Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship Ranking Member Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine) today hailed the Committee's approval of two crucial bills: the Entrepreneurial Development Act of 2009 (S. 1229), to reauthorize and bolster the Small Business Administration's (SBA) outreach and assistance programs and the SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act of 2009 (S. 1233), to reauthorize and improve the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Transfer Technology (STTR) programs, which promote the development and commercialization of hi-tech products.
"The SBA's entrepreneurial development programs are vital initiatives that assist entrepreneurs in starting and growing their businesses. This legislation takes significant steps toward ensuring American small businesses have access to the tools they need to continue to revitalize our economy," said Ranking Member Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine). "By reauthorizing the SBIR and STTR programs we can unleash the ground-breaking innovation potential of entrepreneurs whose ingenuity and creativity have long served as the engines of our economy."
The Entrepreneurial Development Act of 2009 (S. 1229) reauthorizes the SBA's business assistance programs, including the Small Business Development Center program (SBDC), SCORE, and the Women's Business Center program (WBC), through 2012. It also establishes a Veterans' Business Center program within the Office of Veterans Business Development (OVBD) to provide entrepreneurial training and counseling to veterans, service-disabled veterans, Reservists, their spouses and surviving spouses, and encourages coordination between participating veterans' business centers and SBA District Office personnel. Finally, the legislation provides financial assistance to create a pilot program to form Native American business centers that provide culturally-tailored business development training and assistance.
The SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act of 2009 (S. 1233) renews the SBIR and STTR programs for 14 years, and amends the eligibility requirements to allow businesses owned and controlled by multiple venture capital firms to compete for a certain percentage of SBIR projects while ensuring a fair playing field for independently owned and operated small businesses. Congress established the SBIR program in 1982, and the STTR program in 1992, to promote research and development. Federal agencies with an annual external R&D budget of over $100 million must allocate 2.5 percent of those funds to the SBIR program. Agencies with an annual external R&D budget of more than $1 billion must allocate an additional 0.3 percent to the STTR program. The SBA has government-wide oversight of the SBIR and STTR programs, while each department and agency makes awards and manages its individual programs.
"The SBA's entrepreneurial development programs are vital initiatives that assist entrepreneurs in starting and growing their businesses. This legislation takes significant steps toward ensuring American small businesses have access to the tools they need to continue to revitalize our economy," said Ranking Member Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine). "By reauthorizing the SBIR and STTR programs we can unleash the ground-breaking innovation potential of entrepreneurs whose ingenuity and creativity have long served as the engines of our economy."
The Entrepreneurial Development Act of 2009 (S. 1229) reauthorizes the SBA's business assistance programs, including the Small Business Development Center program (SBDC), SCORE, and the Women's Business Center program (WBC), through 2012. It also establishes a Veterans' Business Center program within the Office of Veterans Business Development (OVBD) to provide entrepreneurial training and counseling to veterans, service-disabled veterans, Reservists, their spouses and surviving spouses, and encourages coordination between participating veterans' business centers and SBA District Office personnel. Finally, the legislation provides financial assistance to create a pilot program to form Native American business centers that provide culturally-tailored business development training and assistance.
The SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act of 2009 (S. 1233) renews the SBIR and STTR programs for 14 years, and amends the eligibility requirements to allow businesses owned and controlled by multiple venture capital firms to compete for a certain percentage of SBIR projects while ensuring a fair playing field for independently owned and operated small businesses. Congress established the SBIR program in 1982, and the STTR program in 1992, to promote research and development. Federal agencies with an annual external R&D budget of over $100 million must allocate 2.5 percent of those funds to the SBIR program. Agencies with an annual external R&D budget of more than $1 billion must allocate an additional 0.3 percent to the STTR program. The SBA has government-wide oversight of the SBIR and STTR programs, while each department and agency makes awards and manages its individual programs.
