[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 114 (Wednesday, July 10, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4372-S4374]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 2127. Mr. COONS submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by
him to the bill S. 4638, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year
2025 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military
construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy,
to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for
other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:
At the end of subtitle H of title X, add the following:
SEC. 1095. RESEARCH ADVANCING TO MARKET PRODUCTION FOR
INNOVATORS ACT.
(a) Improvements to Commercialization Selection.--
(1) In general.--Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15
U.S.C. 638) is amended--
(A) in subsection (g)--
(i) in paragraph (4)(B)(i), by striking ``1 year'' and
inserting ``180 days'';
(ii) in paragraph (16), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(iii) in paragraph (17), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; and''; and
(iv) by adding at the end the following:
``(18) with respect to peer review carried out under the
SBIR program, to the extent practicable, include in the peer
review--
``(A) the likelihood of commercialization in addition to
scientific and technical merit and feasibility; and
``(B) not less than 1 reviewer with commercialization
expertise who is capable of assessing the likelihood of
commercialization.'';
(B) in subsection (o)--
(i) in paragraph (4)(B)(i), by striking ``1 year'' and
inserting ``180 days'';
(ii) in paragraph (20), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(iii) in paragraph (21), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; and''; and
(iv) by adding at the end the following:
``(22) with respect to peer review carried out under the
STTR program, to the extent practicable, include in the peer
review--
``(A) the likelihood of commercialization in addition to
scientific and technical merit and feasibility; and
``(B) not less than 1 reviewer with commercialization
expertise who is capable of assessing the likelihood of
commercialization.'';
(C) in subsection (cc)--
(i) by striking ``During fiscal years 2012 through 2025,
the National Institutes of Health, the Department of Defense,
and the Department of Education'' and inserting the
following:
``(1) In general.--During fiscal years 2024 and 2025, each
Federal agency with an SBIR or STTR program''; and
(ii) by adding at the end the following:
``(2) Limitation.--
``(A) In general.--The total value of awards provided by a
Federal agency under this subsection in a fiscal year shall
be--
``(i) except as provided in clause (ii) and subparagraph
(B), not more than 10 percent
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of the total funds allocated to the SBIR and STTR programs of
the Federal agency during that fiscal year; and
``(ii) with respect to the National Institutes of Health,
not more than 15 percent of the total funds allocated to the
SBIR and STTR programs of the National Institutes of Health
during that fiscal year.
``(B) Exception.--The limitation under subparagraph (A)(i)
shall not apply with respect to the Department of Defense.'';
(D) in subsection (hh)(2)(A)(i), by striking ``simplified
and standardized procedures and model contracts'' and
inserting ``a simplified and standardized application process
and requirements, procedures, and model contracts''; and
(E) by adding at the end the following:
``(yy) Technology Commercialization Official.--Each Federal
agency participating in the SBIR or STTR program shall--
``(1) designate an existing official within the Federal
agency as the Technology Commercialization Official of the
Federal agency, who shall--
``(A) have sufficient commercialization experience;
``(B) provide guidance to SBIR and STTR program awardees in
commercializing and transitioning technologies;
``(C) identify and advocate for SBIR and STTR program
technologies with sufficient technology and commercialization
readiness to advance to Phase III awards or other non-SBIR or
STTR program contracts;
``(D) coordinate with the Administration and Technology
Commercialization Officials of other Federal agencies to
identify additional markets and commercialization pathways
for promising SBIR and STTR program technologies;
``(E) submit to the Administration an annual report on the
number of technologies from the SBIR or STTR program that
have advanced commercialization activities, including
information required in the commercialization impact
assessment under subsection (aaa);
``(F) submit to the Administration an annual report on
actions taken by the Federal agency, and the results of those
actions, to simplify, standardize, and expedite the
application process and requirements, procedures, and
contracts as required under subsection (hh); and
``(G) carry out such other duties as the Federal agency
determines necessary; or
``(2) identify an official carrying out substantially
similar responsibilities as those described in paragraph
(1).''.
(2) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of this subsection, the Administrator of the Small
Business Administration shall submit to the Committee on
Small Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate and the
Committee on Small Business of the House of Representatives a
report summarizing the metrics relating to and an evaluation
of the authority provided under section 9(cc) of the Small
Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638(cc)), as amended by paragraph
(1), which shall include the size and location of the small
business concerns (as defined in section 3 of the Small
Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632)) receiving awards under the SBIR
or STTR program.
