-
FUL APPLICANTS.—Whenever an entity applies for, but 
does not receive, an award under an SBIR or STTR pro-
gram under this section, the Federal agency conducting 
the program shall— 
‘‘(1) in a plain and conspicuous manner, notify 
that entity that it can request an explanation (which 
must be of a constructive nature) of the reasons why 
the entity did not receive the award; and 
‘‘(2) provide such an explanation to that entity, 
if the entity so requests.’’. 
TITLE II—VENTURE CAPITAL 
INVESTMENT STANDARDS 
SEC. 201. ENSURING THAT INNOVATIVE SMALL BUSI-
NESSES WITH SUBSTANTIAL INVESTMENT 
FROM VENTURE CAPITAL OPERATING COM-
PANIES ARE ABLE TO PARTICIPATE IN THE 
SBIR PROGRAM. 
Section 9(e) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
638(e)) is amended by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para-
graph (8), striking the period at the end of paragraph (9) 
and inserting ‘‘; and’’, and adding at the end the following: 
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‘‘(10) effective only for the SBIR and STTR 
programs, notwithstanding any other amendment 
made by the SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act, the 
following shall apply: 
‘‘(A) A business concern that has more 
than 500 employees shall not qualify as a small 
business concern. 
‘‘(B) In determining whether a small busi-
ness concern is independently owned and oper-
ated under section 3(a)(1) or meets the small 
business size standards instituted under section 
3(a)(2), the Administrator shall not consider a 
business concern to be affiliated with a venture 
capital operating company (or with any other 
business that the venture capital operating com-
pany has financed) if— 
‘‘(i) the venture capital operating 
company does not own 50 percent or more 
of the business concern; and 
‘‘(ii) employees of the venture capital 
operating company do not constitute a ma-
jority of the board of directors of the busi-
ness concern. 
‘‘(C) A business concern shall be deemed 
to be ‘independently owned and operated’ if— 
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‘‘(i) it is owned in majority part by 
one or more natural persons or venture 
capital operating companies; 
‘‘(ii) there is no single venture capital 
operating company that owns 50 percent 
or more of the business concern; and 
‘‘(iii) there is no single venture capital 
operating company the employees of which 
constitute a majority of the board of direc-
tors of the business concern. 
‘‘(D) If a venture capital operating com-
pany controlled by a business with more than 
500 employees (in this subparagraph referred 
to as a ‘VCOC under large business control’) 
has an ownership interest in a small business 
concern that is owned in majority part by ven-
ture capital operating companies, the small 
business concern is eligible to receive an award 
under the SBIR or STTR program only if— 
‘‘(i) not more than two VCOCs under 
large business control have an ownership 
interest in the small business concern; 
‘‘(ii) the VCOCs under large business 
control do not collectively own more than 
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20 percent of the small business concern; 
and 
‘‘(iii) the VCOCs under large business 
control do not collaborate with each other 
to exercise more control over the small 
business concern than they could otherwise 
exercise individually. 
‘‘(E) The term ‘venture capital operating 
company’ means a business concern— 
‘‘(i) that— 
‘‘(I) is a Venture Capital Oper-
ating Company, as that term is de-
fined in regulations promulgated by 
the Secretary of Labor; or 
‘‘(II) is an entity that— 
‘‘(aa) is registered under the 
Investment Company Act of 1940 
(15 U.S.C. 80a–51 et seq.); or 
‘‘(bb) is an investment com-
pany, 
as 
defined 
in 
section 
3(c)(14) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 
80a–3(c)(14)), which is not reg-
istered under such Act because it 
is beneficially owned by less than 
100 persons; and 
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‘‘(ii) that is itself organized or incor-
porated and domiciled in the United 
States, or is controlled by a business con-
cern that is incorporated and domiciled in 
the United States.’’. 
TITLE III—SBIR AND ECONOMIC 
DEVELOPMENT 
SEC. 301. REAUTHORIZATION AND MODERNIZATION OF 
FEDERAL AND STATE TECHNOLOGY PART-
NERSHIP PROGRAM (FAST). 
Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638) 
is amended by inserting after subsection (r) the following: 
‘‘(s) OUTREACH AND SUPPORT ACTIVITIES.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the other provi-
sions of this subsection, the Administrator shall 
make grants on a competitive basis to organizations, 
to be used by the organizations to do one or both 
of the following: 
‘‘(A) To conduct outreach efforts to in-
crease participation in the programs under this 
section. 
