15 Usc 638

§ 637c

TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

(1) a copy of bid sets and specifications with
respect to such contract;
(2) the name and telephone number of an employee of such agency to answer questions
with respect to such contract; and
(3) adequate citations to each major Federal
law or agency rule with which such business
concern must comply in performing such contract.
(b) Exempt contracts
Subsection (a) of this section shall not apply
to any contract or subcontract under such contract which—
(1) will be performed entirely outside any
State, territory, or possession of the United
States, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; or
(2) is for services which are personal in nature.
(Pub. L. 95–507, title II, § 223, Oct. 24, 1978, 92
Stat. 1772.)
CODIFICATION
Section was not enacted as part of the Small Business Act which comprises this chapter.

§ 637c. Definitions
For purposes of this Act—
(1) the term ‘‘Administrator’’ means the Administrator of the Small Business Administration;
(2) the term ‘‘Federal agency’’ has the meaning given the term ‘‘agency’’ by section 551(1)
of title 5, but does not include the United
States Postal Service or the Government Accountability Office; and
(3) the term ‘‘Government procurement contract’’ means any contract for the procurement of any goods or services by any Federal
agency.
(Pub. L. 95–507, title II, § 224(a), Oct. 24, 1978, 92
Stat. 1772; Pub. L. 108–271, § 8(b), July 7, 2004, 118
Stat. 814.)
REFERENCES IN TEXT
This Act, referred to in text, means Pub. L. 95–507,
Oct. 24, 1978, 92 Stat. 1757. For complete classification
of this Act to the Code, see Tables.
CODIFICATION
Section was not enacted as part of the Small Business Act which comprises this chapter.
AMENDMENTS
2004—Par. (2). Pub. L. 108–271 substituted ‘‘Government Accountability Office’’ for ‘‘General Accounting
Office’’.

§ 638. Research and development
(a) Declaration of policy
Research and development are major factors
in the growth and progress of industry and the
national economy. The expense of carrying on
research and development programs is beyond
the means of many small-business concerns, and
such concerns are handicapped in obtaining the
benefits of research and development programs
conducted at Government expense. These smallbusiness concerns are thereby placed at a competitive disadvantage. This weakens the com-

Page 800

petitive free enterprise system and prevents the
orderly development of the national economy. It
is the policy of the Congress that assistance be
given to small-business concerns to enable them
to undertake and to obtain the benefits of research and development in order to maintain
and strengthen the competitive free enterprise
system and the national economy.
(b) Assistance to small-business concerns
It shall be the duty of the Administration, and
it is empowered—
(1) to assist small-business concerns to obtain Government contracts for research and
development;
(2) to assist small-business concerns to obtain the benefits of research and development
performed under Government contracts or at
Government expense;
(3) to provide technical assistance to smallbusiness concerns to accomplish the purposes
of this section; and 1
(4) to develop and maintain a source file and
an information program to assure each qualified and interested small business concern the
opportunity to participate in Federal agency
small business innovation research programs
and small business technology transfer programs;
(5) to coordinate with participating agencies
a schedule for release of SBIR and STTR solicitations, and to prepare a master release
schedule so as to maximize small businesses’
opportunities to respond to solicitations;
(6) to independently survey and monitor the
operation of SBIR and STTR programs within
participating Federal agencies;
(7) to report not less than annually to the
Committee on Small Business of the Senate,
and to the Committee on Science and the
Committee on Small Business of the House of
Representatives, on the SBIR and STTR programs of the Federal agencies and the Administration’s information and monitoring efforts
related to the SBIR and STTR programs, including—
(A) the data on output and outcomes collected pursuant to subsections (g)(8) and
(o)(9);
(B) the number of proposals received from,
and the number and total amount of awards
to, HUBZone small business concerns and
firms with venture capital, hedge fund, or
private equity firm investment (including
those majority-owned by multiple venture
capital operating companies, hedge funds, or
private equity firms) under each of the SBIR
and STTR programs;
(C) a description of the extent to which
each Federal agency is increasing outreach
and awards to firms owned and controlled by
women or by socially or economically disadvantaged individuals under each of the
SBIR and STTR programs;
(D) general information about the implementation of, and compliance with the allocation of funds required under, subsection
(dd) for firms owned in majority part by venture capital operating companies, hedge
1 So

in original. The word ‘‘and’’ probably should not appear.

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

funds, or private equity firms and participating in the SBIR program;
(E) a detailed description of appeals of
Phase III awards and notices of noncompliance with the SBIR Policy Directive and the
STTR Policy Directive filed by the Administrator with Federal agencies;
(F) an accounting of funds, initiatives, and
outcomes under the Commercialization
Readiness Program; and
(G) a description of the extent to which
Federal agencies are providing in a timely
manner information needed to maintain the
database described in subsection (k) of this
section;
(8) to provide for and fully implement the tenets of Executive Order No. 13329 (Encouraging
Innovation in Manufacturing); and
(9) to coordinate the implementation of electronic databases at each of the Federal agencies participating in the SBIR program or the
STTR program, including the technical ability
of the participating agencies to electronically
share data.
(c) Consultation and cooperation with Government agencies; studies and recommendations
The Administration is authorized to consult
and cooperate with all Government agencies and
to make studies and recommendations to such
agencies, and such agencies are authorized and
directed to cooperate with the Administration
in order to carry out and to accomplish the purposes of this section.
(d) Joint programs; approval of agreements;
withdrawal of approval; publication in Federal Register
(1) The Administrator is authorized to consult
with representatives of small-business concerns
with a view to assisting and encouraging such
firms to undertake joint programs for research
and development carried out through such corporate or other mechanism as may be most appropriate for the purpose. Such joint programs
may, among other things, include the following
purposes:
(A) to construct, acquire, or establish laboratories and other facilities for the conduct
of research;
(B) to undertake and utilize applied research;
(C) to collect research information related
to a particular industry and disseminate it to
participating members;
(D) to conduct applied research on a protected, proprietary, and contractual basis with
member or nonmember firms, Government
agencies, and others;
(E) to prosecute applications for patents and
render patent services for participating members; and
(F) to negotiate and grant licenses under
patents held under the joint program, and to
establish corporations designed to exploit particular patents obtained by it.
(2) The Administrator may, after consultation
with the Attorney General and the Chairman of
the Federal Trade Commission, and with the
prior written approval of the Attorney General,
approve any agreement between small-business

§ 638

firms providing for a joint program of research
and development, if the Administrator finds
that the joint program proposed will maintain
and strengthen the free enterprise system and
the economy of the Nation. The Administrator
or the Attorney General may at any time withdraw his approval of the agreement and the
joint program of research and development covered thereby, if he finds that the agreement or
the joint program carried on under it is no
longer in the best interests of the competitive
free enterprise system and the economy of the
Nation. A copy of the statement of any such
finding and approval intended to be within the
coverage of this subsection, and a copy of any
modification or withdrawal of approval, shall be
published in the Federal Register. The authority
conferred by this subsection on the Administrator shall not be delegated by him.
(3) No act or omission to act pursuant to and
within the scope of any joint program for research and development, under an agreement approved by the Administrator under this subsection, shall be construed to be within the prohibitions of the antitrust laws or the Federal
Trade Commission Act [15 U.S.C. 41 et seq.].
Upon publication in the Federal Register of the
notice of withdrawal of his approval of the
agreement granted under this subsection, either
by the Administrator or by the Attorney General, the provisions of this subsection shall not
apply to any subsequent act or omission to act
by reason of such agreement or approval.
(e) Definitions
For the purpose of this section—
(1) the term ‘‘extramural budget’’ means the
sum of the total obligations minus amounts
obligated for such activities by employees of
the agency in or through Government-owned,
Government-operated facilities, except that
for the Department of Energy it shall not include amounts obligated for atomic energy defense programs solely for weapons activities or
for naval reactor programs, and except that
for the Agency for International Development
it shall not include amounts obligated solely
for general institutional support of international research centers or for grants to foreign countries;
(2) the term ‘‘Federal agency’’ means an executive agency as defined in section 105 of title
5 or a military department as defined in section 102 of such title, except that it does not
include any agency within the Intelligence
Community (as the term is defined in section
3.4(f) of Executive Order 12333 or its successor
orders);
(3) the term ‘‘funding agreement’’ means any
contract, grant, or cooperative agreement entered into between any Federal agency and
any small business for the performance of
experimental, developmental, or research
work funded in whole or in part by the Federal
Government;
(4) the term ‘‘Small Business Innovation Research Program’’ or ‘‘SBIR’’ means a program
under which a portion of a Federal agency’s
research or research and development effort is
reserved for award to small business concerns
through a uniform process having—

§ 638

TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

(A) a first phase for determining, insofar
as possible, the scientific and technical
merit and feasibility of ideas that appear to
have commercial potential, as described in
subparagraph (B), submitted pursuant to
SBIR program solicitations;
(B) a second phase, which shall not include
any invitation, pre-screening, or pre-selection process for eligibility for Phase II, that
will further develop proposals which meet
particular program needs, in which awards
shall be made based on the scientific and
technical merit and feasibility of the proposals, as evidenced by the first phase, considering, among other things, the proposal’s commercial potential, as evidenced by—
(i) the small business concern’s record of
successfully commercializing SBIR or
other research;
(ii) the existence of second phase funding
commitments from private sector or nonSBIR funding sources;
(iii) the existence of third phase, followon commitments for the subject of the research; and
(iv) the presence of other indicators of
the commercial potential of the idea; and
(C) where appropriate, a third phase for
work that derives from, extends, or completes efforts made under prior funding
agreements under the SBIR program—
(i) in which commercial applications of
SBIR-funded research or research and development are funded by non-Federal
sources of capital or, for products or services intended for use by the Federal Government, by follow-on non-SBIR Federal
funding awards; or
(ii) for which awards from non-SBIR
Federal funding sources are used for the
continuation of research or research and
development that has been competitively
selected using peer review or merit-based
selection procedures;
(5) the term ‘‘research’’ or ‘‘research and development’’ means any activity which is (A) a
systematic, intensive study directed toward
greater knowledge or understanding of the
subject studied; (B) a systematic study directed specifically toward applying new
knowledge to meet a recognized need; or (C) a
systematic application of knowledge toward
the production of useful materials, devices,
and systems or methods, including design, development, and improvement of prototypes
and new processes to meet specific requirements;
(6) the term ‘‘Small Business Technology
Transfer Program’’ or ‘‘STTR’’ means a program under which a portion of a Federal agency’s extramural research or research and development effort is reserved for award to small
business concerns for cooperative research and
development through a uniform process having—
(A) a first phase, to determine, to the extent possible, the scientific, technical, and
commercial merit and feasibility of ideas
submitted pursuant to STTR program solicitations;

Page 802

(B) a second phase, which shall not include
any invitation, pre-screening, or pre-selection process for eligibility for Phase II, that
will further develop proposals that meet particular program needs, in which awards shall
be made based on the scientific, technical,
and commercial merit and feasibility of the
idea, as evidenced by the first phase and by
other relevant information; and
(C) where appropriate, a third phase for
work that derives from, extends, or completes efforts made under prior funding
agreements under the STTR program—
(i) in which commercial applications of
STTR-funded research or research and development are funded by non-Federal
sources of capital or, for products or services intended for use by the Federal Government, by follow-on non-STTR Federal
funding awards; and
(ii) for which awards from non-STTR
Federal funding sources are used for the
continuation of research or research and
development that has been competitively
selected using peer review or scientific review criteria;
(7) the term ‘‘cooperative research and development’’ means research or research and
development conducted jointly by a small
business concern and a research institution in
which not less than 40 percent of the work is
performed by the small business concern, and
not less than 30 percent of the work is performed by the research institution;
(8) the term ‘‘research institution’’ means a
nonprofit institution, as defined in section
3703(5) 2 of this title, and includes federally
funded research and development centers, as
identified by the National Scientific Foundation in accordance with the governmentwide
Federal Acquisition Regulation issued in accordance with section 1303(a)(1) of title 41 (or
any successor regulation thereto);
(9) the term ‘‘commercial applications’’ shall
not be construed to exclude testing and evaluation of products, services, or technologies
for use in technical or weapons systems, and
further, awards for testing and evaluation of
products, services, or technologies for use in
technical or weapons systems may be made in
either Phase II or Phase III of the Small Business Innovation Research Program and of the
Small Business Technology Transfer Program,
as defined in this subsection;
(10) the term ‘‘commercialization’’ means—
(A) the process of developing products,
processes, technologies, or services; and
(B) the production and delivery (whether
by the originating party or by others) of
products, processes, technologies, or services
for sale to or use by the Federal Government
or commercial markets;
(11) the term ‘‘Phase I’’ means—
(A) with respect to the SBIR program, the
first phase described in paragraph (4)(A); and
(B) with respect to the STTR program, the
first phase described in paragraph (6)(A);
(12) the term ‘‘Phase II’’ means—
2 See

References in Text note below.

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

(A) with respect to the SBIR program, the
second phase described in paragraph (4)(B);
and
(B) with respect to the STTR program, the
second phase described in paragraph (6)(B);
and
(13) the term ‘‘Phase III’’ means—
(A) with respect to the SBIR program, the
third phase described in paragraph (4)(C);
and
(B) with respect to the STTR program, the
third phase described in paragraph (6)(C).
(f) Federal agency expenditures for SBIR program
(1) Required expenditure amounts
Except as provided in paragraph (2)(B), each
Federal agency which has an extramural budget for research or research and development in
excess of $100,000,000 for fiscal year 1992, or any
fiscal year thereafter, shall expend with small
business concerns—
(A) not less than 1.5 percent of such budget
in each of fiscal years 1993 and 1994;
(B) not less than 2.0 percent of such budget
in each of fiscal years 1995 and 1996;
(C) not less than 2.5 percent of such budget
in each of fiscal years 1997 through 2011;
(D) not less than 2.6 percent of such budget
in fiscal year 2012;
(E) not less than 2.7 percent of such budget
in fiscal year 2013;
(F) not less than 2.8 percent of such budget
in fiscal year 2014;
(G) not less than 2.9 percent of such budget
in fiscal year 2015;
(H) not less than 3.0 percent of such budget
in fiscal year 2016; and
(I) not less than 3.2 percent of such budget
in fiscal year 2017 and each fiscal year thereafter,
specifically in connection with SBIR programs
which meet the requirements of this section,
policy directives, and regulations issued under
this section.
(2) Limitations
A Federal agency shall not make available
for the purpose of meeting the requirements of
paragraph (1) an amount of its extramural
budget for basic research which exceeds the
percentages specified in paragraph (1).
(3) Exclusion of certain funding agreements
Funding agreements with small business
concerns for research or research and development which result from competitive or single
source selections other than an SBIR program
shall not be considered to meet any portion of
the percentage requirements of paragraph (1).
(4) Rule of construction
Nothing in this subsection may be construed
to prohibit a Federal agency from expending
with small business concerns an amount of the
extramural budget for research or research
and development of the agency that exceeds
the amount required under paragraph (1).
(g) Administration of small business innovation
research programs by Federal agencies required to establish such programs
Each Federal agency required by subsection (f)
of this section to establish a small business in-

§ 638

novation research program shall, in accordance
with this chapter and regulations issued hereunder—
(1) unilaterally determine categories of
projects to be in its SBIR program;
(2) issue small business innovation research
solicitations in accordance with a schedule determined cooperatively with the Small Business Administration;
(3) unilaterally determine research topics
within the agency’s SBIR solicitations, giving
special consideration to broad research topics
and to topics that further 1 or more critical
technologies, as identified by—
(A) the National Critical Technologies
Panel (or its successor) in the 1991 report required under section 6683 2 of title 42, and in
subsequent reports issued under that authority; or
(B) the Secretary of Defense, in the 1992 report issued in accordance with section 2522 2
of title 10, and in subsequent reports issued
under that authority;
(4)(A) unilaterally receive and evaluate proposals resulting from SBIR proposals; and
(B) make a final decision on each proposal
submitted under the SBIR program—
(i) not later than 1 year after the date on
which the applicable solicitation closes, if
with respect to the National Institutes of
Health or the National Science Foundation,
or 90 days after the date on which the applicable solicitation closes, if with respect to
any other participating agency; or
(ii) if the Administrator authorizes an extension with respect to a solicitation, not
later than 90 days after the date that would
otherwise be applicable to the agency under
clause (i);
(5) subject to subsection (l) of this section,
unilaterally select awardees for its SBIR funding agreements and inform each awardee
under such an agreement, to the extent possible, of the expenses of the awardee that will
be allowable under the funding agreement;
(6) administer its own SBIR funding agreements (or delegate such administration to another agency);
(7) make payments to recipients of SBIR
funding agreements on the basis of progress
toward or completion of the funding agreement requirements and, in all cases, make
payment to recipients under such agreements
in full, subject to audit, on or before the last
day of the 12-month period beginning on the
date of completion of such requirements;
(8) collect annually, and maintain in a common format in accordance with the simplified
reporting requirements under subsection (v),
such information from awardees as is necessary to assess the SBIR program, including
information necessary to maintain the database described in subsection (k), including—
(A) whether an awardee—
(i) has venture capital, hedge fund, or
private equity firm investment or is majority-owned by multiple venture capital
operating companies, hedge funds, or private equity firms and, if so—
(I) the amount of venture capital,
hedge fund, or private equity firm in-

§ 638

TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE
vestment that the awardee has received
as of the date of the award; and
(II) the amount of additional capital
that the awardee has invested in the
SBIR technology;
(ii) has an investor that—
(I) is an individual who is not a citizen
of the United States or a lawful permanent resident of the United States and, if
so, the name of any such individual; or
(II) is a person that is not an individual and is not organized under the laws
of a State or the United States and, if so,
the name of any such person;
(iii) is owned by a woman or has a
woman as a principal investigator;
(iv) is owned by a socially or economically disadvantaged individual or has a socially or economically disadvantaged individual as a principal investigator;
(v) is a faculty member or a student of
an institution of higher education, as that
term is defined in section 1001 of title 20;
or
(vi) is located in a State described in
subsection (u)(3);

(B) a justification statement from the
agency, if an awardee receives an award in
an amount that is more than the award
guidelines under this section; and
(C) data with respect to the Federal and
State Technology Partnership Program
(FAST Program);
(9) make an annual report on the SBIR program to the Small Business Administration
and the Office of Science and Technology Policy;
(10) include, as part of its annual performance plan as required by subsections (a) and
(b) of section 1115 of title 31, a section on its
SBIR program, and shall submit such section
to the Committee on Small Business of the
Senate, and the Committee on Science and the
Committee on Small Business of the House of
Representatives;
(11) provide for and fully implement the tenets of Executive Order No. 13329 (Encouraging
Innovation in Manufacturing); and
(12) provide timely notice to the Administrator of any case or controversy before any
Federal judicial or administrative tribunal
concerning the SBIR program of the Federal
agency.
(h) Establishment of goals for funding agreements for research or research and development to small business concerns by agencies
having budgets for research and development
In addition to the requirements of subsection
(f) of this section, each Federal agency which
has a budget for research or research and development in excess of $20,000,000 for any fiscal year
beginning with fiscal year 1983 or subsequent fiscal year shall establish goals specifically for
funding agreements for research or research and
development to small business concerns, and no
goal established under this subsection shall be
less than the percentage of the agency’s research or research and development budget ex-

Page 804

pended under funding agreements with small
business concerns in the immediately preceding
fiscal year.
(i) Annual reporting
(1) In general
Each Federal agency required by this section to have an SBIR program or to establish
goals shall report annually to the Small Business Administration the number of awards (including awards under subsection (y)) pursuant
to grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements over $10,000 in amount and the dollar
value of all such awards, identifying SBIR
awards and comparing the number and amount
of such awards with awards to other than
small business concerns.
(2) Calculation of extramural budget
(A) Methodology
Not later than 4 months after the date of
the enactment of each appropriations Act
for a Federal agency required by this section
to have an SBIR program, the Federal agency shall submit to the Administrator a report, which shall include a description of the
methodology used for calculating the
amount of the extramural budget of that
Federal agency.
(B) Administrator’s analysis
The Administrator shall include an analysis of the methodology received from each
Federal agency referred to in subparagraph
(A) in the report required by subsection
(b)(7) of this section.
(j) Small Business Administration policy directives for the general conduct of small business innovation research programs
(1) Policy directives
The Small Business Administration, after
consultation with the Administrator of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy, the Director of the Office of Science and Technology
Policy, and the Intergovernmental Affairs Division of the Office of Management and Budget, shall, within one hundred and twenty days
of July 22, 1982, issue policy directives for the
general conduct of the SBIR programs within
the Federal Government, including providing
for—
(A) simplified, standardized, and timely
SBIR solicitations;
(B) a simplified, standardized funding process which provides for (i) the timely receipt
and review of proposals; (ii) outside peer review for at least Phase II proposals, if appropriate; (iii) protection of proprietary information provided in proposals; (iv) selection
of awardees; (v) retention of rights in data
generated in the performance of the contract
by the small business concern; (vi) transfer
of title to property provided by the agency
to the small business concern if such a
transfer would be more cost effective than
recovery of the property by the agency; (vii)
cost sharing; and (viii) cost principles and
payment schedules;
(C) exemptions from the regulations under
paragraph (2) 3 if national security or intel3 So

in original. Probably should be ‘‘subparagraph (B)’’.

