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SBIR/STTR renewed through 2025. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Sept. 29, 2022 Contact: Molly Day 202-552-2904 press@nsba.biz Lawmakers Passes SBIR Bill – A Win for Small Business Washington, D.C. – On Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives approved Senate-passed legislation to reauthorize the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs for three years. Following a highly contentious process in the Senate, lawmakers’ last-minute efforts to extend the program finally came to fruition just days prior to the Sept. 30 deadline. “The House and Senate did right by small business in passing this important legislation and avoiding a catastrophic program shut-down for SBIR and STTR,” stated NSBA President and CEO Todd McCracken. “Despite some differences in what NSBA sought and this final package, small-business innovators can get on about their business creating and innovating to best serve the federal government.” NSBA and the Small Business Technology Council (SBTC) has been instrumental in helping to negotiate and move forward reauthorizing language to prevent a program shutdown. Despite fully supporting passage of the final compromise bill, NSBA and SBTC were pushing for a permanent reauthorization and worked tirelessly to remove language requiring new reporting that large companies and universities are free of when it comes to federal innovation programs. “We have worked closely with lawmakers on this bill for months, and in the decades I’ve been working with the SBIR/STTR programs, never have we experienced a more difficult reauthorization process,” stated Jere Glover, Executive Director of SBTC. “There were many members of Congress who deserve thanks and appreciation for their efforts, but I want to particularly applaud Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Reps. Nydia Velazquez (D-NY) and Blaine Leutkemeyer (R-Mo.) for their leadership and willingness to compromise to ensure the stability and long-term success of this program.” Celebrating 85 years in operation, NSBA is a staunchly nonpartisan organization advocating on behalf of America’s entrepreneurs. SBTC is a council of NSBA and focuses on critical high-tech and innovation programs through the federal government. NSBA and SBTC’s 65,000 members represent every state and every industry in the U.S., and we are proud to be the nation’s first small-business advocacy organization. Please visit www.nsba.biz or @NSBAAdvocate. ###

Passage this afternoon is a win for NSBA, our 65,000+ members, and small business owners nationwide. This evening, the U.S. House of Representatives approved Senate-passed legislation to reauthorize the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs for three years. Following a highly contentious process in the Senate, lawmakers’ last-minute efforts to extend the program finally came to fruition just days prior to the September 30 deadline. “The House and Senate did right by small business in passing this important legislation and avoiding a catastrophic program shut-down for SBIR and STTR,” stated NSBA President and CEO Todd McCracken. “Despite some differences in what NSBA sought and this final package, small-business innovators can get on about their business creating and innovating to best serve the federal government.” NSBA and the Small Business Technology Council (SBTC) have been instrumental in helping to negotiate and move forward reauthorizing language to prevent a program shutdown. Despite fully supporting passage of the final compromise bill, NSBA and SBTC were pushing for a permanent reauthorization and worked tirelessly to remove language requiring new reporting that large companies and universities are free of when it comes to federal innovation programs. Last week, the Senate passed the bill, clearing the biggest hurdle for reauthorization. Introduced by Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee Chair Ben Cardin (D-Md.), S. 4900 will extend the programs for three years, moving the expiration date to Sept. 30, 2025. It also makes changes to the program that focus on research security, protecting SBIR technology from theft by China and other adversarial governments, and increased standards for Phase 1 to 2 transition and Commercialization for multiple award winners. Specifically, there will be an increase in reporting requirements and paperwork burden imposed by the research security provisions that firms will need to be aware of. In addition, firms with over 50 Phase 1 awards over the past five years will need to show a 50 percent transition rate to Phase 2. Firms with 50 Phase 2 awards over the past 10 years will need to show $250,000 in sales or investment for every Phase 2, and Firms with over 100 Phase 2 awards over the past 10 years will need to show $450,000 in sales or investment for every Phase 2. The consequence for missing these benchmarks will be a limit of 20 Phase 1 awards and Direct to Phase 2 awards per year. “We have worked closely with lawmakers on this bill for months, and in the decades I’ve been working with the SBIR/STTR programs, never have we experienced a more difficult reauthorization process,” stated Jere Glover, Executive Director of SBTC. “There were many members of Congress who deserve thanks and appreciation for their efforts, but I want to particularly applaud Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Reps. Nydia Velazquez (D-NY) and Blaine Leutkemeyer (R-Mo.) for their leadership and willingness to compromise to ensure the stability and long-term success of this program.” NSBA and SBTC will continue to work with federal agencies as the new reporting requirements are put into effect, and plan to provide training and resources to members on how to best comply with the new rules under the program. Stay tuned for details. Read the full text and summary here: S. 4900 SBIR and STTR Extension Act of 2022 Bill Text S. 4900 Section-by-Section Summary If you’re new to the SBIR/STTR discussion, check out the video below from Charles Wessner, senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and a trusted resource. Wessner recently explained the benefits of the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program, the risks of ending it and China’s involvement:

The legislation now moves to the House, where lawmakers have until late Friday night to act. SEPT. 29 | This afternoon, the Senate voted to advance a 10-week stopgap funding bill to fund the government with a continuing resolution (CR) through Dec. 16, 2022, by a vote of 72-25. This vote comes after the Senate cleared a procedural hurdle earlier this week for advancement when Senator J0e Manchin of West Virginia (D) requested his special interest project to expedite permitting for energy projects be removed from the CR text. In addition to providing federal solvency (at least on paper) and keeping the government open beyond this weekend, the text includes provisions $12.4 billion in aid to Ukraine – nearly $1 billion more than requested by the President. With the legislation on its way to the House, lawmaker have until Friday night to pass the stopgap legislation. Biden’s requests for $22.4 billion to COVID resources and $4.5 billion to respond to monkeypox cases were not addressed in the legislation poised for a vote this evening, and, while Democrats claim the bill as a great reflection of bipartisanship, its final terms remain largely uncertain. Delays from infighting over special interests for a pipeline project in West Virginia in the Senate aside, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she is prepared to have the House move quickly on the stopgap bill: “We are prepared to take it up,” Pelosi said in a press conference last week. “We have same-day authority already built in, so we don’t have to delay it in any way for procedural purposes.” Follow @NSBAAdvocate and check back here for the latest.

FinCEN Releases Final CTA Regulations SEPT 29 | This morning, the U.S. Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) released the final rule regarding required reporting under the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) or “Beneficial Ownership” law passed by Congress as part of the National Defense Authorization Act in Dec. 2020. The law requires certain LLCs and small companies to continually report to FinCEN all beneficial owners’ personally identifiable information, which is then posted on a public database. The rule goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2024, making no changes significant to make it palatable to small business. This portion of the regulations governing the CTA embody the intent of the law—something NSBA ardently opposed every step of the way. According to NSBA President and CEO Todd McCracken, “There simply is no way even significant changes in the regulations for the Corporate Transparency Act could remedy what was and will be bad policy. The regulations still target only small businesses, still require burdensome, duplicative paperwork, and still fail to require federal agencies to share information they’re already collecting.” Affected companies created prior to enactment of the regulations’ effective date will have one year to report, while companies formed after Jan. 1, 2024, will have just 30 days to file their reports. Subsequently, companies will have 30 days to file updated reports upon any changes in their beneficial ownership. This first rule from FinCEN is just one of three to implement the CTA. Up next: a rule governing who may access this information and how to safeguard it, as well as updates to FinCEN’s customer due diligence rules. While the regulations do not cover penalties given the law’s specificity, it is important to note that failure to comply would be a federal crime with civil penalties of $500 per day up to $10,000 and criminal penalties of up to two years in prison. NSBA supports common-sense efforts to stem money laundering, these changes to the CTA requiring duplicative disclosures are the wrong way to do it, especially since the information is already being collected. The goal of lawmakers could easily be achieved through a simple mandate requiring federal agencies to share information. Instead, small businesses have been targeted and will bear significant burdens once again due to a lapse in effective governing. Check out the FinCEN Fact Sheet and this recent article from the Wall Street Journal featuring insight from NSBA.