‘‘(B) To provide application support and 
entrepreneurial and business skills support to 
prospective participants in the programs under 
this section. 
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‘‘(2) PROGRAM AUTHORITY.—Of the amounts 
made available to carry out this section for each of 
fiscal years 2009 through 2010, the Administrator 
may expend not more than $10,000,000 in each 
such fiscal year to carry out paragraph (1). 
‘‘(3) AMOUNT
OF
ASSISTANCE.—For each of 
subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (1), the 
amount of assistance provided to an organization 
under that subparagraph in any fiscal year— 
‘‘(A) shall be equal to the total amount of 
matching funds from non-Federal sources pro-
vided by the organization; and 
‘‘(B) shall not exceed $250,000. 
‘‘(4) DIRECTION.—An organization receiving 
funds under paragraph (1) shall, in using those 
funds, direct its activities at one or both of the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(A) Small business concerns located in 
geographic areas that are underrepresented in 
the programs under this section. 
‘‘(B) Small business concerns owned and 
controlled by women, small business concerns 
owned and controlled by service-disabled vet-
erans, and small business concerns owned and 
controlled by minorities. 
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‘‘(5) ADVISORY BOARD.— 
‘‘(A) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 90 
days after the date of the enactment of this 
subsection, the Administrator shall establish an 
advisory board for the activities carried out 
under this subsection. 
‘‘(B) NON-APPLICABILITY OF FACA.—The 
Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. 
App.) shall not apply to the advisory board. 
‘‘(C) MEMBERS.—The members of the ad-
visory board shall include the following: 
‘‘(i) The Administrator (or the Ad-
ministrator’s designee). 
‘‘(ii) For each Federal agency re-
quired by this section to conduct an SBIR 
program, the head of the agency (or the 
designee of the head of the agency). 
‘‘(iii) Representatives of small busi-
ness concerns that are current or former 
recipients of SBIR awards, or representa-
tives of organizations of such concerns. 
‘‘(iv) Representatives of service pro-
viders of SBIR outreach and assistance, or 
representatives of organizations of such 
service providers. 
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‘‘(D) DUTIES.—The advisory board shall 
have the following duties: 
‘‘(i) To develop guidelines for awards 
under paragraph (1)(A), including guide-
lines relating to award sizes, proposal re-
quirements, metrics for monitoring award-
ee performance, and metrics for measuring 
overall value of the activities carried out by 
the awardees. 
‘‘(ii) To identify opportunities for co-
ordinated outreach, technical assistance, 
and commercialization activities among 
Federal agencies, the recipients of the 
awards under paragraph (1)(A), and appli-
cants and recipients of SBIR awards, in-
cluding opportunities such as— 
‘‘(I) podcasting or webcasting for 
conferences, training workshops, and 
other events; 
‘‘(II) shared online resources to 
match prospective applicants with the 
network of paragraph (1)(A) recipi-
ents; and 
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‘‘(III) venture capital conferences 
tied to technologies and sectors that 
cross agencies. 
‘‘(iii) To review and recommend revi-
sions to activities under paragraph (1)(A). 
‘‘(iv) To submit to the Committee on 
Small Business and Entrepreneurship of 
the Senate and the Committee on Small 
Business and the Committee on Science 
and Technology of the House of Represent-
atives an annual report on the activities 
carried out under paragraph (1)(A) and 
the effectiveness and impact of those ac-
tivities. 
‘‘(6) 
SELECTION
CRITERIA.—In 
awarding 
grants under this subsection, the Administrator shall 
use selection criteria developed by the advisory board 
established under paragraph (5). The criteria shall 
include— 
‘‘(A) criteria designed to give preference to 
applicants who propose to carry out activities 
that will reach either an underperforming geo-
graphic area or an underrepresented population 
group (as measured by the number of SBIR ap-
plicants); 
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‘‘(B) criteria designed to give preference to 
applicants who propose to carry out activities 
that complement, and are integrated into, the 
existing public-private innovation support sys-
tem for the targeted region or population; 
‘‘(C) criteria designed to give preference to 
applicants who propose to measure the effec-
tiveness of the proposed activities; and 
‘‘(D) criteria designed to give preference to 
applicants who include an SBDC program that 
is accredited for its technology services. 