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

ligence functions clearly would be jeopardized;
(D) minimizing regulatory burden associated with participation in the SBIR program
for the small business concern which will
stimulate the cost-effective conduct of Federal research and development and the likelihood of commercialization of the results of
research and development conducted under
the SBIR program;
(E) simplified, standardized, and timely
annual report on the SBIR program to the
Small Business Administration and the Office of Science and Technology Policy;
(F) standardized and orderly withdrawal
from program participation by an agency
having a SBIR program; at the discretion of
the Administration, such directives may require a phased withdrawal over a period of
time sufficient in duration to minimize any
adverse impact on small business concerns;
and
(G) the voluntary participation in a SBIR
program by a Federal agency not required to
establish such a program pursuant to subsection (f) of this section.
(2) Modifications
Not later than 90 days after October 28, 1992,
the Administrator shall modify the policy directives issued pursuant to this subsection to
provide for—
(A) retention by a small business concern
of the rights to data generated by the concern in the performance of an SBIR award
for a period of not less than 4 years;
(B) continued use by a small business concern participating in Phase III of the SBIR
program, as a directed bailment, of any
property transferred by a Federal agency to
the small business concern in Phase II of an
SBIR program for a period of not less than 2
years, beginning on the initial date of the
concern’s participation in Phase III of such
program;
(C) procedures to ensure, to the extent
practicable, that an agency which intends to
pursue research, development, or production
of a technology developed by a small business concern under an SBIR program enters
into follow-on, non-SBIR funding agreements with the small business concern for
such research, development, or production;
(D) an increase to $150,000 in the amount of
funds which an agency may award in Phase
I of an SBIR program, and to $1,000,000 in
Phase II of an SBIR program, and an adjustment of such amounts every year for inflation;
(E) a process for notifying the participating SBIR agencies and potential SBIR participants of the 1991, 1992, and the current
critical technologies, as identified—
(i) by the National Critical Technologies
Panel (or its successor), in accordance
with section 6683 2 of title 42; or
(ii) by the Secretary of Defense, in accordance with section 2522 2 of title 10;
(F) enhanced outreach efforts to increase
the participation of socially and economically disadvantaged small business concerns,

§ 638

as defined in section 637(a)(4) of this title,
and the participation of small businesses
that are 51 percent owned and controlled by
women in technological innovation and in
SBIR programs, including Phase III of such
programs, and the collection of data to document such participation;
(G) technical and programmatic guidance
to encourage agencies to develop gap-funding programs to address the delay between
an award for Phase I of an SBIR program
and the application for and extension of an
award for Phase II of such program;
(H) procedures to ensure that a small business concern that submits a proposal for a
funding agreement for Phase I of an SBIR
program and that has received more than 15
Phase II SBIR awards during the preceding 5
fiscal years is able to demonstrate the extent to which it was able to secure Phase III
funding to develop concepts resulting from
previous Phase II SBIR awards; and
(I) procedures to ensure that agencies participating in the SBIR program retain the
information submitted under subparagraph
(H) at least until the Government Accountability Office submits the report required
under section 105 of the Small Business Research and Development Enhancement Act
of 1992.
(3) Additional modifications
Not later than 120 days after December 21,
2000, the Administrator shall modify the policy directives issued pursuant to this subsection—
(A) to clarify that the rights provided for
under paragraph (2)(A) apply to all Federal
funding awards under this section, including
Phase I, Phase II, and Phase III;
(B) to provide for the requirement of a succinct commercialization plan with each application for a Phase II award that is moving
toward commercialization;
(C) to require agencies to report to the Administration, not less frequently than annually, all instances in which an agency pursued research, development, or production of
a technology developed by a small business
concern using an award made under the
SBIR program of that agency, and determined that it was not practicable to enter
into a follow-on non-SBIR program funding
agreement with the small business concern,
which report shall include, at a minimum—
(i) the reasons why the follow-on funding
agreement with the small business concern
was not practicable;
(ii) the identity of the entity with which
the agency contracted to perform the research, development, or production; and
(iii) a description of the type of funding
agreement under which the research, development, or production was obtained;
and
(D) to implement subsection (v) of this section, including establishing standardized
procedures for the provision of information
pursuant to subsection (k)(3) of this section.

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

(k) Database
(1) Public database
Not later than 180 days after December 21,
2000, the Administrator shall develop, maintain, and make available to the public a
searchable, up-to-date, electronic database
that includes—
(A) the name, size, location, and an identifying number assigned by the Administrator,
of each small business concern that has received a Phase I or Phase II SBIR or STTR
award from a Federal agency;
(B) a description of each Phase I or Phase
II SBIR or STTR award received by that
small business concern, including—
(i) an abstract of the project funded by
the award, excluding any proprietary information so identified by the small business concern;
(ii) the Federal agency making the
award; and
(iii) the date and amount of the award;
(C) an identification of any business concern or subsidiary established for the commercial application of a product or service
for which an SBIR or STTR award is made;
(D) information regarding mentors and
Mentoring Networks, as required by section
657e(d) of this title;
(E) with respect to assistance under the
STTR program only—
(i) whether the small business concern or
the research institution initiated their
collaboration on each assisted STTR
project;
(ii) whether the small business concern
or the research institution originated any
technology relating to the assisted STTR
project;
(iii) the length of time it took to negotiate any licensing agreement between the
small business concern and the research
institution under each assisted STTR
project; and
(iv) how the proceeds from commercialization, marketing, or sale of technology resulting from each assisted STTR
project were allocated (by percentage) between the small business concern and the
research institution; and
(F) for each small business concern that
has received a Phase I or Phase II SBIR or
STTR award from a Federal agency, whether
the small business concern—
(i) has venture capital, hedge fund, or
private equity firm investment and, if so,
whether the small business concern is registered as majority-owned by multiple venture capital operating companies, hedge
funds, or private equity firms as required
under subsection (dd)(3);
(ii) is owned by a woman or has a woman
as a principal investigator;
(iii) is owned by a socially or economically disadvantaged individual or has a socially or economically disadvantaged individual as a principal investigator;
(iv) is owned by a faculty member or a
student of an institution of higher edu-

Page 806

cation, as that term is defined in section
1001 of title 20; or
(v) received assistance under the Federal
and State Technology Partnership Program (FAST Program).
(2) Government database
Not later than 90 days after December 31,
2011, the Administrator, in consultation with
Federal agencies required to have an SBIR
program pursuant to subsection (f)(1) of this
section or an STTR program pursuant to subsection (n)(1) of this section, shall develop and
maintain a database to be used exclusively for
SBIR and STTR program evaluation that—
(A) contains for each small business concern that applies for, submits a proposal for,
or receives an award under Phase I or Phase
II of the SBIR program or the STTR program—
(i) the name, size, and location of, and
the identifying number assigned by the
Administration to, the small business concern;
(ii) an abstract of the applicable project;
(iii) the specific aims of the project;
(iv) the number of employees of the
small business concern;
(v) the names and titles of the key individuals that will carry out the project, the
position each key individual holds in the
small business concern, and contact information for each key individual;
(vi) the percentage of effort each individual described in clause (v) will contribute
to the project;
(vii) whether the small business concern
is majority-owned by multiple venture
capital operating companies, hedge funds,
or private equity firms; and
(viii) the Federal agency to which the
application is made and contact information for the person or office within the
Federal agency that is responsible for reviewing applications and making awards
under the SBIR program or the STTR program;
(B) contains for each Phase II award made
by a Federal agency—
(i) information collected in accordance
with paragraph (3) on revenue from the
sale of new products or services resulting
from the research conducted under the
award;
(ii) information collected in accordance
with paragraph (3) on additional investment from any source, other than Phase I
or Phase II SBIR or STTR awards, to further the research and development conducted under the award; and
(iii) any other information received in
connection with the award that the Administrator, in conjunction with the SBIR
and STTR program managers of Federal
agencies, considers relevant and appropriate;
(C) includes any narrative information
that a small business concern receiving a
Phase II award voluntarily submits to further describe the outputs and outcomes of
its awards;

Page 807

TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

(D) includes, for each awardee—
(i) the name, size, and location of, and
any identifying number assigned by the
Administrator to, the awardee;
(ii) whether the awardee has venture
capital, hedge fund, or private equity firm
investment and, if so—
(I) the amount of venture capital,
hedge fund, or private equity firm investment as of the date of the award;
(II) the percentage of ownership of the
awardee held by a venture capital operating company, hedge fund, or private
equity firm, including whether the
awardee is majority-owned by multiple
venture capital operating companies,
hedge funds, or private equity firms; and
(III) the amount of additional capital
that the awardee has invested in the
SBIR or STTR technology, which information shall be collected on an annual
basis;
(iii) the names and locations of any affiliates of the awardee;
(iv) the number of employees of the
awardee;
(v) the number of employees of the affiliates of the awardee; and
(vi) the names of, and the percentage of
ownership of the awardee held by—
(I) any individual who is not a citizen
of the United States or a lawful permanent resident of the United States; or
(II) any person that is not an individual and is not organized under the laws
of a State or the United States;
(E) includes any other data collected by or
available to any Federal agency that such
agency considers may be useful for SBIR or
STTR program evaluation;
(F) is available for use solely for program
evaluation purposes by the Federal Government or, in accordance with policy directives issued by the Administration, by other
authorized persons who are subject to a use
and nondisclosure agreement with the Federal Government covering the use of the
database; and
(G) includes a timely and accurate list of
any individual or small business concern
that has participated in the SBIR program
or STTR program that has been—
(i) convicted of a fraud-related crime involving funding received under the SBIR
program or STTR program; or
(ii) found civilly liable for a fraud-related violation involving funding received
under the SBIR program or STTR program.
(3) Updating information for database
(A) In general
A small business concern applying for a
Phase II award under this section shall be
required to update information in the database established under this subsection for
any prior Phase II award received by that
small business concern. In complying with
this paragraph, a small business concern
may apportion sales or additional invest-

§ 638

ment information relating to more than one
Phase II award among those awards, if it
notes the apportionment for each award.
(B) Annual updates upon termination
A small business concern receiving a
Phase II award under this section shall—
(i) update information in the database
concerning that award at the termination
of the award period; and
(ii) be requested to voluntarily update
such information annually thereafter for a
period of 5 years.
(C) Government database
Not later than 60 days after the date established by a Federal agency for submitting
applications or proposals for a Phase I or
Phase II award under the SBIR program or
STTR program, the head of the Federal
agency shall submit to the Administrator
the data required under paragraph (2) with
respect to each small business concern that
applies or submits a proposal for the Phase
I or Phase II award.
(4) Protection of information
Information provided under paragraph (2)
shall be considered privileged and confidential
and not subject to disclosure pursuant to section 552 of title 5.
(5) Rule of construction
Inclusion of information in the database
under this subsection shall not be considered
to be publication for purposes of subsection (a)
or (b) of section 102 of title 35.
(l) Reporting of awards made from single proposal, to multiple award winners, or to critical technology topics
(1) Single proposal
If a Federal agency required to establish an
SBIR program under subsection (f) of this section makes an award with respect to an SBIR
solicitation topic or subtopic for which the
agency received only 1 proposal, the agency
shall provide written justification for making
the award in its next quarterly report to the
Administration and in the agency’s next annual report required under subsection (g)(8) of
this section.
(2) Multiple awards
An agency referred to in paragraph (1) shall
include in its next annual report required
under subsection (g)(8) of this section an accounting of the awards the agency has made
for Phase I of an SBIR program during the reporting period to entities that have received
more than 15 awards for Phase II of an SBIR
program during the preceding 5 fiscal years.
(3) Critical technology awards
An agency referred to in paragraph (1) shall
include in its next annual report required
under subsection (g)(8) of this section, an accounting of the number of awards it has made
to critical technology topics, as defined in
subsection (g)(3) of this section, including an
identification of the specific critical technologies topics, and the percentage by number
and dollar amount of the agency’s total SBIR
awards to such critical technology topics.

§ 638

TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

(m) Termination
The authorization to carry out the Small
Business Innovation Research Program established under this section shall terminate on September 30, 2017.
(n) Required expenditures for STTR by Federal
agencies
(1) Required expenditure amounts
(A) In general
With respect to each fiscal year through
fiscal year 2017, each Federal agency that
has an extramural budget for research, or research and development, in excess of
$1,000,000,000 for that fiscal year, shall expend with small business concerns not less
than the percentage of that extramural
budget specified in subparagraph (B), specifically in connection with STTR programs
that meet the requirements of this section
and any policy directives and regulations issued under this section.
(B) Expenditure amounts
The percentage of the extramural budget
required to be expended by an agency in accordance with subparagraph (A) shall be—
(i) 0.15 percent for each fiscal year
through fiscal year 2003;
(ii) 0.3 percent for each of fiscal years
2004 through 2011;
(iii) 0.35 percent for each of fiscal years
2012 and 2013;
(iv) 0.40 percent for each of fiscal years
2014 and 2015; and
(v) 0.45 percent for fiscal year 2016 and
each fiscal year thereafter.
(2) Limitations
A Federal agency shall not—
(A) use any of its STTR budget established
pursuant to paragraph (1) for the purpose of
funding administrative costs of the program,
including costs associated with salaries and
expenses, or, in the case of a small business
concern or a research institution, costs associated with salaries, expenses, and administrative overhead (other than those direct or
indirect costs allowable under guidelines of
the Office of Management and Budget and
the governmentwide Federal Acquisition
Regulation issued in accordance with section 1303(a)(1) of title 41); or
(B) make available for the purpose of
meeting the requirements of paragraph (1)
an amount of its extramural budget for basic
research which exceeds the percentage specified in paragraph (1).
(3) Exclusion of certain funding agreements
Funding agreements with small business
concerns for research or research and development which result from competitive or single
source selections other than an STTR program
shall not be considered to meet any portion of
the percentage requirements of paragraph (1).
(o) Federal agency STTR authority
Each Federal agency required to establish an
STTR program in accordance with subsection
(n) of this section and regulations issued under
this chapter, shall—

Page 808

(1) unilaterally determine categories of
projects to be included in its STTR program;
(2) issue STTR solicitations in accordance
with a schedule determined cooperatively with
the Administration;
(3) unilaterally determine research topics
within the agency’s STTR solicitations, giving
special consideration to broad research topics
and to topics that further 1 or more critical
technologies, as identified—
(A) by the National Critical Technologies
Panel (or its successor) in reports required
under section 6683 2 of title 42; or
(B) by the Secretary of Defense, in accordance with section 2522 2 of title 10;
(4)(A) unilaterally receive and evaluate proposals resulting from STTR solicitations; and
(B) make a final decision on each proposal
submitted under the STTR program—
(i) not later than 1 year after the date on
which the applicable solicitation closes, if
with respect to the National Institutes of
Health or the National Science Foundation,
or 90 days after the date on which the applicable solicitation closes, if with respect to
any other participating agency; or
(ii) if the Administrator authorizes an extension for a solicitation, not later than 90
days after the date that would be applicable
to the agency under clause (i);
(5) unilaterally select awardees for its STTR
funding agreements and inform each awardee
under such an agreement, to the extent possible, of the expenses of the awardee that will
be allowable under the funding agreement;
(6) administer its own STTR funding agreements (or delegate such administration to another agency);
(7) make payments to recipients of STTR
funding agreements on the basis of progress
toward or completion of the funding agreement requirements and, in all cases, make
payment to recipients under such agreements
in full, subject to audit, on or before the last
day of the 12-month period beginning on the
date of the completion of such requirements;
(8) include, as part of its annual performance
plan as required by subsections (a) and (b) of
section 1115 of title 31, a section on its STTR
program, and shall submit such section to the
Committee on Small Business of the Senate,
and the Committee on Science and the Committee on Small Business of the House of Representatives;
(9) collect annually, and maintain in a common format in accordance with the simplified
reporting requirements under subsection (v),
such information from applicants and awardees as is necessary to assess the STTR program outputs and outcomes, including information necessary to maintain the database described in subsection (k), including—
(A) whether an applicant or awardee—
(i) has venture capital, hedge fund, or
private equity firm investment or is majority-owned by multiple venture capital
operating companies, hedge funds, or private equity firms and, if so—
(I) the amount of venture capital,
hedge fund, or private equity firm in-

Page 809

TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

vestment that the applicant or awardee
has received as of the date of the application or award, as applicable; and
(II) the amount of additional capital
that the applicant or awardee has invested in the STTR technology;
(ii) has an investor that—
(I) is an individual who is not a citizen
of the United States or a lawful permanent resident of the United States and, if
so, the name of any such individual; or
(II) is a person that is not an individual and is not organized under the laws
of a State or the United States and, if so,
the name of any such person;
(iii) is owned by a woman or has a
woman as a principal investigator;
(iv) is owned by a socially or economically disadvantaged individual or has a socially or economically disadvantaged individual as a principal investigator;
(v) is a faculty member or a student of
an institution of higher education, as that
term is defined in section 1001 of title 20;
or
(vi) is located in a State in which the
total value of contracts awarded to small
business concerns under all STTR programs is less than the total value of contracts awarded to small business concerns
in a majority of other States, as determined by the Administrator in biennial
fiscal years, beginning with fiscal year
2008, based on the most recent statistics
compiled by the Administrator;
(B) if an awardee receives an award in an
amount that is more than the award guidelines under this section, a statement from
the agency that justifies the award amount;
and
(C) data with respect to the Federal and
State Technology Partnership Program
(FAST Program);
(10) submit an annual report on the STTR
program to the Administration and the Office
of Science and Technology Policy;
(11) adopt the agreement developed by the
Administrator under subsection (w) of this
section as the agency’s model agreement for
allocating between small business concerns
and research institutions intellectual property
rights and rights, if any, to carry out followon research, development, or commercialization;
(12) develop, in consultation with the Office
of Federal Procurement Policy and the Office
of Government Ethics, procedures to ensure
that federally funded research and development centers (as defined in subsection (e)(8) of
this section) that participate in STTR agreements—
(A) are free from organizational conflicts
of interests relative to the STTR program;
(B) do not use privileged information
gained through work performed for an STTR
agency or private access to STTR agency
personnel in the development of an STTR
proposal; and
(C) use outside peer review, as appropriate;

§ 638

(13) not later than July 31, 1993, develop procedures for assessing the commercial merit
and feasibility of STTR proposals, as evidenced by—
(A) the small business concern’s record of
successfully commercializing STTR or other
research;
(B) the existence of Phase II funding commitments from private sector or non-STTR
funding sources;
(C) the existence of Phase III follow-on
commitments for the subject of the research; and
(D) the presence of other indicators of the
commercial potential of the idea;
(14) implement an outreach program to research institutions and small business concerns for the purpose of enhancing its STTR
program, in conjunction with any such outreach done for purposes of the SBIR program;
(15) provide for and fully implement the tenets of Executive Order No. 13329 (Encouraging
Innovation in Manufacturing); and
(16) provide timely notice to the Administrator of any case or controversy before any
Federal judicial or administrative tribunal
concerning the STTR program of the Federal
agency.
(p) STTR policy directive
(1) Issuance
The Administrator shall issue a policy directive for the general conduct of the STTR programs within the Federal Government. Such
policy directive shall be issued after consultation with—
(A) the heads of each of the Federal agencies required by subsection (n) of this section to establish an STTR program;
(B) the Under Secretary of Commerce for
Intellectual Property and Director of the
United States Patent and Trademark Office;
and
(C) the Director of the Office of Federal
Procurement Policy.
(2) Contents
The policy directive required by paragraph
(1) shall provide for—
(A) simplified, standardized, and timely
STTR solicitations;
(B) a simplified, standardized funding process that provides for—
(i) the timely receipt and review of proposals;
(ii) outside peer review, if appropriate;
(iii) protection of proprietary information provided in proposals;
(iv) selection of awardees;
(v) retention by a small business concern
of the rights to data generated by the concern in the performance of an STTR award
for a period of not less than 4 years;
(vi) continued use by a small business
concern, as a directed bailment, of any
property transferred by a Federal agency
to the small business concern in Phase II
of the STTR program for a period of not
less than 2 years, beginning on the initial
date of the concern’s participation in
Phase III of such program;

§ 638

TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE
(vii) cost sharing;
(viii) cost principles and payment schedules; and
(ix) 1-year awards for Phase I of an STTR
program, generally not to exceed $150,000,
and 2-year awards for Phase II of an STTR
program, generally not to exceed $1,000,000,
(each of which the Administrator shall adjust for inflation annually) greater or lesser amounts to be awarded at the discretion
of the awarding agency, and shorter or
longer periods of time to be approved at
the discretion of the awarding agency
where appropriate for a particular project;

