The Small Business Administration has recently proposed new regulations concerning the SBIR and STTR programs that could radically alter the character of the program. The new regulations would open up the program to foreign-owned businesses, and change affiliation rules to allow consortiums of large businesses to participate. The SBTC strenuously objects to these proposed changes, as we believe that they will push American small businesses out of the SBIR program in favor of foreign-owned businesses and consortiums. SBTC has drafted two letters, one to Congress, and one to the President and administrator of the SBA, urging the SBA to revise the proposed changes to ensure that safeguards and protections that keep foreign-owned and large businesses are kept in place. The letters will close for signatures on Friday, July 13.
SBTC Letter to Congress
SBTC Letter to the President
Please review the attached letters, and if you agree with them, please add your name to the list of signatories. To have your name added to the letter, simply send an email toalec@sbtc.org with the following information:
Your Name
Company Name
Company’s City, State
We also have a background paper on the SBA size regulations in question. If you would like to know more detail about the regulations, and what affect they could have on the SBIR program, please read the background paper here: SBA Size Regulations Background Paper
We would also like to encourage you to comment directly on these new regulations to the SBA. There is no formal process, and technical language or legalese are not needed. Just state your concerns with the regulations, and your comments will make a difference. To send in your comments, visit the link to the Federal Register and the proposed rule changes and follow the instructions: Federal Register, Proposed SBA Rule Changes. There are instructions for how to make comments at the top of the proposed rule under the heading “ADDRESSES”. Individual comments are even MORE effective than a signature, so please consinder adding yours to the Register.
We are hoping to get at least 500 names added to the letter before we send it out. We will close this letter for signatures on July 13, so please send an email with your name and company info to alec@sbtc.org soon.