‘‘(7) PEER REVIEW.—In awarding grants under 
this subsection, the Administrator shall use a peer 
review process. Reviewers shall include— 
‘‘(A) SBIR program managers for agencies 
required by this section to conduct SBIR pro-
grams; and 
‘‘(B) private individuals and organizations 
that are knowledgeable about SBIR, the innova-
tion process, technology commercialization, and 
State and regional technology-based economic 
development programs. 
‘‘(8) PER-STATE LIMITATIONS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to re-
ceive a grant under this subsection, the appli-
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cant must have the written endorsement of the 
Governor of the State where the targeted re-
gions or populations are located (if the regions 
or populations are located in more than one 
State, the applicant must have the written en-
dorsement of the Governor of each such State). 
Such an endorsement must indicate that the 
Governor will ensure that the activities to be 
carried out under the grant will be integrated 
with the balance of the State’s portfolio of in-
vestments to help small business concerns com-
mercialize technology. 
‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—Each fiscal year, a 
Governor may have in effect not more than one 
written endorsement for a grant under para-
graph (1)(A), and not more than one written 
endorsement for a grant under paragraph 
(1)(B). 
‘‘(9) SPECIFIC
REQUIREMENTS
FOR
FAST 
AWARDS.—In making awards under paragraph 
(1)(A) (to be known as ‘FAST’ awards) the Admin-
istrator shall ensure the following: 
‘‘(A) GOALS.—Priority shall be given ap-
plications that address one or more of the fol-
lowing goals: 
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‘‘(i) Increasing the number of SBIR 
applications from underperforming geo-
graphic areas (as measured by the number 
of SBIR applicants). 
‘‘(ii) Increasing the number of SBIR 
applications from underrepresented popu-
lation groups (as measured by the number 
of SBIR applicants). 
‘‘(B) DURATION.—Each award shall be for 
a period of 2 fiscal years. The Administrator 
shall establish rules and performance goals for 
the disbursement of funds for the second fiscal 
year, and funds shall not be disbursed to a re-
cipient for such a fiscal year until after the ad-
visory board established under this subsection 
has determined that the recipient is in compli-
ance with the rules and performance goals.’’. 
SEC. 302. OBTAINING SBIR APPLICANT’S CONSENT TO RE-
LEASE 
CONTACT 
INFORMATION 
TO 
ECO-
NOMIC DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATIONS. 
Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638) 
is amended in subsection (s) (as added by this title) by 
adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(5) CONSENT TO RELEASE CONTACT INFORMA-
TION TO ORGANIZATIONS.— 
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‘‘(A) ENABLING CONCERN TO GIVE CON-
SENT.—Each Federal agency required by this 
section to conduct an SBIR program shall en-
able a small business concern that is an SBIR 
applicant to indicate to the agency whether the 
agency has its consent to— 
‘‘(i) identify the concern to appro-
priate local and State-level economic devel-
opment organizations as an SBIR appli-
cant; and 
‘‘(ii) release the concern’s contact in-
formation to such organizations. 
‘‘(B) RULES.—The Administrator shall es-
tablish rules to implement this paragraph. The 
rules shall include a requirement that the agen-
cy include in its SBIR application forms a pro-
vision through which the applicant can indicate 
consent for purposes of subparagraph (A).’’. 
TITLE IV—ADVANCING COMMER-
CIALIZATION OF SBIR–FUND-
ED RESEARCH 
SEC. 
401. 
CLARIFYING 
THE 
DEFINITION 
OF 
‘‘PHASE 
THREE’’. 
Section 9(e) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
638(e)) is amended— 
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(1) in paragraph (4)(C)— 
(A) in the matter preceding clause (i) by 
inserting after ‘‘a third phase’’ the following: ‘‘, 
which shall consist of work that derives from, 
extends, or logically concludes efforts performed 
under prior SBIR funding agreements (which 
may be referred to as ‘Phase III’)’’; and 
(B) in clause (i) by inserting after ‘‘non- 
SBIR Federal funding awards’’ the following: 
‘‘: Provided, That for purposes of this clause, 
such sources of capital and such funding 
awards include private investment, private re-
search, development, testing, and evaluation 
(RDT&E) awards, private sales or licenses, gov-
ernment RDT&E contracts and awards, and 
government sales’’; 
(2) in paragraph (8) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 
end; 
(3) in paragraph (9) by striking the period at 
the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(4) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(10) the term ‘commercialization’ means the 
process of developing marketable products or serv-
ices and producing and delivering products or serv-
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ices for sale (whether by the originating party or by 
others) to government or commercial markets.’’. 