NSBA stands by common sense policies that are both functional and practical. Late last week, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy announced his desire to see a roll back in the $80 billion funding recently allotted to the IRS, citing concerns IRS will unfairly target certain groups, including small business. Passed as part of President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, IRS officials have repeatedly ensured the enhanced funding will not be used to unduly target individuals or small businesses. While NSBA acknowledges these assurances, formalized safeguards guaranteeing these extra funds to the IRS will not affect families or small business – those with less ability to defend themselves against intensive IRS inquiries – will provide much-needed confidence to small-business owners. According to Politico, the IRS has projected that it would hire 87,000 new employees over a decade with its extra funding; however, given sharp partisanship stretching from Capitol Hill to the White House, there’s essentially zero chance President Biden would approve any bill targeting the IRS’ new funds. Meanwhile, in the Senate, Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee wrote a letter to IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig last week asking for further details on how the agency planned to spend the $80 billion it is scheduled to receive over the next decade. NSBA has been outspoken that efforts to close the so-called “tax gap” do not unduly burden small business through ramped-up enforcement at the cost of improved compliance assistance. The IRS must focus their efforts and research to better identify noncompliant taxpayers, enhance taxpayer services to inform taxpayers of correct tax obligations and adjust its enforcement tools to target those who intentionally evade paying taxes. Adding new burdens and requirements on small businesses already struggling to do the right thing is simply the wrong answer. Follow NSBA for the latest on small business tax policy from Washington, read the full 10-page letter from Senate Republicans here, and download NSBA’s latest issue brief here.

Returning from Rosh Hashana observations, late Tuesday night, the Senate voted to advance a 10-week stopgap funding bill to fund the government with a continuing resolution (CR) through Dec. 16, 2022. In addition to providing federal solvency (at least on paper) and keeping the government open beyond this weekend, the text includes provisions $12.4 billion in aid to Ukraine – nearly $1 billion more than requested by the President. Lawmakers have until Friday night to pass the stopgap legislation, but, with a last-minute request to strike energy-permitting provisions initially insisted upon by West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin (D) from the CR text, the upper chamber secured the 60 votes needed to overcome a procedural hurdle to advance the bill. Republicans say their position of the proposal is stronger with a bill “that is as clean as possible” – meaning without the Manchin provisions. Top Senate GOP appropriator Richard Shelby (Ala.) said he would oppose forms of the stopgap package with the energy-permitting provisions attached. Biden’s requests for $22.4 billion to COVID resources and $4.5 billion to respond to monkeypox cases were not addressed in the legislation poised for a vote this evening, and, while Democrats claim the bill as a great reflection of bipartisanship, its final terms remain largely uncertain. Delays from infighting over special interests for a pipeline project in West Virginia in the Senate aside, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she is prepared to have the House move quickly on the stopgap bill: “We are prepared to take it up,” Pelosi said in a press conference last week. “We have same-day authority already built in, so we don’t have to delay it in any way for procedural purposes.” Follow @NSBAAdvocate and check back here for the latest.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Sept. 27, 2022 Contact: Molly Day 202-552-2904 press@nsba.biz Senate Passes SBIR Reauth Bill, Clears Way for 3-Year Extension Washington, D.C. – Last week, the U.S. Senate passed a bill reauthorizing the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs, clearing the biggest hurdle for a much-needed reauthorization just over one week prior to the Sept. 30 deadline. Below is a statement from NSBA President and CEO Todd McCracken and its Small Business Technology Council Executive Director Jere Glover. Todd McCracken, President and CEO of NSBA: “This legislation moves the program forward to avoid a catastrophic program shut-down and is a significant victory for small business,” stated McCracken. “I applaud Sen. Cardin and his cohorts and their staff for their tireless efforts to find a compromise that enables this highly successful program to continue. “Despite some differences in what NSBA sought in the reauthorization, this bill is the epitome of compromise: it addresses concerns some had about research security while ensuring there will be no lapse in small businesses ability to research, create and innovate in a way that best serves the needs of the federal government.” Jere Glover, Executive Director of SBTC: “We have worked closely with lawmakers on this bill for months, and in the decades I’ve been working with the SBIR/STTR programs, never have we experienced a more difficult reauthorization process,” stated Glover. “Not only does instability and a lack of predictability deeply harm the small-business owners who participate in these programs, it does a huge disservice to the federal agencies who utilize these technologies and creates vast inefficiencies in the program. “I look forward to continuing our work with lawmakers to get this bill passed and signed, and anticipate a collaborative transition to the new rules and requirements under the program. Our top priority must be to ensure the countless ground-breaking innovations that have resulted from the SBIR/STTR programs continue in a way that is beneficial, fair and straightforward for America’s small-business innovators.” The House is set to vote on S. 4900 as soon as this week. Celebrating 85 years in operation, NSBA is a staunchly nonpartisan organization advocating on behalf of America’s entrepreneurs. SBTC is a council of NSBA and focuses on critical high-tech and innovation programs through the federal government. NSBA and SBTC’s 65,000 members represent every state and every industry in the U.S., and we are proud to be the nation’s first small-business advocacy organization. Please visit www.nsba.biz or @NSBAAdvocate. ###