(C) minimizing regulatory burdens associated with participation in STTR programs;
(D) guidelines for a model agreement, to be
used by all agencies, for allocating between
small business concerns and research institutions intellectual property rights and
rights, if any, to carry out follow-on research, development, or commercialization;
(E) procedures to ensure that—
(i) a recipient of an STTR award is a
small business concern, as defined in section 632 of this title and the regulations
promulgated thereunder; and
(ii) such small business concern exercises
management and control of the performance of the STTR funding agreement pursuant to a business plan providing for the
commercialization of the technology that
is the subject matter of the award; and
(F) procedures to ensure, to the extent
practicable, that an agency which intends to
pursue research, development, or production
of a technology developed by a small business concern under an STTR program enters
into follow-on, non-STTR funding agreements with the small business concern for
such research, development, or production.
(3) Modifications
Not later than 120 days after October 15, 2001,
the Administrator shall modify the policy directive issued pursuant to this subsection to
clarify that the rights provided for under paragraph (2)(B)(v) apply to all Federal funding
awards under this section, including Phase I,
Phase II, and Phase III.
(q) Discretionary technical assistance
(1) In general
Each Federal agency required by this section to conduct an SBIR program or STTR
program may enter into an agreement with a
vendor selected under paragraph (2) to provide
small business concerns engaged in SBIR or
STTR projects with technical assistance services, such as access to a network of scientists
and engineers engaged in a wide range of technologies, or access to technical and business
literature available through on-line data
bases, for the purpose of assisting such concerns in—
(A) making better technical decisions concerning such projects;
(B) solving technical problems which arise
during the conduct of such projects;
(C) minimizing technical risks associated
with such projects; and

Page 810

(D) developing and commercializing new
commercial products and processes resulting
from such projects.
(2) 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 5
years. Such selection shall be competitive and
shall utilize merit-based criteria.
(3) Additional technical assistance
(A) Phase I
A Federal agency described in paragraph
(1) may—
(i) provide to the recipient of a Phase I
SBIR or STTR award, through a vendor selected under paragraph (2), the services described in paragraph (1), in an amount
equal to not more than $5,000 per year; or
(ii) authorize the recipient of a Phase I
SBIR or STTR award to purchase the services described in paragraph (1), in an
amount equal to not more than $5,000 per
year, which shall be in addition to the
amount of the recipient’s award.
(B) Phase II
A Federal agency described in paragraph
(1) may—
(i) provide to the recipient of a Phase II
SBIR or STTR award, through a vendor selected under paragraph (2), the services described in paragraph (1), in an amount
equal to not more than $5,000 per year; or
(ii) authorize the recipient of a Phase II
SBIR or STTR award to purchase the services described in paragraph (1), in an
amount equal to not more than $5,000 per
year, which shall be in addition to the
amount of the recipient’s award.
(C) Flexibility
In carrying out subparagraphs (A) and (B),
each Federal agency shall provide the allowable amounts to a recipient that meets the
eligibility requirements under the applicable
subparagraph, if the recipient requests to
seek technical assistance from an individual
or entity other than the vendor selected
under paragraph (2) by the Federal agency.
(D) Limitation
A Federal agency may not—
(i) use the amounts authorized under
subparagraph (A) or (B) unless the vendor
selected under paragraph (2) provides the
technical assistance to the recipient; or
(ii) enter a contract with a vendor under
paragraph (2) under which the amount provided for technical assistance is based on
total number of Phase I or Phase II
awards.
(r) Phase III agreements
(1) In general
In the case of a small business concern that
is awarded a funding agreement for Phase II of
an SBIR or STTR program, a Federal agency
may enter into a Phase III agreement with
that business concern for additional work to
be performed during or after the Phase II pe-

Page 811

TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

riod. The Phase II funding agreement with the
small business concern may, at the discretion
of the agency awarding the agreement, set out
the procedures applicable to Phase III agreements with that agency or any other agency.
(2) Definition
In this subsection, the term ‘‘Phase III
agreement’’ means a follow-on, non-SBIR or
non-STTR funded contract as described in
paragraph (4)(C) or paragraph (6)(C) of subsection (e) of this section.
(3) Intellectual property rights
Each funding agreement under an SBIR or
STTR program shall include provisions setting
forth the respective rights of the United
States and the small business concern with respect to intellectual property rights and with
respect to any right to carry out follow-on research.
(4) Phase III awards
To the greatest extent practicable, Federal
agencies and Federal prime contractors shall
issue Phase III awards relating to technology,
including sole source awards, to the SBIR and
STTR award recipients that developed the
technology.
(s) Competitive selection procedures for SBIR
and STTR programs
All funds awarded, appropriated, or otherwise
made available in accordance with subsection (f)
or (n) must be awarded pursuant to competitive
and merit-based selection procedures.
(t) Inclusion in strategic plans
Program information relating to the SBIR and
STTR programs shall be included by each Federal agency in any update or revision required of
the Federal agency under section 306(b) of title
5.
(u) Coordination of technology development programs
(1) Definition of technology development program
In this subsection, the term ‘‘technology development program’’ means—
(A) the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research of the National
Science Foundation, as established under
section 1862g of title 42;
(B) the Defense Experimental Program to
Stimulate Competitive Research of the Department of Defense;
(C) the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research of the Department of Energy;
(D) the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research of the Environmental Protection Agency;
(E) the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research of the National
Aeronautics and Space Administration;
(F) the Institutional Development Award
Program of the National Institutes of
Health; and
(G) the National Research Initiative Competitive Grants Program of the Department
of Agriculture.
(2) Coordination requirements
Each Federal agency that is subject to subsection (f) of this section and that has estab-

§ 638

lished a technology development program
may, in each fiscal year, review for funding
under that technology development program—
(A) any proposal to provide outreach and
assistance to one or more small business
concerns interested in participating in the
SBIR program, including any proposal to
make a grant or loan to a company to pay a
portion or all of the cost of developing an
SBIR proposal, from an entity, organization,
or individual located in—
(i) a State that is eligible to participate
in that program; or
(ii) a State described in paragraph (3); or
(B) any proposal for Phase I of the SBIR
program, if the proposal, though meritorious, is not funded through the SBIR program
for that fiscal year due to funding restraints,
from a small business concern located in—
(i) a State that is eligible to participate
in a technology development program; or
(ii) a State described in paragraph (3).
(3) Additionally eligible State
A State referred to in subparagraph (A)(ii)
or (B)(ii) of paragraph (2) is a State in which
the total value of contracts awarded to small
business concerns under all SBIR programs is
less than the total value of contracts awarded
to small business concerns in a majority of
other States, as determined by the Administrator in biennial fiscal years, beginning with
fiscal year 2000, based on the most recent statistics compiled by the Administrator.
(v) Reducing paperwork and compliance burden
(1) Standardization of reporting requirements
The Administrator shall work with the Federal agencies required by this section to have
an SBIR or STTR program to standardize reporting requirements for the collection of data
from SBIR or STTR applicants and awardees,
including data for inclusion in the database
under subsection (k) of this section, taking
into consideration the unique needs of each
agency, and to the extent possible, permitting
the updating of previously reported information by electronic means. Such requirements
shall be designed to minimize the burden on
small businesses.
(2) Simplification of application and award
process
Not later than 1 year after December 31,
2011, and after a period of public comment, the
Administrator shall issue regulations or
guidelines, taking into consideration the
unique needs of each Federal agency, to ensure
that each Federal agency required to carry
out an SBIR program or STTR program simplifies and standardizes the program proposal,
selection, contracting, compliance, and audit
procedures for the SBIR program or STTR program of the Federal agency (including procedures relating to overhead rates for applicants
and documentation requirements) to reduce
the paperwork and regulatory compliance burden on small business concerns applying to
and participating in the SBIR program or
STTR program.

§ 638

TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

(w) STTR model agreement for intellectual property rights
(1) In general
The Administrator shall promulgate regulations establishing a single model agreement
for use in the STTR program that allocates
between small business concerns and research
institutions intellectual property rights and
rights, if any, to carry out follow-on research,
development, or commercialization.
(2) Opportunity for comment
In promulgating regulations under paragraph (1), the Administrator shall provide to
affected agencies, small business concerns, research institutions, and other interested parties the opportunity to submit written comments.
(x) Research and development focus
(1) Revision and update of criteria and procedures of identification
In carrying out subsection (g) of this section, the Secretary of Defense shall, not less
often than once every 4 years, revise and update the criteria and procedures utilized to
identify areas of the research and development
efforts of the Department of Defense which are
suitable for the provision of funds under the
Small Business Innovation Research Program
and the Small Business Technology Transfer
Program.
(2) Utilization of plans
The criteria and procedures described in
paragraph (1) shall be developed through the
use of the most current versions of the following plans:
(A) The Joint Warfighting Science and
Technology Plan required under section 270
of the National Defense Authorization Act
for Fiscal Year 1997 (Public Law 104–201; 10
U.S.C. 2501 note).
(B) The Defense Technology Area Plan of
the Department of Defense.
(C) The Basic Research Plan of the Department of Defense.
(3) Input in identification of areas of effort
The criteria and procedures described in
paragraph (1) shall include input in the identification of areas of research and development
efforts described in that paragraph from Department of Defense program managers (PMs)
and program executive officers (PEOs).
(y) Commercialization Readiness Program
(1) In general
The Secretary of Defense and the Secretary
of each military department is authorized to
create and administer a ‘‘Commercialization
Readiness Program’’ to accelerate the transition of technologies, products, and services developed under the Small Business Innovation
Research Program or Small Business Technology Transfer Program to Phase III, including the acquisition process. The authority to
create and administer a Commercialization
Readiness Program under this subsection may
not be construed to eliminate or replace any
other SBIR program or STTR program that

Page 812

enhances the insertion or transition of SBIR
or STTR technologies, including any such program in effect on January 6, 2006.
(2) Identification of research programs for accelerated transition to acquisition process
In carrying out the Commercialization
Readiness Program, the Secretary of Defense
and the Secretary of each military department
shall identify research programs of the Small
Business Innovation Research Program or
Small Business Technology Transfer Program
that have the potential for rapid transitioning
to Phase III and into the acquisition process.
(3) Limitation
No research program may be identified
under paragraph (2) unless the Secretary of
the military department concerned certifies in
writing that the successful transition of the
program to Phase III and into the acquisition
process is expected to meet high priority military requirements of such military department.
(4) Insertion incentives
For any contract with a value of not less
than $100,000,000, the Secretary of Defense is
authorized to—
(A) establish goals for the transition of
Phase III technologies in subcontracting
plans; and
(B) require a prime contractor on such a
contract to report the number and dollar
amount of contracts entered into by that
prime contractor for Phase III SBIR or
STTR projects.
(5) Goal for SBIR and STTR technology insertion
The Secretary of Defense shall—
(A) set a goal to increase the number of
Phase II SBIR contracts and the number of
Phase II STTR contracts awarded by the
Secretary that lead to technology transition
into programs of record or fielded systems;
(B) use incentives in effect on December
31, 2011, or create new incentives, to encourage agency program managers and prime
contractors to meet the goal under subparagraph (A); and
(C) submit to the Administrator for inclusion in the annual report under subsection
(b)(7)—
(i) the number and percentage of Phase
II SBIR and STTR contracts awarded by
the Secretary that led to technology transition into programs of record or fielded
systems;
(ii) information on the status of each
project that received funding through the
Commercialization Readiness Program and
efforts to transition those projects into
programs of record or fielded systems; and
(iii) a description of each incentive that
has been used by the Secretary under subparagraph (B) and the effectiveness of that
incentive with respect to meeting the goal
under subparagraph (A).
(z) Encouraging innovation in energy efficiency
(1) Federal agency energy-related priority
In carrying out its duties under this section
relating to SBIR and STTR solicitations by

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

Federal departments and agencies, the Administrator shall—
(A) ensure that such departments and
agencies give high priority to small business
concerns that participate in or conduct energy efficiency or renewable energy system
research and development projects; and
(B) include in the annual report to Congress under subsection (b)(7) a determination
of whether the priority described in subparagraph (A) is being carried out.
(2) Consultation required
The Administrator shall consult with the
heads of other Federal departments and agencies in determining whether priority has been
given to small business concerns that participate in or conduct energy efficiency or renewable energy system research and development
projects, as required by this subsection.
(3) Guidelines
The Administrator shall, as soon as is practicable after December 19, 2007, issue guidelines and directives to assist Federal agencies
in meeting the requirements of this subsection.
(4) Definitions
In this subsection—
(A) the term ‘‘biomass’’—
(i) means any organic material that is
available on a renewable or recurring
basis, including—
(I) agricultural crops;
(II) trees grown for energy production;
(III) wood waste and wood residues;
(IV) plants (including aquatic plants
and grasses);
(V) residues;
(VI) fibers;
(VII) animal wastes and other waste
materials; and
(VIII) fats, oils, and greases (including
recycled fats, oils, and greases); and
(ii) does not include—
(I) paper that is commonly recycled; or
(II) unsegregated solid waste;
(B) the term ‘‘energy efficiency project’’
means the installation or upgrading of
equipment that results in a significant reduction in energy usage; and
(C) the term ‘‘renewable energy system’’
means a system of energy derived from—
(i) a wind, solar, biomass (including biodiesel), or geothermal source; or
(ii) hydrogen derived from biomass or
water using an energy source described in
clause (i).
(aa) Limitation on size of awards
(1) Limitation
No Federal agency may issue an award under
the SBIR program or the STTR program if the
size of the award exceeds the award guidelines
established under this section by more than 50
percent.
(2) Maintenance of information
Participating agencies shall maintain information on awards exceeding the guidelines established under this section, including—

§ 638

(A) the amount of each award;
(B) a justification for exceeding the guidelines for each award;
(C) the identity and location of each award
recipient; and
(D) whether an award recipient has received any venture capital, hedge fund, or
private equity firm investment and, if so,
whether the recipient is majority-owned by
multiple venture capital operating companies, hedge funds, or private equity firms.
(3) Reports
The Administrator shall include the information described in paragraph (2) in the annual report of the Administrator to Congress.
(4) Waiver for specific topic
Upon the receipt of an application from a
Federal agency, the Administrator may grant
a waiver from the requirement under paragraph (1) with respect to a specific topic (but
not for the agency as a whole) for a fiscal year
if the Administrator determines, based on the
information contained in the application from
the agency, that—
(A) the requirement under paragraph (1)
will interfere with the ability of the agency
to fulfill its research mission through the
SBIR program or the STTR program; and
(B) the agency will minimize, to the maximum extent possible, the number of awards
that do not satisfy the requirement under
paragraph (1) to preserve the nature and intent of the SBIR program and the STTR program.
(5) Rule of construction
Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prevent a Federal agency from supplementing an award under the SBIR program
or the STTR program using funds of the Federal agency that are not part of the SBIR program or the STTR program of the Federal
agency.
(bb) Subsequent Phase II awards
(1) Agency flexibility
A small business concern that received a
Phase I award from a Federal agency under
this section shall be eligible to receive a subsequent Phase II award from another Federal
agency, if the head of each relevant Federal
agency or the relevant component of the Federal agency makes a written determination
that the topics of the relevant awards are the
same and both agencies report the awards to
the Administrator for inclusion in the public
database under subsection (k).
(2) SBIR and STTR program flexibility
A small business concern that received a
Phase I award under this section under the
SBIR program or the STTR program may receive a subsequent Phase II award in either
the SBIR program or the STTR program and
the participating agency or agencies shall report the awards to the Administrator for inclusion in the public database under subsection (k).
(3) Preventing duplicative awards
The head of a Federal agency shall verify
that any activity to be performed with respect

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

to a project with a Phase I or Phase II SBIR
or STTR award has not been funded under the
SBIR program or STTR program of another
Federal agency.
(cc) Phase flexibility
During fiscal years 2012 through 2017, the National Institutes of Health, the Department of
Defense, and the Department of Education may
each provide to a small business concern an
award under Phase II of the SBIR program with
respect to a project, without regard to whether
the small business concern was provided an
award under Phase I of an SBIR program with
respect to such project, if the head of the applicable agency determines that the small business
concern has completed the determinations described in subsection (e)(4)(A) with respect to
such project despite not having been provided a
Phase I award.
(dd) Participation of small business concerns
majority-owned by venture capital operating
companies, hedge funds, or private equity
firms in the SBIR program
(1) Authority
Upon providing a written determination described in paragraph (2) to the Administrator,
the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate, and the Committee
on Small Business and the Committee on
Science, Space, and Technology of the House
of Representatives, not later than 30 days before the date on which any such award is
made—
(A) the Director of the National Institutes
of Health, the Secretary of Energy, and the
Director of the National Science Foundation
may award not more than 25 percent of the
funds allocated for the SBIR program of the
applicable Federal agency to small business
concerns that are owned in majority part by
multiple venture capital operating companies, hedge funds, or private equity firms
through competitive, merit-based procedures
that are open to all eligible small business
concerns; and
(B) the head of a Federal agency other
than a Federal agency described in subparagraph (A) that participates in the SBIR program may award not more than 15 percent of
the funds allocated for the SBIR program of
the Federal agency to small business concerns that are owned in majority part by
multiple venture capital operating companies, hedge funds, or private equity firms
through competitive, merit-based procedures
that are open to all eligible small business
concerns.
(2) Determination
A written determination described in this
paragraph is a written determination by the
head of a Federal agency that explains how
the use of the authority under paragraph (1)
will—
(A) induce additional venture capital,
hedge fund, or private equity firm funding of
small business innovations;
(B) substantially contribute to the mission
of the Federal agency;
(C) demonstrate a need for public research;
and

Page 814

(D) otherwise fulfill the capital needs of
small business concerns for additional financing for SBIR projects.
(3) Registration
A small business concern that is majorityowned by multiple venture capital operating
companies, hedge funds, or private equity
firms and qualified for participation in the
program authorized under paragraph (1)
shall—
(A) register with the Administrator on the
date that the small business concern submits an application for an award under the
SBIR program; and
(B) indicate in any SBIR proposal that the
small business concern is registered under
subparagraph (A) as majority-owned by multiple venture capital operating companies,
hedge funds, or private equity firms.
(4) Compliance
(A) In general
The head of a Federal agency that makes
an award under this subsection during a fiscal year shall collect and submit to the Administrator data relating to the number and
dollar amount of Phase I awards, Phase II
awards, and any other category of awards by
the Federal agency under the SBIR program
during that fiscal year.
(B) Annual reporting
The Administrator shall include as part of
each annual report by the Administration
under subsection (b)(7) any data submitted
under subparagraph (A) and a discussion of
the compliance of each Federal agency that
makes an award under this subsection during the fiscal year with the maximum percentages under paragraph (1).
(5) Enforcement
If a Federal agency awards more than the
percent of the funds allocated for the SBIR
program of the Federal agency authorized
under paragraph (1) for a purpose described in
paragraph (1), the head of the Federal agency
shall transfer an amount equal to the amount
awarded in excess of the amount authorized
under paragraph (1) to the funds for general
SBIR programs from the non-SBIR and nonSTTR research and development funds of the
Federal agency not later than 180 days after
the date on which the Federal agency made
the award that caused the total awarded under
paragraph (1) to be more than the amount authorized under paragraph (1) for a purpose described in paragraph (1).
(6) Final decisions on applications under the
SBIR program
(A) Definition
In this paragraph, the term ‘‘covered small
business concern’’ means a small business
concern that—
(i) was not majority-owned by multiple
venture capital operating companies,
hedge funds, or private equity firms on the
date on which the small business concern
submitted an application in response to a
solicitation under the SBIR programs; and

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

(ii) on the date of the award under the
SBIR program is majority-owned by multiple venture capital operating companies,
hedge funds, or private equity firms.
(B) In general
If a Federal agency does not make an
award under a solicitation under the SBIR
program before the date that is 9 months
after the date on which the period for submitting applications under the solicitation
ends—
(i) a covered small business concern is eligible to receive the award, without regard
to whether the covered small business concern meets the requirements for receiving
an award under the SBIR program for a
small business concern that is majorityowned by multiple venture capital operating companies, hedge funds, or private equity firms, if the covered small business
concern meets all other requirements for
such an award; and
(ii) the head of the Federal agency shall
transfer an amount equal to any amount
awarded to a covered small business concern under the solicitation to the funds for
general SBIR programs from the non-SBIR
and non-STTR research and development
funds of the Federal agency, not later than
90 days after the date on which the Federal
agency makes the award.
(7) Evaluation criteria
A Federal agency may not use investment of
venture capital or investment from hedge
funds or private equity firms as a criterion for
the award of contracts under the SBIR program or STTR program.
(ee) Collaborating with Federal laboratories and
research and development centers
(1) Authorization
Subject to the limitations under this section, the head of each participating Federal
agency may make SBIR and STTR awards to
any eligible small business concern that—
(A) intends to enter into an agreement
with a Federal laboratory or federally funded research and development center for portions of the activities to be performed under
that award; or
(B) has entered into a cooperative research
and development agreement (as defined in
section 3710a(d) of this title) with a Federal
laboratory.
(2) Prohibition
No Federal agency shall—
(A) condition an SBIR or STTR award
upon entering into agreement with any Federal laboratory or any federally funded laboratory or research and development center
for any portion of the activities to be performed under that award;
(B) approve an agreement between a small
business concern receiving an SBIR or STTR
award and a Federal laboratory or federally
funded laboratory or research and development center, if the small business concern
performs a lesser portion of the activities to
be performed under that award than required