SEC. 402. AGENCY RESEARCH GOALS. 
Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638) 
is amended by striking subsection (h) and inserting the 
following: 
‘‘(h) AGENCY RESEARCH GOALS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In addition to the require-
ments of subsection (f), each Federal agency that is 
required by this section to have an SBIR program 
and that awards annually $5,000,000,000 or more 
in procurement contracts shall, effective for fiscal 
year 2009 and each fiscal year thereafter, establish 
annual goals for commercialization of projects fund-
ed by SBIR awards. 
‘‘(2) SPECIFIC GOALS.—The goals required by 
paragraph (1) shall include specific goals for each of 
the following: 
‘‘(A) The percentage of SBIR projects that 
receive funding for the third phase (as defined 
in subsection (e)(4)(C)). 
‘‘(B) The percentage of SBIR projects that 
are successfully integrated into a program of 
record. 
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‘‘(C) The amount of Federal dollars re-
ceived by SBIR projects through Federal con-
tracts, not including dollars received through 
the SBIR program. 
‘‘(3) SUBMISSION TO ADVISORY BOARD.—For 
each fiscal year for which goals are required by 
paragraph (1), the agency shall submit to the agen-
cy’s SBIR advisory board— 
‘‘(A) not later than 60 days after the be-
ginning of the fiscal year, the goals; and 
‘‘(B) not later than 90 days after the end 
of the fiscal year, data on the extent to which 
the goals were met and a description of the 
methodology used to collect that data.’’. 
SEC. 403. EXPRESS AUTHORITY FOR AN AGENCY TO AWARD 
SEQUENTIAL PHASE TWO AWARDS FOR SBIR- 
FUNDED PROJECTS. 
Section 9(j) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
638(j)) is amended by adding after paragraph (4) (as 
added by section 109) the following: 
‘‘(5) REQUIREMENTS
RELATING
TO
ADDI-
TIONAL SECOND PHASE SBIR AWARDS.—The Admin-
istrator shall modify the policy directives issued pur-
suant to this subsection to provide the following: 
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‘‘(A) A small business concern that re-
ceives a second phase SBIR award for a project 
remains eligible to receive additional second 
phase SBIR awards. 
‘‘(B) Agencies are expressly authorized to 
provide additional second phase SBIR awards 
for testing and evaluation assistance for the in-
sertion of SBIR technologies into technical or 
weapons systems. 
‘‘(C) Each agency that is required by sub-
section (aa) to have an SBIR advisory board 
shall include in the quarterly reports submitted 
under subsection (g)(8) the number of projects 
that have received additional second phase 
SBIR awards and the total dollar amount of 
those additional second phase SBIR awards.’’. 
SEC. 404. INCREASED PARTNERSHIPS BETWEEN SBIR 
AWARDEES AND PRIME CONTRACTORS, VEN-
TURE 
CAPITAL 
INVESTMENT 
COMPANIES, 
AND LARGER BUSINESSES. 
Section 9(j) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
638(j)) is amended by adding after paragraph (5) (as 
added by section 403) the following: 
‘‘(6) INCREASED PARTNERSHIPS.— 
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‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each agency required 
by this section to conduct an SBIR program 
shall establish initiatives by which the agency 
encourages partnerships between SBIR award-
ees and prime contractors, venture capital in-
vestment companies, business incubators, and 
larger businesses, for the purpose of facilitating 
the progress of the SBIR awardees to the third 
phase. If the agency is required by subsection 
(aa) to have an SBIR advisory board, the advi-
sory board shall include in each report sub-
mitted under subsection (aa) a description of 
the initiatives established and an assessment of 
the effectiveness of such initiatives. 
‘‘(B) DEFINITION.—In this paragraph, the 
term ‘business incubator’ means an entity that 
provides coordinated and specialized services to 
entrepreneurial businesses which meet selected 
criteria during the businesses’ startup phases, 
including providing services such as shared of-
fice space and office services, access to equip-
ment, access to telecommunications and tech-
nology services, flexible leases, specialized man-
agement assistance, access to financing, men-
toring and training services, or other coordi-
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nated business or technical support services de-
signed to provide business development assist-
ance to entrepreneurial businesses during these 
businesses’ startup phases.’’. 