(b) Improvements to Technical and Business Assistance;
Commercialization Impact Assessment; Patent Assistance.--
Section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 638), as
amended by subsection (a), is amended--
(1) in subsection (q)--
(A) in paragraph (1), in the matter preceding subparagraph
(A)--
(i) by striking ``may enter into an agreement with 1 or
more vendors selected under paragraph (2)(A) to provide small
business concerns engaged in SBIR or STTR projects with
technical and business assistance services'' and inserting
``shall authorize recipients of awards under the SBIR or STTR
program to select, if desired, technical and business
assistance provided under subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of
paragraph (2) with respect to SBIR or STTR projects'';
(ii) by inserting ``cybersecurity assistance,'' after
``intellectual property protections,''; and
(iii) by striking ``such concerns'' and inserting ``such
recipients'';
(B) in paragraph (2), by adding at the end the following:
``(C) Staff.--A small business concern may, by contract or
otherwise, use funding provided under this section to hire
new staff, augment staff, or direct staff to conduct or
participate in training activities consistent with the goals
listed in paragraph (1).'';
(C) in paragraph (3), by striking subparagraphs (A) and (B)
and inserting the following:
``(A) Phase i.--A Federal agency described in paragraph (1)
shall authorize a recipient of a Phase I SBIR or STTR award
to utilize not more than $6,500 per project, included as part
of the award of the recipient or in addition to the amount of
the award of the recipient as determined appropriate by the
head of the Federal agency, for the services described in
paragraph (1)--
``(i) provided through a vendor selected under paragraph
(2)(A);
``(ii) provided through a vendor other than a vendor
selected under paragraph (2)(A);
``(iii) achieved through the activities described in
paragraph (2)(C); or
``(iv) provided or achieved through any combination of
clauses (i), (ii), and (iii).
``(B) Phase ii.--A Federal agency described in paragraph
(1) shall authorize a recipient of a Phase II SBIR or STTR
award to utilize not more than $50,000 per project, included
as part of the award of the recipient or in addition to the
amount of the award of the recipient as determined
appropriate by the head of the Federal agency, for the
services described in paragraph (1)--
``(i) provided through a vendor selected under paragraph
(2)(A);
``(ii) provided through a vendor other than a vendor
selected under paragraph (2)(A);
``(iii) achieved through the activities described in
paragraph (2)(C); or
``(iv) provided or achieved through any combination of
clauses (i), (ii), and (iii).''; and
(D) by adding at the end the following:
``(5) Targeted review.--A Federal agency may perform
targeted reviews of technical and business assistance funding
as described in subsection (mm)(1)(F).''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(zz) I-Corps Participation.--
``(1) In general.--Each Federal agency that is required to
conduct an SBIR or STTR program with an Innovation Corps
(commonly known as `I-Corps') program shall--
``(A) provide an option for participation in an I-Corps
teams course by recipients of an award under the SBIR or STTR
program; and
``(B) authorize the recipients described in subparagraph
(A) to use an award provided under subsection (q) to provide
additional technical assistance for participation in the I-
Corps teams course.
``(2) Cost of participation.--The cost of participation by
a recipient described in paragraph (1)(A) in an I-Corps
course may be provided by--
``(A) an I-Corps team grant;
``(B) funds awarded to the recipient under subsection (q);
``(C) the participating teams or other sources as
appropriate; or
``(D) any combination of sources described in subparagraphs
(A), (B), and (C).
``(aaa) Commercialization Impact Assessment.--
``(1) In general.--The Administrator shall coordinate with
each Federal agency with an SBIR or STTR program to develop
an annual commercialization impact assessment report, which
shall measure, for each small business concern that has
received not less than 50 Phase II awards on or after October
1 of the ninth fiscal year before the fiscal year in which
the report is submitted--
``(A) total dollar value of Federal awards, contracts, and
subcontracts, other than SBIR or STTR awards, received by the
small business concern over the preceding 9 fiscal years;
``(B) the total dollar value of all SBIR and STTR Phase I
and Phase II awards received by the small business concern
over the preceding 9 fiscal years;
``(C) the average annual gross revenue of the small
business concern over the preceding 9 years;
``(D) total revenue from the sale or licensing of new
products and services resulting from the research conducted
under the awards received in the preceding 9 fiscal years;
``(E) 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 awards received
in the preceding 9 fiscal years;
``(F) mergers and acquisitions of award recipients during
or after the completion of a Phase II award;
``(G) new, unique spin-out companies resulting from
research conducted under the awards received in the preceding
9 fiscal years;
``(H) patents acquired as a result of research conducted
under the awards received in the preceding 9 fiscal years;
``(I) the year of first Phase II award and the total number
of employees at the time of first Phase II award;
``(J) the number of employees, as of the end of the most
recent fiscal year; and
``(K) the total number and value of Phase III awards
received.
``(2) Publication.--A commercialization impact assessment
report described in paragraph (1) of a Federal agency shall
be--
``(A) included in the annual report of the Federal agency
required under subsections (g)(9) and (o)(10); and
``(B) submitted to--
``(i) the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship
of the Senate; and
``(ii) the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology and
the Committee on Small Business of the House of
Representatives.
``(bbb) Patent Assistance.--
``(1) Definitions.--In this subsection--
``(A) the term `Director' means the Under Secretary of
Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO;
and
``(B) the term `USPTO' means the United States Patent and
Trademark Office.
``(2) Assistance.--The Administrator shall enter into an
interagency agreement with the Director under which the
Director shall assist recipients of an award under the SBIR
or STTR program (in this paragraph referred to as `SBIR and
STTR recipients') relating to intellectual property
protection by establishing a prioritized patent examination
program for SBIR and STTR recipients.
``(3) Outreach.--The Administrator shall coordinate with
the Director to provide outreach regarding the Pro Se
Assistance Program of, and scam prevention services provided
by, the USPTO.''.
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