§ 638

by this section and by the SBIR Policy Directive and the STTR Policy Directive of the
Administrator; or
(C) approve an agreement that violates
any provision, including any data rights protections provision, of this section or the
SBIR and the STTR Policy Directives.
(3) Implementation
Not later than 180 days after December 31,
2011, the Administrator shall modify the SBIR
Policy Directive and the STTR Policy Directive issued under this section to ensure that
small business concerns—
(A) have the flexibility to use the resources of the Federal laboratories or federally funded research and development centers; and
(B) are not mandated to enter into agreement with any Federal laboratory or any
federally funded laboratory or research and
development center as a condition of an
award.
(4) Advance payment
If a small business concern receiving an
award under this section enters into an agreement with a Federal laboratory or federally
funded research and development center for
portions of the activities to be performed
under that award, the Federal laboratory or
federally funded research and development
center may not require advance payment from
the small business concern in an amount
greater than the amount necessary to pay for
30 days of such activities.
(ff) Additional SBIR and STTR awards
(1) Express authority for awarding a sequential Phase II award
A small business concern that receives a
Phase II SBIR award or a Phase II STTR
award for a project remains eligible to receive
1 additional Phase II SBIR award or Phase II
STTR award for continued work on that
project.
(2) Preventing duplicative awards
The head of a Federal agency shall verify
that any activity to be performed with respect
to a project with a Phase I or Phase II SBIR
or STTR award has not been funded under the
SBIR program or STTR program of another
Federal agency.
(gg) Pilot program
(1) Authorization
The head of each covered Federal agency
may allocate not more than 10 percent of the
funds allocated to the SBIR program and the
STTR program of the covered Federal agency—
(A) for awards for technology development, testing, evaluation, and commercialization assistance for SBIR and STTR
Phase II technologies; or
(B) to support the progress of research, research and development, and commercialization conducted under the SBIR or STTR programs to Phase III.
(2) Application by Federal agency
(A) In general
A covered Federal agency may not establish a pilot program unless the covered Fed-

§ 638

TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

eral agency makes a written application to
the Administrator, not later than 90 days before the first day of the fiscal year in which
the pilot program is to be established, that
describes a compelling reason that additional investment in SBIR or STTR technologies is necessary, including unusually
high regulatory, systems integration, or
other costs relating to development or manufacturing of identifiable, highly promising
small business technologies or a class of
such technologies expected to substantially
advance the mission of the agency.
(B) Determination
The Administrator shall—
(i) make a determination regarding an
application submitted under subparagraph
(A) not later than 30 days before the first
day of the fiscal year for which the application is submitted;
(ii) publish the determination in the
Federal Register; and
(iii) make a copy of the determination
and any related materials available to the
Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate and the Committee on Small Business and the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of
the House of Representatives.
(3) Maximum amount of award
The head of a covered Federal agency may
not make an award under a pilot program in
excess of 3 times the dollar amounts generally
established for Phase II awards under subsection (j)(2)(D) or (p)(2)(B)(ix).
(4) Registration
Any applicant that receives an award under
a pilot program shall register with the Administrator in a registry that is available to the
public.
(5) Award criteria or consideration
When making an award under this section,
the head of a covered Federal agency shall
give consideration to whether the technology
to be supported by the award is likely to be
manufactured in the United States.
(6) Report
The head of each covered Federal agency
shall include in the annual report of the covered Federal agency to the Administrator an
analysis of the various activities considered
for inclusion in the pilot program of the covered Federal agency and a statement of the
reasons why each activity considered was included or not included, as the case may be.
(7) Termination
The authority to establish a pilot program
under this section expires at the end of fiscal
year 2017.
(8) Definitions
In this subsection—
(A) the term ‘‘covered Federal agency’’—
(i) means a Federal agency participating
in the SBIR program or the STTR program; and
(ii) does not include the Department of
Defense; and

Page 816

(B) the term ‘‘pilot program’’ means each
program established under paragraph (1).
(hh) Timing of release of funding
Federal agencies participating in the SBIR
program or STTR program shall, to the extent
possible, attempt to shorten the amount of time
between the provision of notice of an award
under the SBIR program or STTR program and
the subsequent release of funding with respect
to the award.
(ii) Reporting on timing
Federal agencies participating in the SBIR
program or STTR program shall provide to the
Administrator, for the annual report on the
SBIR and STTR program under subsection
(b)(7), the average amount of time the agency
takes to make a final decision on proposals submitted under such programs, the average
amount of time the agency takes to release
funding with respect to an award under such
programs, and the goals established to reduce
such amounts.
(jj) Phase 0 Proof of Concept Partnership pilot
program
(1) In general
The Director of the National Institutes of
Health may use $5,000,000 of the funds allocated under subsection (n)(1) for a Proof of
Concept Partnership pilot program to accelerate the creation of small businesses and the
commercialization of research innovations
from qualifying institutions. To implement
this program, the Director shall award,
through a competitive, merit-based process,
grants to qualifying institutions. These grants
shall only be used to administer Proof of Concept Partnership awards in conformity with
this subsection.
(2) Definitions
In this subsection—
(A) the term ‘‘Director’’ means the Director of the National Institutes of Health;
(B) the term ‘‘pilot program’’ refers to the
Proof of Concept Partnership pilot program;
and
(C) the terms ‘‘qualifying institution’’ and
‘‘institution’’ mean a university or other research institution that participates in the
National Institutes of Health’s STTR program.
(3) Proof of Concept Partnerships
(A) In general
A Proof of Concept Partnership shall be
set up by a qualifying institution to award
grants to individual researchers. These
grants should provide researchers with the
initial investment and the resources to support the proof of concept work and commercialization mentoring needed to translate
promising research projects and technologies into a viable company. This work
may include technical validations, market
research, clarifying intellectual property
rights position and strategy, and investigating commercial or business opportunities.
(B) Award guidelines
The administrator of a Proof of Concept
Partnership program shall award grants in
accordance with the following guidelines:

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

(i) The Proof of Concept Partnership
shall use a market-focused project management oversight process, including—
(I) a rigorous, diverse review board
comprised
of
local
experts
in
translational and proof of concept research, including industry, start-up, venture capital, technical, financial, and
business experts and university technology transfer officials;
(II) technology validation milestones
focused on market feasibility;
(III) simple reporting effective at redirecting projects; and
(IV) the willingness to reallocate funding from failing projects to those with
more potential.
(ii) Not more than $100,000 shall be
awarded towards an individual proposal.
(C) Educational resources and guidance
The administrator of a Proof of Concept
Partnership program shall make educational
resources and guidance available to researchers attempting to commercialize their
innovations.
(4) Awards
(A) Size of award
The Director may make awards to a qualifying institution for up to $1,000,000 per year
for up to 3 years.
(B) Award criteria
In determining which qualifying institutions receive pilot program grants, the Director shall consider, in addition to any
other criteria the Director determines necessary, the extent to which qualifying institutions—
(i) have an established and proven technology transfer or commercialization office and have a plan for engaging that office in the program’s implementation;
(ii) have demonstrated a commitment to
local and regional economic development;
(iii) are located in diverse geographies
and are of diverse sizes;
(iv) can assemble project management
boards comprised of industry, start-up,
venture capital, technical, financial, and
business experts;
(v) have an intellectual property rights
strategy or office; and
(vi) demonstrate a plan for sustainability beyond the duration of the funding
award.
(5) Limitations
The funds for the pilot program shall not be
used—
(A) for basic research, but to evaluate the
commercial potential of existing discoveries,
including—
(i) proof of concept research or prototype
development; and
(ii) activities that contribute to determining a project’s commercialization
path, to include technical validations,
market research, clarifying intellectual
property rights, and investigating commercial and business opportunities; or

§ 638

(B) to fund the acquisition of research
equipment or supplies unrelated to commercialization activities.
(6) Evaluative report
The Director 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
an evaluative report regarding the activities
of the pilot program. The report shall include—
(A) a detailed description of the institutional and proposal selection process;
(B) an accounting of the funds used in the
pilot program;
(C) a detailed description of the pilot program, including incentives and activities
undertaken by review board experts;
(D) a detailed compilation of results
achieved by the pilot program, including the
number of small business concerns included
and the number of business packages developed, and the number of projects that progressed into subsequent STTR phases; and
(E) an analysis of the program’s effectiveness with supporting data.
(7) Sunset
The pilot program under this subsection
shall terminate at the end of fiscal year 2017.
(kk) Phase III reporting
The annual SBIR or STTR report to Congress
by the Administration under subsection (b)(7)
shall include, for each Phase III award—
(1) the name of the agency or component of
the agency or the non-Federal source of capital making the Phase III award;
(2) the name of the small business concern or
individual receiving the Phase III award; and
(3) the dollar amount of the Phase III award.
(ll) Consent to release contact information to organizations
(1) Enabling concern to give consent
Each Federal agency required by this section to conduct an SBIR program or an STTR
program shall enable a small business concern
that is an SBIR applicant or an STTR applicant to indicate to the Federal agency whether the Federal agency has the consent of the
concern to—
(A) identify the concern to appropriate
local and State-level economic development
organizations as an SBIR applicant or an
STTR applicant; and
(B) release the contact information of the
concern to such organizations.
(2) Rules
The Administrator shall establish rules to
implement this subsection. The rules shall include a requirement that a Federal agency include in the SBIR and STTR application a provision through which the applicant can indicate consent for purposes of paragraph (1).
(mm) Assistance for administrative, oversight,
and contract processing costs
(1) In general
Subject to paragraph (3), for the 3 fiscal
years beginning after December 31, 2011, the

§ 638

TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

Administrator shall allow each Federal agency
required to conduct an SBIR program to use
not more than 3 percent of the funds allocated
to the SBIR program of the Federal agency
for—
(A) the administration of the SBIR program or the STTR program of the Federal
agency;
(B) the provision of outreach and technical
assistance relating to the SBIR program or
STTR program of the Federal agency, including technical assistance site visits, personnel interviews, and national conferences;
(C) the implementation of commercialization and outreach initiatives that were not
in effect on December 31, 2011;
(D) carrying out the program under subsection (y);
(E) activities relating to oversight and
congressional reporting, including waste,
fraud, and abuse prevention activities;
(F) targeted reviews of recipients of
awards under the SBIR program or STTR
program of the Federal agency that the head
of the Federal agency determines are at high
risk for fraud, waste, or abuse to ensure
compliance with requirements of the SBIR
program or STTR program, respectively;
(G) the implementation of oversight and
quality control measures, including verification of reports and invoices and cost reviews;
(H) carrying out subsection (dd);
(I) contract processing costs relating to
the SBIR program or STTR program of the
Federal agency; and
(J) funding for additional personnel and
assistance with application reviews.
(2) Outreach and technical assistance
(A) In general
Except as provided in subparagraph (B), a
Federal agency participating in the program
under this subsection shall use a portion of
the funds authorized for uses under paragraph (1) to carry out the policy directive required under subsection (j)(2)(F) and to increase the participation of States with respect to which a low level of SBIR awards
have historically been awarded.
(B) Waiver
A Federal agency may request the Administrator to waive the requirement contained
in subparagraph (A). Such request shall include an explanation of why the waiver is
necessary. The Administrator may grant the
waiver based on a determination that the
agency has demonstrated a sufficient need
for the waiver, that the outreach objectives
of the agency are being met, and that there
is increased participation by States with respect to which a low level of SBIR awards
have historically been awarded.
(3) Performance criteria
A Federal agency may not use funds as authorized under paragraph (1) until after the
effective date of performance criteria, which
the Administrator shall establish, to measure any benefits of using funds as authorized
under paragraph (1) and to assess continuation of the authority under paragraph (1).

Page 818

(4) Rules
Not later than 180 days after December 31,
2011, the Administrator shall issue rules to
carry out this subsection.
(5) Coordination with IG
Each Federal agency shall coordinate the
activities funded under subparagraph (E),
(F), or (G) of paragraph (1) with their respective Inspectors General, when appropriate,
and each Federal agency that allocates more
than $50,000,000 to the SBIR program of the
Federal agency for a fiscal year may share
such funding with its Inspector General
when the Inspector General performs such
activities.
(6) Reporting
The Administrator shall collect data and
provide to the Committee on Small Business
and Entrepreneurship of the Senate and the
Committee on Small Business, the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, and
the Committee on Appropriations of the
House of Representatives a report on the use
of funds under this subsection, including
funds used to achieve the objectives of paragraph (2)(A) and any use of the waiver authority under paragraph (2)(B).
(nn) Annual report on SBIR and STTR program
goals
(1) Development of metrics
The head of each Federal agency required to
participate in the SBIR program or the STTR
program shall develop metrics to evaluate the
effectiveness and the benefit to the people of
the United States of the SBIR program and
the STTR program of the Federal agency
that—
(A) are science-based and statistically
driven;
(B) reflect the mission of the Federal agency; and
(C) include factors relating to the economic impact of the programs.
(2) Evaluation
The head of each Federal agency described
in paragraph (1) shall conduct an annual evaluation using the metrics developed under
paragraph (1) of—
(A) the SBIR program and the STTR program of the Federal agency; and
(B) the benefits to the people of the United
States of the SBIR program and the STTR
program of the Federal agency.
(3) Report
(A) In general
The head of each Federal agency described
in paragraph (1) shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress and the Administrator an annual report describing in
detail the results of an evaluation conducted
under paragraph (2).
(B) Public availability of report
The head of each Federal agency described
in paragraph (1) shall make each report submitted under subparagraph (A) available to
the public online.

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

(C) Definition
In this paragraph, the term ‘‘appropriate
committees of Congress’’ means—
(i) the Committee on Small Business and
Entrepreneurship of the Senate; and
(ii) the Committee on Small Business
and the Committee on Science, Space, and
Technology of the House of Representatives.
(oo) Competitive selection procedures for SBIR
and STTR programs
All funds awarded, appropriated, or otherwise
made available in accordance with subsection (f)
or (n) must be awarded pursuant to competitive
and merit-based selection procedures.
(pp) Limitation on pilot programs
(1) Existing pilot programs
The Administrator may only carry out a
covered pilot program that is in operation on
December 31, 2011, during the 3-year period beginning on such date.
(2) New pilot programs
The Administrator may only carry out a
covered pilot program established after December 31, 2011—
(A) during the 3-year period beginning on
the date on which such program is established; and
(B) if such program does not continue and
is not based on, in any manner, a previously
established covered pilot program.
(3) Covered pilot program defined
In this subsection, the term ‘‘covered pilot
program’’ means any initiative, project, innovation, or other activity—
(A) established by the Administrator;
(B) relating to an SBIR or STTR program;
and
(C) not specifically authorized by law.
(qq) Minimum standards for participation
(1) Progress to Phase II success
(A) Establishment of system and minimum
commercialization rate
Not later than 1 year after December 31,
2011, the head of each Federal agency participating in the SBIR or STTR program
shall—
(i) establish a system to measure, where
appropriate, the success of small business
concerns with respect to the receipt of
Phase II SBIR or STTR awards for projects
that have received Phase I SBIR or STTR
awards;
(ii) establish a minimum performance
standard for small business concerns with
respect to the receipt of Phase II SBIR or
STTR awards for projects that have received Phase I SBIR or STTR awards; and
(iii) begin evaluating, each fiscal year,
whether each small business concern that
received a Phase I SBIR or STTR award
from the agency meets the minimum performance standard established under
clause (ii).
(B) Consequence of failure to meet minimum
commercialization rate
If the head of a Federal agency determines
that a small business concern that received

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a Phase I SBIR or STTR award from the
agency is not meeting the minimum performance standard established under subparagraph (A)(ii), such concern may not participate in Phase I (or Phase II if under the
authority of subsection (cc)) of the SBIR or
STTR program of that agency during the 1year period beginning on the date on which
such determination is made.
(2) Progress to Phase III success
(A) Establishment of system and minimum
commercialization rate
Not later than 2 years after December 31,
2011, the head of each Federal agency participating in the SBIR or STTR program
shall—
(i) establish a system to measure, where
appropriate, the success of small business
concerns with respect to the receipt of
Phase III SBIR or STTR awards for
projects that have received Phase I SBIR
or STTR awards;
(ii) establish a minimum performance
standard for small business concerns with
respect to the receipt of Phase III SBIR or
STTR awards for projects that have received Phase I SBIR or STTR awards; and
(iii) begin evaluating, each fiscal year,
whether each small business concern that
received a Phase I SBIR or STTR award
from the agency meets the minimum performance standard established under
clause (ii).
(B) Consequence of failure to meet minimum
commercialization rate
If the head of a Federal agency determines
that a small business concern that received
a Phase I SBIR or STTR award from the
agency is not meeting the minimum performance standard established under subparagraph (A)(ii), such concern may not participate in Phase I (or Phase II if under the
authority of subsection (cc)) of the SBIR or
STTR program of that agency during the 1year period beginning on the date on which
such determination is made.
(3) Administration oversight
(A) Approval and publication of systems and
minimum performance standards
Each system and minimum performance
standard established under paragraph (1) or
paragraph (2) shall be submitted by the head
of the applicable Federal agency to the Administrator and shall be subject to the approval of the Administrator. In making a determination with respect to approval, the
Administrator shall ensure that the minimum performance standard exceeds a de
minimis level. The Administrator shall publish on the Internet Web site of the Administration the systems and minimum performance standards approved.
(B) Submission of evaluation results by agency
The head of each covered Federal agency
shall submit to the Administrator the results of each evaluation conducted under
paragraph (1) or paragraph (2).

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

(4) Requirement of notice and comment
Each system and minimum performance
standard established under paragraph (1) or
paragraph (2) and each approval provided by
the Administrator under paragraph (3)(A), at
least 60 days before becoming effective, shall
be preceded by the provision of notice of and
an opportunity for public comment on such
system, standard, or approval.
(rr) Publication of certain information
In order to increase the number of small businesses receiving awards under the SBIR or
STTR programs of participating agencies, and
to simplify the application process for such
awards, the Administrator shall establish and
maintain a public Internet Web site on which
the Administrator shall publish such information relating to notice of and application for
awards under the SBIR program and STTR program of each participating Federal agency as
the Administrator determines appropriate.
(ss) Report on enhancement of manufacturing
activities
Not later than October 1, 2013, and annually
thereafter, the head of each Federal agency that
makes more than $50,000,000 in awards under the
SBIR and STTR programs of the agency combined shall submit to the Administrator, for inclusion in the annual report required under subsection (b)(7), information that includes—
(1) a description of efforts undertaken by the
head of the Federal agency to enhance United
States manufacturing activities;
(2) a comprehensive description of the actions undertaken each year by the head of the
Federal agency in carrying out the SBIR or
STTR program of the agency in support of Executive Order 13329 (69 Fed. Reg. 9181; relating
to encouraging innovation in manufacturing);
(3) an assessment of the effectiveness of the
actions described in paragraph (2) at enhancing the research and development of United
States manufacturing technologies and processes;
(4) a description of efforts by vendors selected to provide discretionary technical assistance under subsection (q)(1) to help SBIR
and STTR concerns manufacture in the United
States; and
(5) recommendations that the program managers of the SBIR or STTR program of the
agency consider appropriate for additional actions to increase the effectiveness of enhancing manufacturing activities.
(Pub. L. 85–536, § 2[9], July 18, 1958, 72 Stat. 391;
Pub. L. 97–219, §§ 3–5, July 22, 1982, 96 Stat. 217,
218, 221; Pub. L. 99–443, §§ 1, 2, Oct. 6, 1986, 100
Stat. 1120; Pub. L. 100–590, title I, § 108, Nov. 3,
1988, 102 Stat. 2994; Pub. L. 102–484, div. D, title
XLII, § 4237(d), Oct. 23, 1992, 106 Stat. 2692; Pub.
L. 102–564, title I, §§ 103, 104, title II, § 202(a)–(c),
title III, §§ 301(a), 305, Oct. 28, 1992, 106 Stat. 4250,
4254, 4256, 4257, 4261, 4262; Pub. L. 103–403, title
VI, § 607, Oct. 22, 1994, 108 Stat. 4204; Pub. L.
104–208, div. D, title I, § 110, Sept. 30, 1996, 110
Stat. 3009–733; Pub. L. 105–135, title V, § 501, Dec.
2, 1997, 111 Stat. 2620; Pub. L. 106–113, div. B,
§ 1000(a)(9) [title IV, § 4732(b)(5)], Nov. 29, 1999, 113
Stat. 1536, 1501A–583; Pub. L. 106–554, § 1(a)(9)

Page 820

[title I, §§ 103–107, 109, 110, 111(c), 113, 114(b)], Dec.
21, 2000, 114 Stat. 2763, 2763A–669, 2763A–673,
2763A–679, 2763A–681; Pub. L. 107–50, §§ 2, 3(a), 4–7,
Oct. 15, 2001, 115 Stat. 263–265; Pub. L. 108–271,
§ 8(b), July 7, 2004, 118 Stat. 814; Pub. L. 109–163,
div. A, title II, § 252, Jan. 6, 2006, 119 Stat. 3177;
Pub. L. 110–140, title XII, § 1203(e), Dec. 19, 2007,
121 Stat. 1771; Pub. L. 111–84, div. A, title VIII,
§§ 847(a), (b), 848, Oct. 28, 2009, 123 Stat. 2420, 2421;
Pub. L. 111–383, div. A, title X, § 1075(l), Jan. 7,
2011, 124 Stat. 4378; Pub. L. 112–17, §§ 3, 4, June 1,
2011, 125 Stat. 221, 222; Pub. L. 112–81, div. A, title
X, § 1067(a), div. E, title LI, §§ 5101–5107(a),
5108–5111, 5121–5123, 5125–5127, 5131–5135, 5138, 5140,
5141(a), (b)(1), (3), 5144, 5161, 5162, 5164–5167, Dec.
31, 2011, 125 Stat. 1589, 1824–1827, 1832–1836,
1838–1842, 1844–1847, 1851–1854, 1857–1861.)
AMENDMENT OF SECTION
Pub. L. 112–81, div. E, title LI, § 5141(b)(3),
Dec. 31, 2011, 125 Stat. 1854, provided that, effective on the first day of the fourth full fiscal
year following Dec. 31, 2011, this section is
amended as follows:
(1) in subsection (f)(2), by striking ‘‘shall not
make available for the purpose’’ and inserting
the following: ‘‘shall not—
‘‘(A) use any of its SBIR budget established
pursuant to paragraph (1) for the purpose of
funding administrative costs of the program, including costs associated with salaries and expenses; or
‘‘(B) make available for the purpose’’; and
(2) in subsection (y)—
(A) by redesignating paragraphs (4) and (5)
as paragraphs (5) and (6), respectively; and
(B) by inserting after paragraph (3) the following:
‘‘(4) Funding
‘‘(A) In general
‘‘The Secretary of Defense and each Secretary
of a military department may use not more than
an amount equal to 1 percent of the funds
available to the Department of Defense or the
military department pursuant to the Small Business Innovation Research Program for payment
of expenses incurred to administer the Commercialization Readiness Program under this subsection.
‘‘(B) Limitations
‘‘The funds described in subparagraph (A)—
‘‘(i) shall not be subject to the limitations
on the use of funds in subsection (f)(2); and
‘‘(ii) shall not be used to make Phase III
awards.’’
REFERENCES IN TEXT
Executive Order 13329, referred to in subsecs. (b)(8),
(g)(11), and (o)(15), and (ss)(2), is set out as a note under
this section.
The Federal Trade Commission Act, referred to in
subsec. (d)(3), is act Sept. 26, 1914, ch. 311, 38 Stat. 717,
which is classified generally to subchapter I (§ 41 et
seq.) of chapter 2 of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 58 of this title
and Tables.
Executive Order 12333, referred to in subsec. (e)(2), is
set out as a note under section 401 of Title 50, War and
National Defense.
Section 3703(5) of this title, referred to in subsec.
(e)(8), was redesignated section 3703(3) by Pub. L. 110–69,
title III, § 3002(c)(3), Aug. 9, 2007, 121 Stat. 586.