Missed WP2023? There's more in store for Washington Presentation 2024! Register today! NSBA’s annual fly-in known as the Washington Presentation was back in full force this year after a 2-year hiatus. More than 150 small-business owners made their way to Washington, D.C., to meet with lawmakers on the trials and tribulations of small business ownership. NSBA Member Andrew Weins, of Wisconsin, takes a second between Hill meetings with staff from the offices of Senator Ron Johnson and Representative Glenn Grothman to snap a quick small-business selfie. Thank you to GreenUp Solutions for sparing Andrew for the trip and thank you to all of the Members of Congress and their stellar staff for meeting with the NSBA delegation to discuss the importance of strong support for small business on both sides the aisle on Capitol Hill. While Sen. Ben Cardin’s (D-Md.) office was unable to host an in-person meeting, they met with the NSBA delegation from Maryland to talk about the important things their office is doing to support small business. From left to right,, top to bottom: Sandra Cheney, of Sandra Cheney Enterprises; Marcus Johnson, of Johnson Innovation Group; Katherine Scott, of Best Writers and Editors; Veronica Black, of E-50 Solutions; Genshe Chen, of Intelligent Fusion Technology (dialed in, not pictured); Michael Batisto of 1020 Builders; Bryan Pelley, of Protagonist; Donald Butler, of Butler Squared If you weren’t able to join NSBA in D.C. this time, there’s never a bad time to reach out to your Member of Congress to start building a relationship. NSBA works best because of the hard work and commitment of our members – let us help: Check out the NSBA Action Alerts (pre-drafted letters you can send to your Representatives and Senators in less than two minutes), our highly-cited surveys and reports, our one-page issue briefs and much more! NSBA Member Jeff Anderson, President of ATEK Distribution based in Minneapolis, commemorates his meeting in Rep. Tiffany’s office. Be sure to follow up with everyone, share your posts, repost a friend’s, and keep the conversation going to highlight the importance of America’s small businesses. From L-R: NSBA Members Michael Koslow, of Aenigma Investigation Agency; Monica Robles of Asociacion de Emprendedor@s; Isabel Chen, of Trystine Technical Innovations; Justin Schardin, Senator Feinstein’s Legislative Assistant; Marilyn Wilson Lund, of WAV Group; Elizabeth Stirling, of Volt MediaFix; Ana Bradfield, of Bradfield Consulting; Houman Ghajari, of MaXentric Technologies See y’all in February for our Small Business Congress!

