NVCA Supports Reauthorization of SBIR and STTR Programs

Programs are Vital Tools to Support Entrepreneurship in America

WASHINGTON, DC – The National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) today issued the following statement after the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship voted last night to pass S. 2812, SBIR and STTR Reauthorization and Improvement Act of 2016.  Sponsored by Senator David Vitter (R-LA), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, and Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, S. 2812 reauthorizes the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs.  Scheduled to expire September 30, 2017, the bill would make the programs permanent across all participating federal agencies.

“Passage of this important bill is welcome news for the entrepreneurial ecosystem.  Venture-backed companies that have received SBIR funding have made incredible contributions to our economy, including breakthrough innovations in identify theft, regenerative wound healing therapies, biometric sensor technology and military prototype development,” said Bobby Franklin, President and CEO of NVCA.  “These programs are vital tools to support entrepreneurship in the United States, and by reauthorizing the programs this year, lawmakers are providing certainty that they will not be unnecessarily jeopardized.”

“We applaud Chairman Vitter and Ranking Member Shaheen for the tireless leadership on this important matter.  Their work to get the reauthorization bill passed through committee combined with their efforts to push for inclusion of reauthorization of the programs in the Senate’s National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 demonstrates a deep appreciation for how important these programs are to the entrepreneurial ecosystem.  We congratulate them on their successes and promise to do all we can to support their efforts as the legislative process moves forward.”

In April, NVCA sent a letter to Republican and Democrat leaders on the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship and the House Committee on Small Business advocating for reauthorization of the SBIR and STTR programs and expressing appreciation that neither S. 2812 or H.R. 4783 made changes to SBIR and STTR that would disadvantage startups that receive venture capital funding.  You can download the letter here.