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

Section 6683 of title 42, referred to in subsecs.
(g)(3)(A), (j)(2)(E)(i), and (o)(3)(A), was omitted from the
Code.
Section 2522 of title 10, referred to in subsecs.
(g)(3)(B), (j)(2)(E)(ii), and (o)(3)(B), which related to annual defense critical technology plan, was repealed, and
section 2518 (relating to Defense Advanced Manufacturing Technology Partnerships) was redesignated as section 2522, by Pub. L. 102–484, div. D, title XLII, §§ 4202(a),
4232(a), Oct. 23, 1992, 106 Stat. 2659, 2687, and subsequently repealed.
Section 105 of the Small Business Research and Development Enhancement Act of 1992, referred to in subsec. (j)(2)(I), is section 105 of Pub. L. 102–564, which is
set out below.
CODIFICATION
In subsec. (e)(8), ‘‘section 1303(a)(1) of title 41’’ substituted for ‘‘section 35(c)(1) of the Office of Federal
Procurement Policy Act’’, which probably should have
been a reference to ‘‘section 25(c)(1) of the Office of
Federal Procurement Policy Act’’ because that Act
does not contain a section 35 and section 25(c) of that
Act relates to issuance of the Federal Acquisition Regulation, on authority of Pub. L. 111–350, § 6(c), Jan. 4,
2011, 124 Stat. 3854, which Act enacted Title 41, Public
Contracts.
In subsec. (n)(2)(A), ‘‘section 1303(a)(1) of title 41’’ substituted for ‘‘section 25(c)(1) of the Office of Federal
Procurement Policy Act’’ on authority of Pub. L.
111–350, § 6(c), Jan. 4, 2011, 124 Stat. 3854, which Act enacted Title 41, Public Contracts.
Section 209 of act July 30, 1953, ch. 282, title II, 67
Stat. 237, was previously classified to this section. See
section 645 of this title and Codification note set out
under section 631 of this title.
AMENDMENTS
2011—Subsec. (b)(7). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5131(1)(B), which
directed amendment of par. (7) by striking ‘‘(g)(10),
(o)(9), and (o)(15) of this section, the number’’ and all
that followed through ‘‘under each of the SBIR and
STTR programs, and a description’’ and inserting
‘‘(g)(8) and (o)(9);’’, subpars. (B) to (F), and ‘‘(G) a description’’, was executed by striking ‘‘(g)(10), (o)(9), and
(o)(15) of this section, and including an accounting of
funds, initiatives, and outcomes under the Commercialization Pilot Program the number of proposals received from, and the number and total amount of
awards to, HUBZone small business concerns under
each of the SBIR and STTR programs, and a description’’ to reflect the probable intent of Congress and the
intervening amendment by section 1067(a)(1) of Pub. L.
112–81. See below.
Pub. L. 112–81, § 5131(1)(A), substituted ‘‘STTR programs, including—’’ for ‘‘STTR programs, including’’,
and inserted subpar. (A) designation before ‘‘the data
on output’’.
Pub. L. 112–81, § 1067(a)(1), inserted ‘‘and including an
accounting of funds, initiatives, and outcomes under
the Commercialization Pilot Program’’ after ‘‘and
(o)(15) of this section,’’.
Subsec. (b)(9). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5131(1)(C), (2), (3), added
par. (9).
Subsec. (e)(4)(B). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5105(1), substituted
‘‘which shall not include any invitation, pre-screening,
or pre-selection process for eligibility for Phase II, that
will further’’ for ‘‘to further’’.
Subsec. (e)(4)(C). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(a)(1), inserted
‘‘for work that derives from, extends, or completes efforts made under prior funding agreements under the
SBIR program’’ after ‘‘phase’’ in introductory provisions.
Subsec. (e)(4)(C)(ii). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(1)(A), substituted ‘‘merit-based selection procedures’’ for ‘‘scientific review criteria’’.
Subsec. (e)(6)(B). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5105(2), substituted
‘‘which shall not include any invitation, pre-screening,
or pre-selection process for eligibility for Phase II, that

§ 638

will further develop proposals that’’ for ‘‘to further develop proposed ideas to’’.
Subsec. (e)(6)(C). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(a)(2), inserted
‘‘for work that derives from, extends, or completes efforts made under prior funding agreements under the
STTR program’’ after ‘‘phase’’ in introductory provisions.
Subsec. (e)(9). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(1)(B), substituted ‘‘Phase II or Phase III’’ for ‘‘the second or the
third phase’’.
Subsec. (e)(10). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(a)(3)–(5), added
par. (10).
Subsec. (e)(11) to (13). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(1)(C),
added pars. (11) to (13).
Subsec. (f)(1). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5102(a)(1), substituted
‘‘Except as provided in paragraph (2)(B), each’’ for
‘‘Each’’ in introductory provisions, added subpars. (C)
to (I), and struck out former subpar. (C) which read as
follows: ‘‘not less than 2.5 percent of such budget in
each fiscal year thereafter,’’.
Subsec. (f)(2). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5141(b)(1)(A), substituted ‘‘shall not make available for the purpose’’ for
‘‘shall not—
‘‘(A) use any of its SBIR budget established pursuant to paragraph (1) for the purpose of funding administrative costs of the program, including costs associated with salaries and expenses; or
‘‘(B) make available for the purpose’’.
Subsec. (f)(4). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5102(a)(2), added par.
(4).
Subsec. (g)(4). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5126(a)(1), designated
existing provisions as subpar. (A) and added subpar. (B).
Subsec. (g)(8) to (10). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5132, added par.
(8), redesignated former pars. (8) and (9) as (9) and (10),
respectively, and struck out former par. (10) which read
as follows: ‘‘collect, and maintain in a common format
in accordance with subsection (v) of this section, such
information from awardees as is necessary to assess the
SBIR program, including information necessary to
maintain the database described in subsection (k) of
this section;’’.
Subsec. (g)(12). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5110(a), added par. (12).
Subsec. (i)(1). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5122(b), inserted ‘‘(including awards under subsection (y))’’ after ‘‘the number of awards’’.
Subsec. (j)(1)(B). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(2)(A), substituted ‘‘Phase II’’ for ‘‘phase two’’.
Subsec. (j)(2)(B). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(2)(B)(i), substituted ‘‘Phase III’’ for ‘‘the third phase’’ in two places
and ‘‘Phase II’’ for ‘‘the second phase’’.
Subsec. (j)(2)(D). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(2)(B)(ii), substituted ‘‘Phase I’’ for ‘‘the first phase’’ and ‘‘‘Phase II’’
for ‘‘the second phase’’.
Pub. L. 112–81, § 5103(c)(1), substituted ‘‘every year for
inflation’’ for ‘‘once every 5 years to reflect economic
adjustments and programmatic considerations’’.
Pub. L. 112–81, § 5103(a), substituted ‘‘$150,000’’ for
‘‘$100,000’’ and ‘‘$1,000,000’’ for ‘‘$750,000’’.
Subsec. (j)(2)(F). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(2)(B)(iii), substituted ‘‘Phase III’’ for ‘‘the third phase’’.
Subsec. (j)(2)(G). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(2)(B)(iv), substituted ‘‘Phase I’’ for ‘‘the first phase’’ and ‘‘Phase II’’
for ‘‘the second phase’’.
Subsec. (j)(2)(H). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(2)(B)(v), substituted ‘‘Phase I’’ for ‘‘the first phase’’, ‘‘Phase II’’ for
‘‘second phase’’ in two places, and ‘‘Phase III’’ for
‘‘third phase’’.
Subsec. (j)(3)(A). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(2)(C)(i), substituted ‘‘Phase I’’ for ‘‘the first phase (as described in
subsection (e)(4)(A) of this section)’’, ‘‘Phase II’’ for
‘‘(as described in subsection (e)(4)(B) of this section)’’,
and ‘‘Phase III’’ for ‘‘the third phase (as described in
subsection (e)(4)(C) of this section)’’.
Subsec. (j)(3)(B). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(2)(C)(ii), substituted ‘‘Phase II’’ for ‘‘second phase’’.
Subsec. (k). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(3), substituted
‘‘Phase I’’ for ‘‘first phase’’ and ‘‘Phase II’’ for ‘‘second
phase’’ wherever appearing.
Subsec. (k)(1)(F). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5134, added subpar.
(F).

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

Subsec. (k)(2). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5135(1), in introductory
provisions, substituted ‘‘Not later than 90 days after
December 31, 2011’’ for ‘‘Not later than 180 days after
December 21, 2000’’, added subpars. (A), (D), and (G), redesignated former subpars. (A), (B), (D), and (E) as (B),
(C), (E), and (F), respectively, and struck out former
subpar. (C) which read as follows: ‘‘includes for each applicant for a Phase I or Phase II award that does not receive such an award—
‘‘(i) the name, size, and location, and an identifying
number assigned by the Administration;
‘‘(ii) an abstract of the project; and
‘‘(iii) the Federal agency to which the application
was made;’’.
Subsec. (k)(3)(C). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5135(2), added subpar. (C).
Subsec. (l)(2). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(4), substituted
‘‘Phase I’’ for ‘‘the first phase’’ and ‘‘Phase II’’ for ‘‘the
second phase’’.
Subsec. (m). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5101(a), substituted
‘‘2017’’ for ‘‘2011’’.
Pub. L. 112–17, § 3(a), struck out par. (1) designation
and heading, substituted ‘‘The authorization’’ for ‘‘Except as provided in paragraph (2), the authorization’’
and ‘‘2011’’ for ‘‘2008’’, and struck out par. (2). Text of
par. (2) read as follows: ‘‘The Secretary of Defense and
the Secretary of each military department are authorized to carry out the Small Business Innovation Research Program of the Department of Defense until
September 30, 2010’’.
Subsec. (m)(2). Pub. L. 111–383 substituted ‘‘are authorized’’ for ‘‘is authorized’’.
Subsec. (n)(1)(A). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5101(b), substituted
‘‘2017’’ for ‘‘2011’’.
Pub. L. 112–17, § 3(b), struck out cl. (i) designation and
heading, substituted ‘‘With respect’’ for ‘‘Except as provided in clause (ii), with respect’’ and ‘‘2011’’ for ‘‘2009’’,
and struck out cl. (ii). Text of cl. (ii) read as follows:
‘‘The Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of each
military department shall carry out clause (i) with respect to each fiscal year through fiscal year 2010.’’
Subsec. (n)(1)(B)(ii) to (v). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5102(b),
added cls. (ii) to (v) and struck out former cl. (ii) which
read as follows: ‘‘0.3 percent for fiscal year 2004 and
each fiscal year thereafter.’’
Subsec. (o)(4). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5126(a)(2), designated
existing provisions as subpar. (A) and added subpar. (B).
Subsec. (o)(9). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5133, added par. (9) and
struck out former par. (9) which read as follows: ‘‘collect such data from awardees as is necessary to assess
STTR program outputs and outcomes;’’.
Subsec. (o)(13)(B). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(5)(A), substituted ‘‘Phase II’’ for ‘‘second phase’’.
Subsec. (o)(13)(C). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(5)(B), substituted ‘‘Phase III’’ for ‘‘third phase’’.
Subsec. (o)(15), (16). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5110(b), added par.
(16), redesignated former par. (16) as (15) and struck out
former par. (15) which read as follows: ‘‘collect, and
maintain in a common format in accordance with subsection (v) of this section, such information from
awardees as is necessary to assess the STTR program,
including information necessary to maintain the database described in subsection (k) of this section; and’’.
Subsec. (p)(2)(B)(vi). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(6)(A)(i),
substituted ‘‘Phase II’’ for ‘‘the second phase’’ and
‘‘Phase III’’ for ‘‘the third phase’’.
Subsec. (p)(2)(B)(ix). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(6)(A)(ii),
substituted ‘‘Phase I’’ for ‘‘the first phase’’ and ‘‘Phase
II’’ for ‘‘the second phase’’.
Pub. L. 112–81, § 5103(c)(2), inserted ‘‘(each of which
the Administrator shall adjust for inflation annually)’’
after ‘‘$1,000,000,’’.
Pub. L. 112–81, § 5103(b), substituted ‘‘$150,000’’ for
‘‘$100,000’’ and ‘‘$1,000,000’’ for ‘‘$750,000’’.
Subsec. (p)(3). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(6)(B), substituted ‘‘Phase I’’ for ‘‘the first phase (as described in
subsection (e)(6)(A) of this section)’’, ‘‘Phase II’’ for
‘‘the second phase (as described in subsection (e)(6)(B)
of this section)’’, and ‘‘Phase III’’ for ‘‘the third phase
(as described in subsection (e)(6)(C) of this section)’’.

Page 822

Subsec. (q)(1). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5121(1), inserted ‘‘or
STTR program’’ after ‘‘SBIR program’’ and substituted
‘‘SBIR or STTR projects’’ for ‘‘SBIR projects’’ in introductory provisions.
Subsec. (q)(2). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5121(2), substituted ‘‘5
years’’ for ‘‘3 years’’.
Subsec. (q)(3). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5121(3), added subpars.
(A) to (D) and struck out former subpars. (A) and (B)
which read as follows:
‘‘(A) First phase
‘‘Each agency referred to in paragraph (1) may provide services described in paragraph (1) to first phase
SBIR award recipients in an amount equal to not
more than $4,000, which shall be in addition to the
amount of the recipient’s award.
‘‘(B) Second phase
‘‘Each agency referred to in paragraph (1) may authorize any second phase SBIR award recipient to
purchase, with funds available from their SBIR
awards, services described in paragraph (1), in an
amount equal to not more than $4,000 per year.’’
Subsec. (r). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(7)(A), substituted
‘‘Phase III’’ for ‘‘Third phase’’ in heading.
Subsec. (r)(1). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(7)(B), substituted, in first sentence, ‘‘for Phase II’’ for ‘‘for the
second phase’’, ‘‘Phase III’’ for ‘‘third phase’’, and
‘‘Phase II period’’ for ‘‘second phase period’’, and, in
second sentence, ‘‘Phase II’’ for ‘‘second phase’’ and
‘‘Phase III’’ for ‘‘third phase’’.
Subsec. (r)(2). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(7)(C), substituted ‘‘Phase III’’ for ‘‘third phase’’.
Subsec. (r)(4). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5108, added par. (4).
Subsec. (s). Pub. L. 112–17, § 4, added subsec. (s).
Subsec. (u)(2)(B). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5125(b)(8), substituted ‘‘Phase I’’ for ‘‘the first phase’’ in introductory
provisions.
Subsec. (v). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5144, substituted ‘‘Reducing paperwork and compliance burden’’ for ‘‘Simplified
reporting requirements’’ in heading, designated existing provisions as par. (1), inserted heading, and added
par. (2).
Subsec. (y). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5122(a)(1), (2), substituted
‘‘Readiness’’ for ‘‘Pilot’’ wherever appearing in heading
and text.
Subsec. (y)(1). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5122(a)(3), inserted ‘‘or
Small Business Technology Transfer Program’’ after
‘‘Small Business Innovation Research Program’’ and
inserted at end ‘‘The authority to create and administer a Commercialization Readiness Program under
this subsection may not be construed to eliminate or
replace any other SBIR program or STTR program that
enhances the insertion or transition of SBIR or STTR
technologies, including any such program in effect on
January 6, 2006.’’
Subsec. (y)(2). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5122(a)(4), inserted ‘‘or
Small Business Technology Transfer Program’’ after
‘‘Small Business Innovation Research Program’’.
Subsec. (y)(4). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5141(b)(1)(B), redesignated par. (5) as (4) and struck out former par. (4),
which related to funding of expenses incurred to administer the Commercialization Readiness Program.
Subsec. (y)(5). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5141(b)(1)(B)(ii), redesignated par. (6) as (5). Former par. (5) redesignated (4).
Pub. L. 112–81, § 5122(a)(7), added par. (5).
Pub. L. 112–81, § 5122(a)(5), which directed that par. (5)
be struck out, could not be executed because par. (5)
was struck out by intervening amendment of Pub. L.
112–81, § 1067(a)(2). See below.
Pub. L. 112–81, § 1067(a)(2), struck out par. (5) which
required the Secretary of Defense to submit an annual
evaluative report regarding activities under the Commercialization Pilot Program.
Subsec. (y)(6). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5141(b)(1)(B)(ii), redesignated par. (6) as (5).
Pub. L. 112–81, § 5122(a)(6), (7), added par. (6) and
struck out former par. (6), which provided that pilot
program would terminate at the end of fiscal year 2011.
Pub. L. 112–17, § 3(c), substituted ‘‘2011’’ for ‘‘2010’’.
Subsec. (aa). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5103(d), added subsec.
(aa).