SEC. 405. EXPRESS AUTHORITY TO ‘‘FAST-TRACK’’ PHASE 
TWO AWARDS FOR PROMISING PHASE ONE 
RESEARCH. 
Section 9(j)(2)(G) of the Small Business Act (15 
U.S.C. 638(j)(2)(G)) is amended by inserting before the 
semicolon at the end the following: ‘‘, and to encourage 
agencies to develop ‘fast-track’ programs to eliminate that 
delay by issuing second phase SBIR awards as soon as 
practicable, including in appropriate cases simultaneously 
with the issuance of the first phase SBIR award’’. 
SEC. 406. COMMERCIALIZATION PROGRAMS. 
Section 9(j) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
638(j)) is amended by adding after paragraph (6) (as 
added by section 404) the following: 
‘‘(7) COMMERCIALIZATION
PROGRAMS.—Each 
agency required by this section to conduct an SBIR 
program shall establish a commercialization program 
that supports the progress of SBIR awardees to the 
third phase. The commercialization program may in-
clude activities such as partnership databases, part-
nership conferences, multiple second phases, men-
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toring between prime contractors and SBIR award-
ees, multiple second phases with matching private 
investment requirements, jumbo awards, SBIR 
helpdesks, and transition assistance programs. The 
agency shall include in its annual report an analysis 
of the various activities considered for inclusion in 
the commercialization program and a statement of 
the reasons why each activity considered was in-
cluded or not included, as the case may be. If the 
agency is required by subsection (aa) to have an 
SBIR advisory board, the advisory board shall in-
clude in each report under subsection (aa) a state-
ment identifying the number of SBIR awardees that 
successfully progressed to the third phase. 
‘‘(8) FUNDING FOR COMMERCIALIZATION PRO-
GRAMS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—From amounts made 
available to carry out this paragraph, the Ad-
ministrator may, on petition by agencies re-
quired by this section to conduct an SBIR pro-
gram, transfer funds to such agencies to sup-
port the commercialization programs of such 
agencies. 
‘‘(B) PETITIONS.—The Administrator shall 
establish rules for making transfers under sub-
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paragraph (A). The initial set of rules shall be 
promulgated not later than 90 days after the 
date of the enactment of this paragraph. 
‘‘(C) 
AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIA-
TIONS.—There is authorized to be appropriated 
to the Administrator to carry out this para-
graph $27,500,000 for fiscal year 2009 and 
each fiscal year thereafter. 
‘‘(D) MINORITY INSTITUTION PILOT PRO-
GRAM.— 
‘‘(i) 
ESTABLISHMENT.—From 
amounts made available to carry out this 
subparagraph, the Administrator shall es-
tablish and carry out a pilot program to 
make grants to minority institutions that 
partner with nonprofit organizations that 
have experience developing relationships 
between industry, minority institutions, 
and other entities, for the purpose of in-
creasing the number of SBIR and STTR 
program applications by minority-owned 
small businesses. 
‘‘(ii) APPLICATION.—To be eligible to 
receive a grant under the pilot program es-
tablished in clause (i), a minority institu-
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and the STTR Policy Directives to conform such directives 
to this Act and the amendments made by this Act. 
SEC. 602. NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL SBIR STUDY. 
Section 108(d) of the Small Business Reauthoriza-
tion Act of 2000 is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘of the Senate’’ and all that fol-
lows through ‘‘not later than 3’’ and inserting ‘‘of 
the Senate, not later than 3’’; and 
(2) by striking ‘‘; and’’ and all that follows 
through ‘‘update of such report’’. 
SEC. 603. SBIR AWARDEE BUSINESS OPERATIONS. 
Section 9 of the Small Business Act is further 
amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(ee) SBIR AWARDEE BUSINESS OPERATIONS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible to receive an 
SBIR award, an awardee must have its primary 
business operations in the United States. 
‘‘(2) DEFINITION.—In this subsection, the term 
‘United States’ includes the District of Columbia, 
the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and any other 
territory or possession of the United States.’’. 
SEC. 604. PROHIBITION OF AWARDS TO ALIENS UNLAW-
FULLY PRESENT IN THE UNITED STATES. 
Section 9 of the Small Business Act is amended by 
adding at the end the following: 
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