Senate Bills - 111th Congress

S. 1233—The SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act of 2009

On June 10, 2009, Senator Mary Landrieu (D-LA) introduced S. 1233, the SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act of 2009. S. 1233 contains provisions that would affect the NIH programs. Included are the following provision that would:

• Reauthorize the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs through fiscal 2023.
• Increase the set-asides for the SBIR and STTR program, including for NIH. For the SBIR program, the allocation would increase to 3.5 percent, up from 2.5 percent, by increasing 0.1 percent each year from fiscal 2011 through 2020. [Contained within the manager's amendment and adopted by the Committee was an amendment that struck the exemption for HHS from the SBIR set-aside increase, a provision which was included in the introduced bill.]
• Increase the STTR allocation from 0.3 percent to 0.6 percent by increasing by 0.1 percent every two years from fiscal 2011 through 2015.
• Increase the size of SBIR and STTR awards to $150,000 for Phase I, up from $100,000. It would (1) increase the size of Phase II awards to $1 million, up from $750,000, (2) require the SBA to make triennial adjustments of the award sizes for inflation, and (3) prohibit an agency from issuing an award more than 50 percent above the award guidelines.
• The amendment would clarify that nothing shall prevent a Federal agency from supplementing an award under the SBIR or STTR programs with federal funds that are outside of the SBIR and STTR allocations.
• Permit HHS to apply for the authority to permit firms majority owned and controlled by multiple venture capital companies to compete for up to 18 percent of the agency's SBIR funds. It would permit other agencies to apply for authority to permit venture capital backed firms to compete for up to 8 percent of the SBIR funds.
• Encourage the creation of a pilot program, not to exceed 1 percent of SBIR funds at the National Institutes of Health, to support innovation in the development of cures and treatments.

COMMITTEE/SUBCOMMITTEE ACTION

June 18, 2009 -- The Senate Committee approved S. 1233.