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Subsec. (bb). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5104, added subsec. (bb).
Subsec. (cc). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5106, added subsec. (cc).
Subsec. (dd). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5107(a), added subsec.
(dd).
Subsec. (ee). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5109, added subsec. (ee).
Subsec. (ff). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5111, added subsec. (ff).
Subsec. (gg). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5123, added subsec. (gg).
Subsecs. (hh), (ii). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5126(b), added subsecs. (hh) and (ii).
Subsec. (jj). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5127, added subsec. (jj).
Subsec. (kk). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5138, added subsec. (kk).
Subsec. (ll). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5140, added subsec. (ll).
Subsec. (mm). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5141(a), added subsec.
(mm).
Subsec. (nn). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5161, added subsec. (nn).
Subsec. (oo). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5162, added subsec. (oo).
Subsec. (pp). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5164, added subsec. (pp).
Subsec. (qq). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5165, added subsec. (qq).
Subsec. (rr). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5166, added subsec. (rr).
Subsec. (ss). Pub. L. 112–81, § 5167, added subsec. (ss).
2009—Subsec. (m). Pub. L. 111–84, § 847(a), designated
existing provisions as par. (1), inserted par. (1) heading,
substituted ‘‘Except as provided in paragraph (2), the
authorization’’ for ‘‘The authorization’’, and added par.
(2).
Subsec. (n)(1)(A). Pub. L. 111–84, § 847(b), designated
existing provisions as cl. (i), inserted cl. (i) heading,
substituted ‘‘Except as provided in clause (ii), with respect’’ for ‘‘With respect’’, and added cl. (ii).
Subsec. (y)(6). Pub. L. 111–84, § 848, substituted ‘‘2010’’
for ‘‘2009’’.
2007—Subsec. (z). Pub. L. 110–140 added subsec. (z).
2006—Subsec. (b)(8). Pub. L. 109–163, § 252(b)(1), added
par. (8).
Subsec. (e)(9). Pub. L. 109–163, § 252(c), added par. (9).
Subsec. (g)(11). Pub. L. 109–163, § 252(b)(2), added par.
(11).
Subsec. (o)(16). Pub. L. 109–163, § 252(b)(3), added par.
(16).
Subsecs. (x), (y). Pub. L. 109–163, § 252(a), added subsecs. (x) and (y).
2004—Subsec. (j)(2)(I). Pub. L. 108–271 substituted
‘‘Government Accountability Office’’ for ‘‘General Accounting Office’’.
2001—Subsec. (b)(4). Pub. L. 107–50, § 2(b), struck out
‘‘pilot’’ before ‘‘programs;’’.
Subsec. (b)(7). Pub. L. 107–50, § 6(d), substituted
‘‘, (o)(9), and (o)(15) of this section, the number of proposals received from, and the number and total amount
of awards to, HUBZone small business concerns under
each of the SBIR and STTR programs,’’ for ‘‘and (o)(9)
of this section,’’.
Subsec. (e)(6). Pub. L. 107–50, § 2(b), struck out ‘‘pilot’’
before ‘‘program’’ in introductory provisions.
Subsec. (k)(1). Pub. L. 107–50, § 6(b)(1), inserted ‘‘or
STTR’’ after ‘‘SBIR’’ in subpars. (A) to (C) and added
subpar. (E).
Subsec. (k)(2). Pub. L. 107–50, § 6(b)(2)(A), (B), in introductory provisions, inserted ‘‘or an STTR program pursuant to subsection (n)(1) of this section’’ after ‘‘(f)(1)
of this section’’ and substituted ‘‘exclusively for SBIR
and STTR’’ for ‘‘solely for SBIR’’.
Subsec. (k)(2)(A)(iii). Pub. L. 107–50, § 6(b)(2)(C), inserted ‘‘and STTR’’ after ‘‘SBIR’’.
Subsec. (k)(2)(D). Pub. L. 107–50, § 6(b)(2)(D), inserted
‘‘or STTR’’ after ‘‘SBIR’’.
Subsec. (n)(1). Pub. L. 107–50, § 2(a), amended heading
and text of par. (1) generally. Prior to amendment, text
read as follows: ‘‘With respect to fiscal years 1998, 1999,
2000, and 2001, each Federal agency that has an extramural budget for research, or research and development, in excess of $1,000,000,000 for that fiscal year, is
authorized to expend with small business concerns not
less than 0.15 percent of that extramural budget specifically in connection with STTR programs that meet the
requirements of this section and any policy directives
and regulations issued under this section.’’
Subsec. (o)(11). Pub. L. 107–50, § 7(b), substituted
‘‘adopt the agreement developed by the Administrator
under subsection (w) of this section as the agency’s

§ 638

model agreement’’ for ‘‘develop a model agreement not
later than July 31, 1993, to be approved by the Administration,’’.
Subsec. (o)(14). Pub. L. 107–50, § 4, added par. (14).
Subsec. (o)(15). Pub. L. 107–50, § 6(a), added par. (15).
Subsec. (p)(2)(B)(ix). Pub. L. 107–50, § 3, substituted
‘‘$750,000’’ for ‘‘$500,000’’ and inserted ‘‘, and shorter or
longer periods of time to be approved at the discretion
of the awarding agency where appropriate for a particular project’’ before the semicolon at the end.
Subsec. (p)(3). Pub. L. 107–50, § 5, added par. (3).
Subsec. (v). Pub. L. 107–50, § 6(c), inserted ‘‘or STTR’’
after ‘‘SBIR’’ in two places.
Subsec. (w). Pub. L. 107–50, § 7(a), added subsec. (w).
2000—Subsec. (b)(7). Pub. L. 106–554, § 1(a)(9) [title I,
§ 107(b)], inserted before period at end ‘‘, including the
data on output and outcomes collected pursuant to subsections (g)(10) and (o)(9) of this section, and a description of the extent to which Federal agencies are providing in a timely manner information needed to maintain
the database described in subsection (k) of this section’’.
Pub. L. 106–554, § 1(a)(9) [title I, § 104], substituted
‘‘, and to the Committee on Science and the Committee on Small Business of the House of Representatives,’’ for ‘‘and the Committee on Small Business of
the House of Representatives’’.
Subsec. (e)(4)(C)(i). Pub. L. 106–554, § 1(a)(9) [title I,
§ 105], substituted ‘‘; or’’ for ‘‘; and’’ at end.
Subsec. (g)(9). Pub. L. 106–554, § 1(a)(9) [title I, § 106],
added par. (9).
Subsec. (g)(10). Pub. L. 106–554, § 1(a)(9) [title I,
§ 107(a)], added par. (10).
Subsec. (i). Pub. L. 106–554, § 1(a)(9) [title I, § 109], inserted subsec. heading, designated existing provisions
as par. (1), inserted par. heading, and added par. (2).
Subsec. (j)(3). Pub. L. 106–554, § 1(a)(9) [title I, § 110],
added par. (3).
Subsec. (k). Pub. L. 106–554, § 1(a)(9) [title I, § 107(c)],
amended subsec. (k) generally, substituting present
provisions for provisions which read ‘‘(k) [Reserved]’’.
Subsec. (m). Pub. L. 106–554, § 1(a)(9) [title I, § 103],
amended heading and text generally. Prior to amendment, text read as follows: ‘‘The authorization to carry
out the Small Business Innovation Research Program
under this section shall terminate on October 1, 2000.’’
Subsec. (s)(2). Pub. L. 106–554, § 1(a)(9) [title I, § 114(b)],
substituted ‘‘for each of the fiscal years 2000 through
2005,’’ for ‘‘for fiscal year 1998, 1999, 2000, or 2001’’.
Subsec. (u). Pub. L. 106–554, § 1(a)(9) [title I, § 111(c)],
added subsec. (u).
Subsec. (v). Pub. L. 106–554, § 1(a)(9) [title I, § 113],
added subsec. (v).
1999—Subsec. (p)(1)(B). Pub. L. 106–113 amended subpar. (B) generally. Prior to amendment, subpar. (B)
read as follows: ‘‘the Commissioner of Patents and
Trademarks; and’’.
1997—Subsec. (e)(4)(A). Pub. L. 105–135, § 501(b)(1)(B),
substituted ‘‘subparagraph (B)’’ for ‘‘subparagraph
(B)(ii)’’.
Subsec. (n)(1). Pub. L. 105–135, § 501(a), added par. (1)
and struck out heading and text of former par. (1). Text
read as follows: ‘‘Each Federal agency which has an extramural budget for research or research and development in excess of $1,000,000,000 in fiscal year 1994, 1995,
or 1996, is authorized to expend with small business
concerns—
‘‘(A) not less than 0.05 percent of such budget in fiscal year 1994;
‘‘(B) not less than 0.1 percent of such budget in fiscal year 1995; and
‘‘(C) not less than 0.15 percent of such budget in fiscal years 1996 and 1997,
specifically in connection with STTR programs which
meet the requirements of this section, policy directives, and regulations issued under this section.’’
Subsec. (o)(8) to (13). Pub. L. 105–135, § 501(b)(1)(A),
added pars. (8) and (9) and redesignated former pars. (8)
to (11) as (10) to (13), respectively.
Subsec. (s). Pub. L. 105–135, § 501(b)(2), struck out subsec. (s), which related to outreach, including provisions

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

defining eligible State and relating to program authority, amount of assistance, and use of assistance.
Pub. L. 105–135, § 501(b)(1)(C), added subsec. (s).
Subsec. (t). Pub. L. 105–135, § 501(b)(1)(C), added subsec. (t).
1996—Subsec. (n)(1)(C). Pub. L. 104–208 substituted
‘‘fiscal years 1996 and 1997’’ for ‘‘fiscal year 1996’’.
1994—Subsec. (q)(2). Pub. L. 103–403 amended heading
and text of par. (2) generally. Prior to amendment, text
read as follows: ‘‘Annually, each agency may select a
vendor for purposes of this subsection using competitive, merit-based criteria, to assist small business concerns to meet the goals listed in paragraph (1).’’
1992—Subsec. (b)(4). Pub. L. 102–564, § 202(a)(1), inserted before semicolon at end ‘‘and small business
technology transfer pilot programs’’.
Subsec. (b)(5) to (7). Pub. L. 102–564, § 202(a)(2), inserted ‘‘and STTR’’ after ‘‘SBIR’’ wherever appearing.
Subsec. (e)(1). Pub. L. 102–564, § 103(c), substituted
‘‘for the Department of Energy it shall not include
amounts obligated for atomic energy defense programs
solely for weapons activities or for naval reactor programs’’ for ‘‘for the Department of Defense it shall not
include amounts obligated solely for operational systems development’’.
Pub. L. 102–484, § 4237(d)(1), (2)(A), (h)(2), temporarily
amended par. (1) by striking out ‘‘except that for the
Department of Defense it shall not include amounts obligated solely for operational systems development,
and’’ after ‘‘Government-operated facilities,’’ and substituting ‘‘, and except that for the Department of Energy it shall not include amounts obligated for atomic
energy defense programs for weapons and weapons-related activities or for naval reactor programs;’’ for
semicolon at end. See section 4237(h)(2) of Pub. L.
102–484 set out in a Small Business Innovation Research
Program in Department of Defense note below.
Subsec. (e)(4)(A). Pub. L. 102–564, § 103(a)(1), inserted
‘‘that appear to have commercial potential, as described in subparagraph (B)(ii),’’ after ‘‘ideas’’.
Subsec. (e)(4)(B). Pub. L. 102–564, § 103(a)(2), added subpar. (B) and struck out former subpar. (B) which read
as follows: ‘‘a second phase to further develop the proposed ideas to meet the particular program needs, the
awarding of which shall take into consideration the scientific and technical merit and feasibility evidenced by
the first phase and, where two or more proposals are
evaluated as being of approximately equal scientific
and technical merit and feasibility, special consideration shall be given to those proposals that have demonstrated third phase, non-Federal capital commitments; and’’.
Subsec. (e)(4)(C). Pub. L. 102–564, § 103(a)(2), added subpar. (C) and struck out former subpar. (C) which read as
follows: ‘‘where appropriate, a third phase in which
non-Federal capital pursues commercial applications of
the research or research and development and which
may also involve follow-on non-SBIR funded production contracts with a Federal agency for products or
processes intended for use by the United States Government; and’’.
Subsec. (e)(6) to (8). Pub. L. 102–564, § 202(b), added
pars. (6) to (8).
Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 102–564, § 103(b), amended subsec.
(f) generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (f) consisted
of pars. (1) and (2) relating to Federal agency extramural budget expenditures for fiscal years 1982 and
thereafter for small business concerns in connection
with small business innovation research programs
meeting the requirements of the Small Business Innovation Development Act of 1982.
Subsec. (f)(2). Pub. L. 102–484, § 4237(d)(2)(B), (h)(2),
temporarily struck out par. (2) which read ‘‘Amounts
appropriated for atomic energy defense programs of the
Department of Energy shall for the purposes of paragraph (1) be excluded from the amount of the research
or research and development budget of that Department.’’ See section 4237(h)(2) of Pub. L. 102–484 set out
in a Small Business Innovation Research Program in
Department of Defense note below.

Page 824

Subsec. (g)(3), (4). Pub. L. 102–564, § 103(d), added par.
(3) and redesignated former par. (3) as (4). Former par.
(4) redesignated (5).
Subsec. (g)(5). Pub. L. 102–564, § 103(d)(1), (h)(2), (i), redesignated par. (4) as (5) and inserted ‘‘subject to subsection (l) of this section,’’ before ‘‘unilaterally’’ and
‘‘and inform each awardee under such an agreement, to
the extent possible, of the expenses of the awardee that
will be allowable under the funding agreement’’ before
semicolon at end. Former par. (5) redesignated (6).
Subsec. (g)(6). Pub. L. 102–564, § 103(d)(1), redesignated
par. (5) as (6). Former par. (6) redesignated (7).
Subsec. (g)(7). Pub. L. 102–564, § 103(d)(1), (e), redesignated par. (6) as (7) and inserted before semicolon at
end ‘‘and, in all cases, make payment to recipients
under such agreements in full, subject to audit, on or
before the last day of the 12-month period beginning on
the date of completion of such requirements’’. Former
par. (7) redesignated (8).
Subsec. (g)(8). Pub. L. 102–564, § 103(d)(1), redesignated
par. (7) as (8).
Subsec. (j). Pub. L. 102–564, § 103(f), designated existing provisions as par. (1) and inserted heading, redesignated former pars. (1) and (2) as subpars. (A) and (B), respectively, of par. (1), former subpars. (A) to (H) of
former par. (2) as cls. (i) to (viii), respectively, of subpar. (B) of par. (1), and former pars. (3) to (7) as subpars.
(C) to (G), respectively, of par. (1), and added par. (2).
Subsec. (k). Pub. L. 102–564, § 103(g), amended subsec.
(k) generally, substituting ‘‘(k) [Reserved]’’ for prior
provisions of subsec. (k) which read as follows: ‘‘The Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy,
in consultation with the Federal Coordinating Council
for Science, Engineering and Research, shall, in addition to such other responsibilities imposed upon him by
the Small Business Innovation Development Act of
1982—
‘‘(1) independently survey and monitor all phases of
the implementation and operation of SBIR programs
within agencies required to establish an SBIR program, including compliance with the expenditures of
funds according to the requirements of subsection (f)
of this section; and
‘‘(2) report not less than annually, and at such
other times as the Director may deem appropriate, to
the Committees on Small Business of the Senate and
the House of Representatives on all phases of the implementation and operation of SBIR programs within
agencies required to establish an SBIR program, together with such recommendations as the Director
may deem appropriate.’’
Subsec. (l). Pub. L. 102–564, § 103(h)(1), added subsec.
(l).
Subsec. (m). Pub. L. 102–564, § 104(b), added subsec.
(m).
Subsecs. (n) to (p). Pub. L. 102–564, § 202(c), added subsecs. (n) to (p).
Subsec. (q). Pub. L. 102–564, § 301(a), added subsec. (q).
Subsec. (r). Pub. L. 102–564, § 305, added subsec. (r).
1988—Subsec. (j)(6), (7). Pub. L. 100–590 added pars. (6)
and (7).
1986—Subsec. (e)(1). Pub. L. 99–443, § 1, inserted provision that for the Department of Defense, the extramural budget shall not include amounts obligated solely for operational systems development.
1982—Subsec. (b)(4) to (7). Pub. L. 97–219, § 3, added
pars. (4) to (7).
Subsecs. (e) to (k). Pub. L. 97–219, § 4, added subsecs.
(e) to (k).
CHANGE OF NAME
Committee on Small Business of Senate changed to
Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship of
Senate. See Senate Resolution No. 123, One Hundred
Seventh Congress, June 29, 2001.
Committee on Science of House of Representatives
changed to Committee on Science and Technology of
House of Representatives by House Resolution No. 6,
One Hundred Tenth Congress, Jan. 5, 2007. Committee
on Science and Technology of House of Representatives

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changed to Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of House of Representatives by House Resolution No. 5, One Hundred Twelfth Congress, Jan. 5, 2011.
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2011 AMENDMENT
Pub. L. 112–81, div. E, title LI, § 5141(b)(3), Dec. 31,
2011, 125 Stat. 1854, provided in part that the amendments made by section 5141(b)(3) of Pub. L. 112–81
(amending this section) were effective on the first day
of the fourth full fiscal year following Dec. 31, 2011.
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2009 AMENDMENT
Pub. L. 111–84, div. A, title VIII, § 847(c), Oct. 28, 2009,
123 Stat. 2421, provided that: ‘‘The amendments made
by this section [amending this section] shall take effect
as of July 30, 2009.’’
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2007 AMENDMENT
Amendment by Pub. L. 110–140 effective on the date
that is 1 day after Dec. 19, 2007, see section 1601 of Pub.
L. 110–140, set out as an Effective Date note under section 1824 of Title 2, The Congress.
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2001 AMENDMENT
Pub. L. 107–50, § 3(b), Oct. 15, 2001, 115 Stat. 263, provided that: ‘‘The amendments made by subsection (a)
[amending this section] shall be effective beginning in
fiscal year 2004.’’
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1999 AMENDMENT
Amendment by Pub. L. 106–113 effective 4 months
after Nov. 29, 1999, see section 1000(a)(9) [title IV, § 4731]
of Pub. L. 106–113, set out as a note under section 1 of
Title 35, Patents.
EFFECTIVE AND TERMINATION DATES OF 1997
AMENDMENT
Amendment by Pub. L. 105–135 effective Oct. 1, 1997,
see section 3 of Pub. L. 105–135, set out as a note under
section 631 of this title.
Section 501(b)(2) of Pub. L. 105–135, as amended by
Pub. L. 106–554, § 1(a)(9) [title I, § 114(a)], Dec. 21, 2000,
114 Stat. 2763, 2763A–681, provided that: ‘‘Effective October 1, 2005, section 9(s) of the Small Business Act [15
U.S.C. 638(s)] (as added by paragraph (1) of this subsection) is repealed.’’
EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1996 AMENDMENT
Amendment by Pub. L. 104–208 effective Oct. 1, 1996,
see section 3 of Pub. L. 104–208, set out as a note under
section 633 of this title.
EFFECTIVE AND TERMINATION DATES OF 1992
AMENDMENT
For effective and termination dates of amendment by
Pub. L. 102–484, see section 4237(g) and (h) of Pub. L.
102–484, set out in a Small Business Innovation Research Program in Department of Defense note below.
TERMINATION DATE OF 1982 AMENDMENT
Pub. L. 97–219, § 5, July 22, 1982, 96 Stat. 221, as amended by Pub. L. 99–443, § 2, Oct. 6, 1986, 100 Stat. 1120; Pub.
L. 102–484, div. D, title XLII, § 4237(a), Oct. 23, 1992, 106
Stat. 2691, which provided that effective Oct. 1, 1993,
subsecs. (b)(4) through (7) and (e) through (k) of this
section were to be repealed, was repealed by Pub. L.
102–564, title I, § 104(a), Oct. 28, 1992, 106 Stat. 4254.
FIRMS THAT ARE MAJORITY-OWNED BY MULTIPLE VENTURE CAPITAL OPERATING COMPANIES, HEDGE FUNDS,
OR PRIVATE EQUITY FIRMS ENTITLED TO PARTIAL
PARTICIPATION IN SBIR PROGRAM; RULES FOR DETERMINING AFFLIATION
Pub. L. 112–81, div. E, title LI, § 5107(c), (d), Dec. 31,
2011, 125 Stat. 1829, 1832, provided that:
‘‘(c) RULEMAKING TO ENSURE THAT FIRMS THAT ARE
MAJORITY-OWNED BY MULTIPLE VENTURE CAPITAL OPER-

§ 638

COMPANIES, HEDGE FUNDS, OR PRIVATE EQUITY
ARE ABLE TO PARTICIPATE IN A PORTION OF THE
SBIR PROGRAM.—
‘‘(1) STATEMENT OF CONGRESSIONAL INTENT.—It is the
stated intent of Congress that the Administrator
should promulgate regulations to carry out the authority under section 9(dd) of the Small Business Act
[15 U.S.C. 638(dd)], as added by this section, that—
‘‘(A) permit small business concerns that are majority-owned by multiple venture capital operating
companies, hedge funds, or private equity firms to
participate in the SBIR program in accordance with
section 9(dd) of the Small Business Act;
‘‘(B) provide specific guidance for small business
concerns that are majority-owned by multiple venture capital operating companies, hedge funds, or
private equity firms with regard to eligibility, participation, and affiliation rules; and
‘‘(C) preserve and maintain the integrity of the
SBIR program as a program for small business concerns in the United States by prohibiting large
businesses or large entities or foreign-owned businesses or foreign-owned entities from participation
in the program established under section 9 of the
Small Business Act [15 U.S.C. 638].
‘‘(2) RULEMAKING REQUIRED.—
‘‘(A) PROPOSED REGULATIONS.—Not later than 120
days after the date of enactment of this Act [Dec.
31, 2011], the Administrator shall issue proposed
regulations to amend section 121.103 (relating to determinations of affiliation applicable to the SBIR
program) and section 121.702 (relating to ownership
and control standards and size standards applicable
to the SBIR program) of title 13, Code of Federal
Regulations, for firms that are majority-owned by
multiple venture capital operating companies,
hedge funds, or private equity firms and participating in the SBIR program solely under the authority
under section 9(dd) of the Small Business Act [15
U.S.C. 638(dd)], as added by this section.
‘‘(B) FINAL REGULATIONS.—Not later than 1 year
after the date of enactment of this Act, and after
providing notice of and opportunity for comment
on the proposed regulations issued under subparagraph (A), the Administrator shall issue final or interim final regulations under this subsection.
‘‘(3) CONTENTS.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The regulations issued under
this subsection shall permit the participation of applicants majority-owned by multiple venture capital operating companies, hedge funds, or private
equity firms in the SBIR program in accordance
with section 9(dd) of the Small Business Act [15
U.S.C. 638(dd)], as added by this section, unless the
Administrator determines—
‘‘(i) in accordance with the size standards established under subparagraph (B), that the applicant
is—
‘‘(I) a large business or large entity; or
‘‘(II) majority-owned or controlled by a large
business or large entity; or
‘‘(ii) in accordance with the criteria established
under subparagraph (C), that the applicant—
‘‘(I) is a foreign-owned business or a foreign
entity or is not a citizen of the United States or
alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence; or
‘‘(II) is majority-owned or controlled by a foreign-owned business, foreign entity, or person
who is not a citizen of the United States or
alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence.
‘‘(B) SIZE STANDARDS.—Under the authority to establish size standards under paragraphs (2) and (3)
of section 3(a) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C.
632(a)), the Administrator shall, in accordance with
paragraph (1) of this subsection, establish size
standards for applicants seeking to participate in
the SBIR program solely under the authority under
section 9(dd) of the Small Business Act [15 U.S.C.
638(dd)], as added by this section.
ATING
FIRMS

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

‘‘(C) CRITERIA FOR DETERMINING FOREIGN OWNERSHIP.—The Administrator shall establish criteria
for determining whether an applicant meets the requirements under subparagraph (A)(ii), and, in establishing the criteria, shall consider whether the
criteria should include—
‘‘(i) whether the applicant is at least 51 percent
owned or controlled by citizens of the United
States or domestic venture capital operating
companies, hedge funds, or private equity firms;
‘‘(ii) whether the applicant is domiciled in the
United States; and
‘‘(iii) whether the applicant is a direct or indirect subsidiary of a foreign-owned firm, including
whether the criteria should include that an applicant is a direct or indirect subsidiary of a foreignowned entity if—
‘‘(I) any venture capital operating company,
hedge fund, or private equity firm that owns
more than 20 percent of the applicant is a direct
or indirect subsidiary of a foreign-owned entity;
or
‘‘(II) in the aggregate, entities that are direct
or indirect subsidiaries of foreign-owned entities own more than 49 percent of the applicant.
‘‘(D) CRITERIA FOR DETERMINING AFFILIATION.—The
Administrator shall establish criteria, in accordance with paragraph (1), for determining whether
an applicant is affiliated with a venture capital operating company, hedge fund, private equity firm,
or any other business that the venture capital operating company, hedge fund, or private equity firm
has financed and, in establishing the criteria, shall
specify that—
‘‘(i) if a venture capital operating company,
hedge fund, or private equity firm that is determined to be affiliated with an applicant is a minority investor in the applicant, the portfolio
companies of the venture capital operating company, hedge fund, or private equity firm shall not
be determined to be affiliated with the applicant,
unless—
‘‘(I) the venture capital operating company,
hedge fund, or private equity firm owns a majority of the portfolio company; or
‘‘(II) the venture capital operating company,
hedge fund, or private equity firm holds a majority of the seats on the board of directors of
the portfolio company;
‘‘(ii) subject to clause (i), the Administrator retains the authority to determine whether a venture capital operating company, hedge fund, or
private equity firm is affiliated with an applicant, including establishing other criteria;
‘‘(iii) the Administrator may not determine
that a portfolio company of a venture capital operating company, hedge fund, or private equity
firm is affiliated with an applicant based solely
on 1 or more shared investors; and
‘‘(iv) subject to clauses (i), (ii), and (iii), the Administrator retains the authority to determine
whether a portfolio company of a venture capital
operating company, hedge fund, or private equity
firm is affiliated with an applicant based on factors independent of whether there is a shared investor, such as whether there are contractual obligations between the portfolio company and the
applicant.
‘‘(4) ENFORCEMENT.—If the Administrator does not
issue final or interim final regulations under this
subsection on or before the date that is 1 year after
the date of enactment of this Act [Dec. 31, 2011], the
Administrator may not carry out or establish any
pilot program until the date on which the Administrator issues the final or interim final regulations
under this subsection.
‘‘(5) DEFINITION.—In this subsection, the terms ‘venture capital operating company’, ‘hedge fund’, and
‘private equity firm’ have the same meaning as in
section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632), as
amended by this section.

