Congressional Reauthorization of SBIR/STTR Is a Win for U.S. Innovation, Says ITIF

WASHINGTON-Following Congress's passage of the Small Business Innovation and Economic Security Act, which reauthorizes the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs, the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation (ITIF), the leading think tank for science and technology policy, released the following statement from Stephen Ezell, vice president of global innovation:

Congress has done its part to restore SBIR/STTR. President Trump should sign the legislation into law as soon as possible. For more than four decades, SBIR/STTR has been one of the most effective tools in the U.S. innovation system for helping small firms turn federally backed research into commercial success.Though the program accounts for just 3.2 percent of federal extramural R&D funding, it has delivered outsized results, generating more than $40 billion in awards, over 70,000 patents, and 700 public companies. Its impact is evident in the companies it helped support, including Apple, Qualcomm, Amgen, Biogen, and iRobot.Restoring SBIR/STTR would strengthen a proven engine of American innovation and help ensure the United States does more to move breakthrough technologies out of the lab and into the marketplace.

Contact: Austin Slater, [email protected]