Late Wednesday evening the Senate passed a bill reauthorizing the SBIR/STTR programs, clearing the biggest hurdle for reauthorization. This legislation moves the program forward to avoid a catastrophic program shut-down and is a significant victory for small business. Introduced by Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee Chair Ben Cardin (D-Md.), S. 4900 will extend the programs for three years, moving the expiration date to Sept. 30, 2025. It also makes changes to the program that focus on research security, protecting SBIR technology from theft by China and other adversarial governments, and increased standards for Phase 1 to 2 transition and Commercialization for multiple award winners. The next step in the process will be the House taking up and passing the bill, which is expected to occur in the next week or so. S. 4900 SBIR and STTR Extension Act of 2022 Bill Text S. 4900 Section-by-Section Summary There will be an increase in reporting requirements and paperwork burden imposed by the research security provisions that firms will need to be aware of. In addition, firms with over 50 Phase 1 awards over the past five years will need to show a 50 percent transition rate to Phase 2. Firms with 50 Phase 2 awards over the past 10 years will need to show $250,000 in sales or investment for every Phase 2, and Firms with over 100 Phase 2 awards over the past 10 years will need to show $450,000 in sales or investment for every Phase 2. The consequence for missing these benchmarks will be a limit of 20 Phase 1 awards and Direct to Phase 2 awards per year. NSBA and its Small Business Technology Council (SBTC) has been instrumental in helping to negotiate and move forward reauthorizing language to prevent a program shutdown. Stay tuned in the coming months for more detailed guidance and clarity for SBIR firms on what these changes mean, and how firms can come into compliance. SBTC will also work with SBA and the agencies to better understand how these changes will be implemented, and what they mean for small businesses. NSBA and SBTC is closely monitoring progress of S. 4900, as well as maintaining all options for an SBIR/STTR reauthorization. Short of a permanent passage, extensions of SBIR/STTR are vital to ensuring opportunities for small business for research, technology, and beyond. While this bill falls short of long-term priorities for NSBA and SBTC—it includes a three-year reauthorization vs. a permanent solution and institutes new burdensome reporting requirements—it takes important and necessary steps forward to ensure the near-term stability and predictability of the program. Follow @NSBAAdvocate and check back here for the latest.

Today, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) and the U.S. Department of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) announced partnerships aimed at helping small and disadvantaged business access the resources they need to be able to succeed and compete in the infrastructure space. Announcing the partnerships today at DOT’s Headquarters during a Business Forum focused on small and disadvantaged business access to capital, resources, and relationships, DOT is reportedly on target achieve 20 percent of federal contracts awarded to small and disadvantaged businesses. NSBA is supportive of efforts to expand opportunities for small businesses of all types to participate in relevant federal procurement processes. We look forward to seeing even greater opportunities and achievements for small business in the federal sector. Click here for more.

SBA Opens Awards Process NSBA members are award-worthy year-round, and we were thrilled to be able to recognize a few small business advocates last week at our annual Washington Presentation fly-in, but the accolades and recognition doesn’t stop there: applications for the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) National Small Business Week awards are currently open. SBA’s Small Business Week—which will be celebrating its 50th year in 2023—is a chance for small-business owners to receive the recognition they deserve. Honoring “critical contributions of America’s entrepreneurs and small business owners,” there are a number of categories to apply for. There are also a number of opportunities for recognition from local SBA chapters/ Please click here for more details.

While so many of America’s small businesses are still feeling the effects of the pandemic, we as a collective group are doing the hard and important work of marching forward. NSBA just wrapped up our first in-person Washington Presentation in three years, and it was invigorating. We shared two days together in Washington D.C. talking policy, hearing from Beltway insiders and getting reacquainted with each other. Despite changes to the program and how we all do business, one thing hasn’t changed: NSBA is committed to being your voice in Washington, D.C. Spending time with you all has energized all of us on staff. NSBA is in the process of cultivating new leaders who will serve our association throughout 2023 and continue building on the progress we’ve made in the past year. On Tuesday, Nov. 15, NSBA will hold a meeting to nominate and vote on the organization’s leadership for the coming year.   All NSBA members are welcome to participate in the meeting. If you’re interested, please click here to be included in our list of members who would like to learn more.   Your involvement and activism is what makes NSBA so effective, and on behalf of the NSBA staff and 2022 leadership, we thank you for your continued support of NSBA. Onward, Todd Todd McCracken NSBA President and CEO