Page 826

‘‘(d) ASSISTANCE FOR DETERMINING AFFILIATES.—
‘‘(1) CLEAR EXPLANATION REQUIRED.—Not later than
30 days after the date of enactment of this Act [Dec.
31, 2011], the Administrator shall post on the Web site
of the Administration (with a direct link displayed on
the homepage of the Web site of the Administration
or the SBIR and STTR Web sites of the Administration)—
‘‘(A) a clear explanation of the SBIR and STTR
affiliation rules under part 121 of title 13, Code of
Federal Regulations; and
‘‘(B) contact information for officers or employees of the Administration who—
‘‘(i) upon request, shall review an issue relating
to the rules described in subparagraph (A); and
‘‘(ii) shall respond to a request under clause (i)
not later than 20 business days after the date on
which the request is received.
‘‘(2) INCLUSION OF AFFILIATION RULES FOR CERTAIN
SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS.—On and after the date on
which the final regulations under subsection (c) are
issued, the Administrator shall post on the Web site
of the Administration information relating to the
regulations, in accordance with paragraph (1).’’
[For definitions used in section 5107(c), (d) of Pub. L.
112–81, set out above, see section 5002 of Pub. L. 112–81,
set out as a note under section 638b of this title.]
ACCURACY IN FUNDING BASE CALCULATIONS
Pub. L. 112–81, div. E, title LI, § 5136, Dec. 31, 2011, 125
Stat. 1849, provided that:
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the
date of enactment of this Act [Dec. 31, 2011], and every
year thereafter until the date that is 5 years after the
date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General
of the United States shall—
‘‘(1) conduct a fiscal and management audit of the
SBIR program and the STTR program for the applicable period to—
‘‘(A) determine whether Federal agencies comply
with the expenditure amount requirements under
subsections (f)(1) and (n)(1) of section 9 of the Small
Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638), as amended by this
title;
‘‘(B) assess the extent of compliance with the requirements of section 9(i)(2) of the Small Business
Act (15 U.S.C. 638(i)(2)) by Federal agencies participating in the SBIR program or the STTR program
and the Administration;
‘‘(C) assess whether it would be more consistent
and effective to base the amount of the allocations
under the SBIR program and the STTR program on
a percentage of the research and development budget of a Federal agency, rather than the extramural
budget of the Federal agency; and
‘‘(D) determine the portion of the extramural research or research and development budget of a
Federal agency that each Federal agency spends for
administrative purposes relating to the SBIR program or STTR program, and for what specific purposes it is used, including the portion, if any, of
such budget the Federal agency spends for salaries
and expenses, travel to visit applicants, outreach
events, marketing, and technical assistance; and
‘‘(2) submit a report to the Committee on Small
Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate and the
Committee on Small Business and the Committee on
Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives regarding the audit conducted under
paragraph (1), including the assessments required
under subparagraph (B) and the determinations made
under subparagraph (D) of paragraph (1).
‘‘(b) DEFINITION OF APPLICABLE PERIOD.—In this section, the term ‘applicable period’ means—
‘‘(1) for the first report submitted under this section, the period beginning on October 1, 2005, and ending on September 30 of the last full fiscal year before
the date of enactment of this Act [Dec. 31, 2011] for
which information is available; and
‘‘(2) for the second and each subsequent report submitted under this section, the period—

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‘‘(A) beginning on October 1 of the first fiscal
year after the end of the most recent full fiscal year
relating to which a report under this section was
submitted; and
‘‘(B) ending on September 30 of the last full fiscal
year before the date of the report.’’
[For definitions used in section 5136 of Pub. L. 112–81,
set out above, see section 5002 of Pub. L. 112–81, set out
as a note under section 638b of this title.]
TRANSITIONAL RULE
Pub. L. 112–81, div. E, title LI, § 5141(b)(2), Dec. 31,
2011, 125 Stat. 1853, provided that: ‘‘Notwithstanding
the amendments made by paragraph (1) [amending this
section], subsections (f)(2) and (y)(4) of section 9 of the
Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638), as in effect on the
day before the date of enactment of this Act [Dec. 31,
2011], shall continue to apply to each Federal agency
until the effective date of the performance criteria established by the [Small Business] Administrator under
subsection (mm)(3) of section 9 of the Small Business
Act [15 U.S.C. 638(mm)(3)], as added by subsection (a).’’
CONFORMING AMENDMENTS TO THE SBIR AND THE
STTR POLICY DIRECTIVES
Pub. L. 112–81, div. E, title LI, § 5151, Dec. 31, 2011, 125
Stat. 1857, provided that:
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the
date of enactment of this Act [Dec. 31, 2011], the Administrator shall promulgate amendments to the SBIR
Policy Directive and the STTR Policy Directive to conform such directives to this title [enacting sections
638a and 638b of this title, amending this section and
section 632 of this title, and enacting and amending
provisions set out as notes under this section] and the
amendments made by this title.
‘‘(b) PUBLISHING SBIR POLICY DIRECTIVE AND THE
STTR POLICY DIRECTIVE IN THE FEDERAL REGISTER.—
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of
this Act, the Administrator shall publish the amended
SBIR Policy Directive and the amended STTR Policy
Directive in the Federal Register.’’
[For definitions used in section 5151 of Pub. L. 112–81,
set out above, see section 5002 of Pub. L. 112–81, set out
as a note under section 638b of this title.]
COORDINATION OF THE SBIR PROGRAM AND THE
EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAM TO STIMULATE COMPETITIVE
RESEARCH
Pub. L. 112–81, div. E, title LI, § 5168, Dec. 31, 2011, 125
Stat. 1862, provided that:
‘‘(a) COORDINATION REQUIRED.—The head of a Federal
agency that participates in the SBIR program and the
Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research or the Institutional Development Award Program shall coordinate, to the extent possible, the initiatives of the agency with respect to such programs.
‘‘(b) COORDINATION REPORT.—Not later than 1 year
after the date of enactment of this Act [Dec. 31, 2011],
the head of each Federal agency that participates in
the SBIR program and the Experimental Program to
Stimulate Competitive Research or the Institutional
Development Award Program shall submit to the Administrator, the Committee on Small Business and the
Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the
House of Representatives, and the Committee on Small
Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate a report
describing the actions taken during the preceding 1year period to increase coordination between such programs to maximize existing resources.
‘‘(c) PARTICIPATION REPORT.—Not later than 3 years
after the date of enactment of this Act [Dec. 31, 2011],
the head of each Federal agency that participates in
the SBIR program and the Experimental Program to
Stimulate Competitive Research or the Institutional
Development Award Program shall submit to the Administrator, the Committee on Small Business and the
Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the
House of Representatives, and the Committee on Small

§ 638

Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate a report
analyzing whether actions taken to increase the coordination of such programs have been successful in attracting entrepreneurs into the SBIR program and increasing the participation of States with respect to
which a low level of SBIR awards have historically
been awarded.’’
[For definitions used in section 5168 of Pub. L. 112–81,
set out above, see section 5002 of Pub. L. 112–81, set out
as a note under section 638b of this title.]
CONTINUATION OF SBIR PROGRAM BEYOND TERMINATION
DATE
Pub. L. 106–554, § 1(a)(4) [div. B, title I, § 149], Dec. 21,
2000, 114 Stat. 2763, 2763A–251, provided that: ‘‘The
Small Business Innovation Research program, otherwise expiring at the end of fiscal year 2000, is authorized to continue in effect during fiscal year 2001.’’
CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS: SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION
RESEARCH PROGRAM REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2000
Pub. L. 106–554, § 1(a)(9) [title I, § 102], Dec. 21, 2000, 114
Stat. 2763, 2763A–668, provided that: ‘‘Congress finds
that—
‘‘(1) the small business innovation research program established under the Small Business Innovation Development Act of 1982 [see Short Title of 1982
Amendment note set out under section 631 of this
title], and reauthorized by the Small Business Research and Development Enhancement Act of 1992
[see Short Title of 1992 Amendments note set out
under section 631 of this title] (in this title [see Short
Title of 2000 Amendment note set out under section
631 of this title] referred to as the ‘SBIR program’) is
highly successful in involving small businesses in federally funded research and development;
‘‘(2) the SBIR program made the cost-effective and
unique research and development capabilities possessed by the small businesses of the Nation available
to Federal agencies and departments;
‘‘(3) the innovative goods and services developed by
small businesses that participated in the SBIR program have produced innovations of critical importance in a wide variety of high-technology fields, including biology, medicine, education, and defense;
‘‘(4) the SBIR program is a catalyst in the promotion of research and development, the commercialization of innovative technology, the development of new products and services, and the continued
excellence of this Nation’s high-technology industries; and
‘‘(5) the continuation of the SBIR program will provide expanded opportunities for one of the Nation’s
vital resources, its small businesses, will foster invention, research, and technology, will create jobs,
and will increase this Nation’s competitiveness in
international markets.’’
NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL REPORTS
Pub. L. 106–554, § 1(a)(9) [title I, § 108], Dec. 21, 2000, 114
Stat. 2763, 2763A–671, as amended by Pub. L. 112–81, div.
E, title LI, § 5137, Dec. 31, 2011, 125 Stat. 1850, provided
that:
‘‘(a) STUDY AND RECOMMENDATIONS.—The head of each
agency with a budget of more than $50,000,000 for its
SBIR program for fiscal year 1999, in consultation with
the Small Business Administration, shall, not later
than 6 months after the date of the enactment of this
Act [Dec. 21, 2000], cooperatively enter into an agreement with the National Academy of Sciences for the
National Research Council to—
‘‘(1) conduct a comprehensive study of how the
SBIR program has stimulated technological innovation and used small businesses to meet Federal research and development needs, including—
‘‘(A) a review of the value to the Federal research
agencies of the research projects being conducted
under the SBIR program, and of the quality of research being conducted by small businesses partici-

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

pating under the program, including a comparison
of the value of projects conducted under the SBIR
program to those funded by other Federal research
and development expenditures;
‘‘(B) to the extent practicable, an evaluation of
the economic benefits achieved by the SBIR program, including the economic rate of return, and a
comparison of the economic benefits, including the
economic rate of return, achieved by the SBIR program with the economic benefits, including the economic rate of return, of other Federal research and
development expenditures;
‘‘(C) an evaluation of the noneconomic benefits
achieved by the SBIR program over the life of the
program;
‘‘(D) a comparison of the allocation for fiscal year
2000 of Federal research and development funds to
small businesses with such allocation for fiscal year
1983, and an analysis of the factors that have contributed to such allocation; and
‘‘(E) an analysis of whether Federal agencies, in
fulfilling their procurement needs, are making sufficient effort to use small businesses that have
completed a second phase award under the SBIR
program; and
‘‘(2) make recommendations with respect to—
‘‘(A) measures of outcomes for strategic plans
submitted under section 306 of title 5, United States
Code, and performance plans submitted under section 1115 of title 31, United States Code, of each
Federal agency participating in the SBIR program;
‘‘(B) whether companies who can demonstrate
project feasibility, but who have not received a first
phase award, should be eligible for second phase
awards, and the potential impact of such awards on
the competitive selection process of the program;
‘‘(C) whether the Federal Government should be
permitted to recoup some or all of its expenses if a
controlling interest in a company receiving an
SBIR award is sold to a foreign company or to a
company that is not a small business concern;
‘‘(D) how to increase the use by the Federal Government in its programs and procurements of technology-oriented small businesses; and
‘‘(E) improvements to the SBIR program, if any
are considered appropriate.
‘‘(b) PARTICIPATION BY SMALL BUSINESS.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In a manner consistent with law
and with National Research Council study guidelines
and procedures, knowledgeable individuals from the
small business community with experience in the
SBIR program shall be included—
‘‘(A) in any panel established by the National Research Council for the purpose of performing the
study conducted under this section; and
‘‘(B) among those who are asked by the National
Research Council to peer review the study.
‘‘(2) CONSULTATION.—To ensure that the concerns of
small business are appropriately considered under
this subsection, the National Research Council shall
consult with and consider the views of the Office of
Technology and the Office of Advocacy of the Small
Business Administration and other interested parties,
including entities, organizations, and individuals actively engaged in enhancing or developing the technological capabilities of small business concerns.
‘‘(c) PROGRESS REPORTS.—The National Research
Council shall provide semiannual progress reports on
the study conducted under this section to the Committee on Science [now Committee on Science, Space, and
Technology] and the Committee on Small Business of
the House of Representatives, and to the Committee on
Small Business [now Committee on Small Business and
Entrepreneurship] of the Senate.
‘‘(d) REPORT.—The National Research Council shall
transmit to the heads of agencies entering into an
agreement under this section and to the Committee on
Science [now Committee on Science, Space, and Technology] and the Committee on Small Business of the
House of Representatives, and to the Committee on

Page 828

Small Business [now Committee on Small Business and
Entrepreneurship] of the Senate—
‘‘(1) not later than 3 years after the date of the enactment of this Act [Dec. 21, 2000], a report including
the results of the study conducted under subsection
(a)(1) and recommendations made under subsection
(a)(2); and
‘‘(2) not later than 6 years after that date of the enactment, an update of such report.
‘‘(e) EXTENSIONS AND ENHANCEMENTS OF AUTHORITY.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 6 months after the
date of enactment of the SBIR/STTR Reauthorization
Act of 2011 [div. E of Pub. L. 112–81, approved Dec. 31,
2011], the head of each agency described in subsection
(a), in consultation with the Small Business Administration, shall cooperatively enter into an agreement
with the National Academy of Sciences for the National Research Council to, not later than 4 years
after the date of enactment of the SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act of 2011, and every 4 years thereafter—
‘‘(A) continue the most recent study under this
section relating to the issues described in subparagraphs (A), (B), (C), and (E) of subsection (a)(1);
‘‘(B) conduct a comprehensive study of how the
STTR program has stimulated technological innovation and technology transfer, including—
‘‘(i) a review of the collaborations created between small businesses and research institutions,
including an evaluation of the effectiveness of the
program in stimulating new collaborations and
any obstacles that may prevent or inhibit the creation of such collaborations;
‘‘(ii) an evaluation of the effectiveness of the
program at transferring technology and capabilities developed through Federal funding;
‘‘(iii) to the extent practicable, an evaluation of
the economic benefits achieved by the STTR program, including the economic rate of return;
‘‘(iv) an analysis of how Federal agencies are
using small businesses that have completed Phase
II under the STTR program to fulfill their procurement needs;
‘‘(v) an analysis of whether additional funds
could be employed effectively by the STTR program; and
‘‘(vi) an assessment of the systems and minimum performance standards relating to commercialization success established under section 9(qq)
of the Small Business Act [15 U.S.C. 638(qq)];
‘‘(C) make recommendations with respect to the
issues described in subparagraphs (A), (D), and (E)
of subsection (a)(2) and subparagraph (B) of this
paragraph; and
‘‘(D) estimate, to the extent practicable, the number of jobs created by the SBIR program or STTR
program of the agency.
‘‘(2) CONSULTATION.—An agreement under paragraph
(1) shall require the National Research Council to ensure that there is participation by and consultation
with the small business community, the Administration, and other interested parties as described in subsection (b).
‘‘(3) REPORTING.—An agreement under paragraph (1)
shall require that not later than 4 years after the
date of enactment of the SBIR/STTR Reauthorization
Act of 2011 [div. E of Pub. L. 112–81, approved Dec. 31,
2011], and every 4 years thereafter, the National Research Council shall submit to the head of the agency
entering into the agreement, the Committee on
Small Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate,
and the Committee on Small Business and the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the
House of Representatives, a report regarding the
study conducted under paragraph (1) and containing
the recommendations described in paragraph (1).’’
CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS AND PURPOSES: SMALL BUSINESS RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT ENHANCEMENT
ACT OF 1992
Pub. L. 102–564, title I, § 102, Oct. 28, 1992, 106 Stat.
4249, provided that:

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

‘‘(a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—
‘‘(1) the small business innovation research program established under the Small Business Innovation Development Act of 1982 [see Short Title of 1982
Amendment note set out under section 631 of this
title] (hereafter in this Act [see Short Title of 1992
Amendments note set out under section 631 of this
title] referred to as the ‘SBIR’ program) has been a
successful method of involving small business concerns in Federal research and development;
‘‘(2) the small business innovation research program has been an effective catalyst for the development of technological innovations by small business
concerns;
‘‘(3) small business innovation research program
participants have provided high quality research and
development in a cost-effective manner;
‘‘(4) the innovative products and services developed
by small business concerns participating in the small
business innovation research program have been important to the national defense, as well as to the missions of the other participating Federal agencies;
‘‘(5) the small business innovation research program has effectively stimulated the commercialization of technology developed through Federal research and development, benefiting both the public
and private sectors of the Nation;
‘‘(6) by encouraging the development and commercialization of technological innovations, the small
business innovation research program has created
jobs, expanded business opportunities for small firms,
stimulated the development of new products and
services, and improved the competitiveness of the Nation’s high technology industries;
‘‘(7) the small business innovation research program has also helped to increase exports from small
business concerns;
‘‘(8) despite the general success of the small business innovation research program, the proportion of
Federal research and development funds received by
small business concerns has not increased over the
life of the program, but has remained at 3 percent;
and
‘‘(9) although the participating Federal agencies
have successfully implemented most aspects of the
small business innovation research program, additional outreach efforts are necessary to stimulate increased participation of socially and economically
disadvantaged small business concerns.
‘‘(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this title [see Short
Title of 1992 Amendments note set out under section 631
of this title] are—
‘‘(1) to expand and improve the small business innovation research program;
‘‘(2) to emphasize the program’s goal of increasing
private sector commercialization of technology developed through Federal research and development;
‘‘(3) to increase small business participation in Federal research and development; and
‘‘(4) to improve the Federal Government’s dissemination of information concerning the small business
innovation research program, particularly with regard to program participation by women-owned small
business concerns and by socially and economically
disadvantaged small business concerns.’’
RECOMMENDATIONS OF SECRETARY OF DEFENSE
Pub. L. 102–564, title I, § 106, Oct. 28, 1992, 106 Stat.
4256, provided that: ‘‘Not later than March 31, 1996, the
Secretary of Defense shall submit a recommendation to
the Congress addressing whether there has been a demonstrable reduction in the quality of research performed under the SBIR program since the beginning of
fiscal year 1993, such that increasing the percentage
under section 9(f)(1)(C) of the Small Business Act [15
U.S.C. 638(f)(1)(C)] (as amended by section 103 of this
Act) would adversely affect the performance of the research programs of the Department of Defense.’’
TIMING OF ISSUANCE OF POLICY DIRECTIVE
Pub. L. 102–564, title II, § 202(d), Oct. 28, 1992, 106 Stat.
4260, provided that: ‘‘The policy directive required by

section 9(p) of the Small Business Act [15 U.S.C. 638(p)]
(as added by subsection (c) of this section) shall be published—
‘‘(1) in proposed form (with an opportunity for public comment of not less than 30 days), not later than
April 30, 1993; and
‘‘(2) in final form, not later than July 31, 1993.’’
SENSE OF CONGRESS CONCERNING AMERICAN-MADE
EQUIPMENT AND PRODUCTS
Section 306 of Pub. L. 102–564 provided that:
‘‘(a) PURCHASE OF AMERICAN-MADE EQUIPMENT AND
PRODUCTS.—It is the sense of the Congress that an entity that is awarded a funding agreement under the
SBIR program of a Federal agency under section 9 of
the Small Business Act [15 U.S.C. 638] should, when purchasing any equipment or a product with funds provided through the funding agreement, purchase only
American-made equipment and products, to the extent
possible in keeping with the overall purposes of that
program.
‘‘(b) NOTICE TO SBIR AWARDEES.—Each Federal agency that awards funding agreements under the SBIR
program shall provide to each recipient of such an
award a notice describing the sense of the Congress, as
set forth in subsection (a).’’
SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION RESEARCH PROGRAM IN
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Pub. L. 102–484, div. D, title XLII, § 4237, Oct. 23, 1992,
106 Stat. 2691, provided that:
‘‘(a) EXTENSION OF PROGRAM.—[Amended section 5 of
Pub. L. 97–219, set out as a note above.]
‘‘(b) LIMITATION ON PROGRAM AWARDS.—Amounts paid
to a small business concern by the Department of Defense under the Small Business Innovation Research
Program for a project—
‘‘(1) in phase I under the program may not exceed
$100,000; and
‘‘(2) in phase II under the program may not exceed
$750,000.
‘‘(c) COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS STRATEGY.—Not later
than 270 days after the date of the enactment of this
Act [Oct. 23, 1992], the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Administrator of the Small Business
Administration, shall develop and issue a strategy for
effectuating the transition of successful projects under
the Small Business Innovation Research Program from
phase II under the program into phase III under the
program.
‘‘(d) REPEAL OF EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN ACTIVITIES.—
[Amended this section.]
‘‘(e) PERCENTAGE OF REQUIRED EXPENDITURES FOR
SBIR CONTRACTS.—(1) The Small Business Innovation
Research Program shall apply to the Department of Defense (including the military departments) as if the
percentage specified in section 9(f)(1) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638(f)(1)) with respect to fiscal years
after fiscal year 1982 were determined in accordance
with the table set forth in paragraph (2) (rather than
1.25 percent).
‘‘(2)(A) The percentage under section 9(f)(1) of the
Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638(f)(1)) for any fiscal
year for the Department of Defense and each military
department shall be determined in accordance with the
following table:
‘‘For fiscal year:
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998

................................
................................
................................
................................
................................
and thereafter ........

The percentage is:
1.25
1.5
1.75
2.0
2.25
2.5.

‘‘(B) If the determination of the Secretary of Defense
under subparagraph (C) is a negative determination (as
set forth in that paragraph), then the percentage under
section 9(f)(1) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C.

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

638(f)(1)) for the Department of Defense and each military department for fiscal years after fiscal year 1996
shall remain at the level applicable for fiscal year 1996
(notwithstanding the percentages specified in subparagraph (A) for fiscal years after fiscal year 1996).
‘‘(C) Not later than June 30, 1996, the Secretary of Defense during fiscal year 1996 shall determine whether
there has been a demonstrable reduction in the quality
of research performed under funding agreements awarded by the Department of Defense under the SBIR program since the beginning of fiscal year 1993 such that
increasing the percentage under subparagraph (A) for
fiscal years after fiscal year 1996 with respect to the department would adversely affect the performance of the
department’s research programs. If the determination
of the Secretary is that there has been such a demonstrable reduction in the quality of research such that
increasing the percentage under subparagraph (B) for
fiscal years after fiscal year 1996 with respect to the department would adversely affect the performance of the
department’s research programs, the Secretary shall be
considered for purposes of subparagraph (B) to have
made a negative determination. The determination of
the Secretary concerned under this paragraph shall be
made after considering the assessment of the Comptroller General with respect to that department in the report transmitted under subparagraph (D).
‘‘(D) Not later than March 30, 1996, the Comptroller
General shall transmit to the Congress and the Secretary of Defense a report setting forth the Comptroller
General’s assessment, with respect to the Department
of Defense of whether there has been a demonstrable reduction in the quality of research performed under
funding agreements awarded by the department under
the SBIR program since the beginning of fiscal year
1993 such that increasing the percentage under subparagraph (A) for fiscal years after fiscal year 1996 with respect to the department would adversely affect the performance of the department’s research programs.
‘‘(E) The results of each determination under subparagraph (C) shall be transmitted to the Congress not
later than June 30, 1996.
‘‘(f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
‘‘(1) The term ‘Small Business Innovation Research
Program’ means the program established under the
following provisions of section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638):
‘‘(A) Paragraphs (4) through (7) of subsection (b).
‘‘(B) Subsections (e) through (k).
‘‘(2) The term ‘phase I’, with respect to the Small
Business Innovation Research Program, means the
first phase described in subsection (e)(4)(A) of section
9 of the Small Business Act.
‘‘(3) The term ‘phase II’, with respect to the Small
Business Innovation Research Program, means the
second phase described in subsection (e)(4)(B) of such
section.
‘‘(4) The term ‘phase III’, with respect to the Small
Business Innovation Research Program, means the
third phase described in subsection (e)(4)(C) of such
section.
‘‘(g) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Subject to subsection (h), this
section, and the amendments made by this section,
shall take effect on October 1, 1992, and shall apply
with respect to fiscal years after fiscal year 1992.
‘‘(h) EFFECTIVENESS OF SECTION CONDITIONAL ON FAILURE TO ENACT OTHER LEGISLATION.—(1) In the event of
the enactment of H.R. 4400 or S. 2941 [S. 2941 was enacted into law as Pub. L. 102–564 on Oct. 28, 1992], 102d
Congress, on or before the date of the enactment of this
Act [Oct. 23, 1992], then this section and the amendments made by this section shall not take effect.
‘‘(2)(A) In the event of the enactment of H.R. 4400 or
S. 2941, 102d Congress, after the date of the enactment
of this Act, then, effective immediately before the enactment of H.R. 4400 or S. 2941, 102d Congress—
‘‘(i) this section shall cease to be effective; and
‘‘(ii) the provisions of a small business law that are
amended by this section shall be effective and read as
such provisions of that law were in effect imme-

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diately before the enactment of this Act, except that
to the extent that any amendment is made to such a
provision of a small business law by any other provision of law referred to in subparagraph (B), such provision of a small business law shall be effective and
shall read as amended by that other provision of law.
‘‘(B) For the purposes of subparagraph (A)(ii), a provision of law referred to in this subparagraph is the following:
‘‘(i) A provision of this Act other than a provision
of this section.
‘‘(ii) A provision of any other Act if the provision
takes effect during the period beginning on the date
of the enactment of this Act and ending immediately
before the enactment of H.R. 4400 or S. 2941, 102d Congress.
‘‘(C) In this paragraph, the term ‘small business law’
means—
‘‘(i) the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 631 et seq.);
and
‘‘(ii) the Small Business Innovation Development
Act of 1982 [Pub. L. 97–219] (15 U.S.C. 638 note).’’
USE OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE EXTRAMURAL
BUDGET FUNDS IN SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION RESEARCH PROGRAM
Pub. L. 99–500, § 101(a) [title VI, § 630], Oct. 18, 1986, 100
Stat. 1783, 1783–30, and Pub. L. 99–591, § 101(a) [title VI,
§ 630], Oct. 30, 1986, 100 Stat. 3341, 3341–30, provided that:
‘‘All funds appropriated for this fiscal year and all
funds appropriated hereafter by this or any other Act
that are determined to be part of the ‘extramural budget’ of the Department of Agriculture for any fiscal year
for purposes of meeting the requirements of section 9 of
the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638), as amended by
the Small Business Innovation Development Act of
1982, Public Law 97–219, shall be available for contracts,
grants or cooperative agreements with small business
concerns for any purpose in furtherance of the small
business innovation research program. Such funds may
be transferred for such purpose from one appropriation
to another or to a single account.’’
CONGRESSIONAL FINDINGS AND DECLARATION OF PURPOSE: SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION DEVELOPMENT
ACT OF 1982
Pub. L. 97–219, § 2, July 22, 1982, 96 Stat. 217, provided
that:
‘‘(a) The Congress finds that—
‘‘(1) technological innovation creates jobs, increases productivity, competition, and economic
growth, and is a valuable counterforce to inflation
and the United States balance-of-payments deficit;
‘‘(2) while small business is the principal source of
significant innovations in the Nation, the vast majority of federally funded research and development is
conducted by large businesses, universities, and Government laboratories; and
‘‘(3) small businesses are among the most cost-effective performers of research and development and
are particularly capable of developing research and
development results into new products.
‘‘(b) Therefore, the purposes of the Act [amending
this section] are—
‘‘(1) to stimulate technological innovation;
‘‘(2) to use small business to meet Federal research
and development needs;
‘‘(3) to foster and encourage participation by minority and disadvantaged persons in technological innovation; and
‘‘(4) to increase private sector commercialization
innovations derived from Federal research and development.’’
REPORTS OF COMPTROLLER GENERAL
Pub. L. 102–564, title I, § 105, Oct. 28, 1992, 106 Stat.
4254, provided that:
‘‘(a) INTERIM REPORT.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General of the
United States shall submit to the Congress an in-

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TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

terim report concerning the quality of research performed under SBIR program funding agreements entered into during fiscal year 1993 and thereafter. Copies of the interim report shall be furnished to each
agency that has participated in the SBIR program in
fiscal year 1993 or thereafter.
‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF REPORT.—The Comptroller General shall include in the interim report required
under paragraph (1)—
‘‘(A) an assessment of the quality of the research
performed under the SBIR program funding agreements entered into by each agency that has participated in the SBIR program beginning in fiscal year
1993 or thereafter, specifically addressing—
‘‘(i) with respect to each such agency, whether
or not there has been a demonstrable reduction in
research quality; and
‘‘(ii) in the case of such reduction, whether an
increase in each such agency’s required SBIR participation in accordance with section 9(f)(1) of the
Small Business Act [15 U.S.C. 638(f)(1)] (as amended by subsection (b) of this section [probably
should be section 103(b) of this Act]) would adversely affect the performance of the agency’s research programs;
‘‘(B) an analysis of the program authorized by
section 301 of the Small Business Research and Development Enhancement Act of 1992 [amending this
section], considering, among other things—
‘‘(i) the extent to which each SBIR agency has
implemented the program and the extent to
which the program has improved the quality of
agency-sponsored research and development;
‘‘(ii) the effect of the program on recipient companies’ ability to develop and commercialize
technology;
‘‘(iii) the cost of the program and the average
cost per recipient company; and
‘‘(iv) the extent to which SBIR companies continue to use the service after completion of the
program; and
‘‘(C) such other factors as the Comptroller General may deem appropriate.
‘‘(b) FINAL REPORT.—The Comptroller General of the
United States shall transmit to the Congress a final report containing—
‘‘(1) a review of the progress made by Federal agencies in meeting the requirements of section 9(f) of the
Small Business Act [15 U.S.C. 638(f)] (as amended by
this Act), including increases in expenditures required by that subsection;
‘‘(2) an analysis of participation by small business
concerns in the third phase of SBIR programs, including a systematic evaluation of the techniques adopted by Federal agencies to foster commercialization;
‘‘(3) an analysis of the extent to which awards
under SBIR programs are made pursuant to section
9(l) of the Small Business Act (as added by section
103(h)) in cases in which a program solicitation receives only 1 proposal;
‘‘(4) an analysis of the extent to which awards in
the first phase of the SBIR program are made to
small business concerns that have received more than
15 second phase awards under the SBIR program in
the preceding 5 fiscal years, considering—
‘‘(A) the extent to which such concerns were able
to secure Federal or private sector follow-on funding;
‘‘(B) the extent to which the research developed
under such awards was commercialized; and
‘‘(C) the amount of commercialization of research
developed under such awards, as compared to the
amount of commercialization of SBIR research for
the entire SBIR program;
‘‘(5) the results of periodic random audits of the extramural budget of each such Federal agency;
‘‘(6) a review of the extent to which the purposes of
this title [see Short Title of 1992 Amendments note
set out under section 631 of this title] and the Small
Business Innovation Development Act of 1982 [see

§ 638

Short Title of 1982 Amendment note set out under
section 631 of this title] have been met with regard to
fostering and encouraging the participation of
women-owned small business concerns and socially
and economically disadvantaged small business concerns (as defined in the Small Business Act [15 U.S.C.
631 et seq.]) in technological innovation, in general,
and the SBIR program, in particular;
‘‘(7) an analysis of the effectiveness of the SBIR
program in promoting the development of the critical
technologies identified by the Secretary of Defense
and the National Critical Technologies Panel (or its
successor), as described in subparagraph 9(j)(2)(E) of
the Small Business Act;
‘‘(8) an analysis of the impact of agency application
review periods and funding cycles on SBIR program
awardees’ financial status and ability to commercialize; and
‘‘(9) recommendations to the Congress for tracking
the extent to which foreign firms, or United States
firms with substantial foreign ownership interests,
benefit from technology or products developed as a
direct result of SBIR research or research and development.
‘‘(c) DATES OF SUBMISSION.—The report required—
‘‘(1) under subsection (a), shall be submitted to the
Congress not later than March 31, 1995; and
‘‘(2) under subsection (b), shall be submitted to the
Congress not later than 5 years after the date of enactment of this title [Oct. 28, 1992].’’
Pub. L. 102–564, title II, § 202(e), Oct. 28, 1992, 106 Stat.
4260, provided that: ‘‘Not later than March 31, 1996, the
Comptroller General of the United States shall submit
a report to the Congress and the head of each agency
that is required to make expenditures under the STTR
program that—
‘‘(1) sets forth the Comptroller General’s assessment, with respect to each such agency, of—
‘‘(A) the quality of research performed under
funding agreements awarded by that agency under
the STTR program since the beginning of the program;
‘‘(B) whether or not the STTR program has affected the performance of that agency’s research
programs; and
‘‘(C) the commercial potential of research conducted under the STTR program, if sufficient data
is available;
‘‘(2) contains the Comptroller General’s assessment
as to the effects of the STTR program, if any, on the
research quality and goals of the SBIR program; and
‘‘(3) determines the agencies and the federally-funded research and development centers’ compliance
with the procedures developed under section 9(g)(10)
of the Small Business Act [probably 9(o)(10); 15 U.S.C.
638(o)(10)], as amended by this section.’’
Pub. L. 97–219, § 6, July 22, 1982, 96 Stat. 221, as amended by Pub. L. 99–443, § 3, Oct. 6, 1986, 100 Stat. 1120; Pub.
L. 100–418, title VIII, § 8008, Aug. 23, 1988, 102 Stat. 1561;
Pub. L. 100–647, title IX, § 9003, Nov. 10, 1988, 102 Stat.
3808, provided that:
‘‘(a) The Comptroller General, no later than December 31, 1988, shall transmit a report to the appropriate
committees of the House of Representatives and of the
Senate evaluating the effectiveness to date of phase
one and phase two of the SBIR Program as set out in
section 9(e)(4) of the Small Business Act [15 U.S.C.
638(e)(4)]. Such report shall examine the quality of the
research supported by the SBIR Program compared to
that traditionally supported by the affected agencies,
and the extent to which the goals of the SBIR Program
are being met. Such report shall also include the judgments of the heads of departments and agencies as to
the effect of this Act [amending this section] on research programs.
‘‘(b) The Comptroller General, no later than December 31, 1991, shall transmit to such committees an update of the report mandated under subsection (a). Such
report, in addition, shall include an evaluation of phase
three of the SBIR Program including a discussion of

§ 638a

TITLE 15—COMMERCE AND TRADE

the aggregate commercial trends for products which
are then currently in or have completed phase three of
the program.
‘‘(c) Not later than July 1, 1989, the Comptroller General shall transmit to the appropriate committees of
the House of Representatives and the Senate recommendations as to the advisability of amending the
Small Business Innovation Research program to—
‘‘(1) increase each agency’s share of research and
development expenditures devoted to it by 0.25 percent per year, until it is 3 percent of the total extramural research and development funds, and targeting
a portion of the increment at products with commercialization or export potential;
‘‘(2) make the Small Business Innovation Research
program permanent with a formal congressional review every 10 years, beginning in 1993;
‘‘(3) allocate a modest but appropriate share of each
agency’s Small Business Innovation Research fund
for administrative purposes for effective management, quality maintenance, and the elimination of
program delays; and
‘‘(4) include within the Small Business Innovation
and Research program all agencies expending between $20,000,000 and $100,000,000 in extramural research and development funds annually.’’
EX. ORD. NO. 13329. ENCOURAGING INNOVATION IN
MANUFACTURING
Ex. Ord. No. 13329, Feb. 24, 2004, 69 F.R. 9181, provided:
By the authority vested in me as President by the
Constitution and the laws of the United States of
America, including the Small Business Act, as amended
(15 U.S.C. 631 et seq.), and to help ensure that Federal
agencies properly and effectively assist the private sector in its manufacturing innovation efforts, it is hereby
ordered as follows:
SECTION 1. Policy. Continued technological innovation
is critical to a strong manufacturing sector in the
United States economy. The Federal Government has
an important role, including through the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs, in helping
to advance innovation, including innovation in manufacturing, through small businesses.
SEC. 2. Duties of Department and Agency Heads. The
head of each executive branch department or agency
with one or more SBIR programs or one or more STTR
programs shall:
(a) to the extent permitted by law and in a manner
consistent with the mission of that department or
agency, give high priority within such programs to
manufacturing-related research and development to advance the policy set forth in section 1 of this order; and
(b) submit reports annually to the Administrator of
the Small Business Administration and the Director of
the Office of Science and Technology Policy concerning
the efforts of such department or agency to implement
subsection 2(a) of this order.
SEC. 3. Duties of Administrator of the Small Business Administration. The Administrator of the Small Business
Administration:
(a) shall establish, after consultation with the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, formats and schedules for submission of reports by the
heads of departments and agencies under subsection
2(b) of this order; and
(b) is authorized to issue to departments and agencies
guidelines and directives (in addition to the formats
and schedules under subsection 3(a)) as the Administrator determines from time to time are necessary to
implement subsection 2(a) of this order, after such
guidelines and directives are submitted to the President, through the Director of the Office of Science and
Technology Policy, for approval and are approved by
the President.
SEC. 4. Definitions. As used in this order:
(a) ‘‘Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program’’ means a program to which section 9(e)(4) of the
Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638(e)(4)) refers;

Page 832

(b) ‘‘Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program’’ means a program to which section 9(e)(6) of the
Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638(e)(6)) refers;
(c) ‘‘research and development’’ means an activity set
forth in section 9(e)(5) of the Small Business Act (15
U.S.C. 638(e)(5)); and
(d) ‘‘manufacturing-related’’ means relating to: (i)
manufacturing processes, equipment and systems; or
(ii) manufacturing workforce skills and protection.
SEC. 5. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order
shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect the authority of the Director of the Office of Management and
Budget with respect to budget, administrative, or legislative proposals.
(b) Nothing in this order shall be construed to require
disclosure of information the disclosure of which is prohibited by law or by Executive Order, including Executive Order 12958 of April 17, 1995, as amended [50 U.S.C.
435 note].
(c) This order is intended only to improve the internal management of the executive branch and is not intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit,
substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity, against the United States, its departments, agencies, or other entities, its officers or employees, or any
other person.
GEORGE W. BUSH.

§ 638a. GAO study with respect to venture capital
operating company, hedge fund, and private
equity firm involvement
Not later than 3 years after December 31, 2011,
and every 3 years thereafter, the Comptroller
General of the United States shall—
(1) conduct a study of the impact of requirements relating to venture capital operating
company, hedge fund, and private equity firm
involvement under section 638 of this title;
and
(2) submit to Congress a report regarding the
study conducted under paragraph (1).
(Pub. L. 112–81, div. E, title LI, § 5142, Dec. 31,
2011, 125 Stat. 1854.)
CODIFICATION
Section was enacted as part of the SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act of 2011, and also as part of the National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012, and not
as part of the Small Business Act which comprises this
chapter.

§ 638b. Reducing vulnerability of SBIR and STTR
Programs to fraud, waste, and abuse
(a) Fraud, waste, and abuse prevention
(1) Amendments required for fraud, waste, and
abuse prevention
Not later than 90 days after December 31,
2011, the Administrator shall amend the SBIR
Policy Directive and the STTR Policy Directive to include measures to prevent fraud,
waste, and abuse in the SBIR program and the
STTR program.
(2) Content of amendments
The amendments required under paragraph
(1) shall include—
(A) definitions or descriptions of fraud,
waste, and abuse;
(B) guidelines for the monitoring and oversight of applicants to and recipients of
awards under the SBIR program or the
STTR program;
(C) a requirement that each Federal agency that participates in the SBIR program or