The Senate unanimously passed legislation on Tuesday that would reauthorize the federal Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs.
The two small business innovation programs expired on Sept. 30, 2025, after Congress failed to reauthorize them. Since their inception, the programs have delivered over $77 billion in research and development funding to more than 33,000 small businesses nationwide.
The Small Business Innovation and Economic Security Act, a product of bipartisan negotiations between Sens. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, and Ed Markey, D-Mass., would extend the programs through Sept. 30, 2031.
“After working across the aisle and with our small businesses, we now have the necessary reforms to strengthen America’s seed fund while unleashing small businesses to deliver for taxpayers and our warfighters,” Ernst said.
“The five-year reauthorization of the SBIR/STTR programs is a win-win-win-win – for American small businesses, for workers, for the innovation economy, and for the communities they serve,” added Markey.
The bill, which now heads to the House, includes several reforms to the SBIR and STTR programs.
For example, it strengthens foreign due diligence requirements and asks agencies to notify small businesses when they’ve been flagged for potential foreign risk. This allows small businesses to remain competitive for SBIR and STTR funding.
The bill also looks to hold recipients accountable for producing cutting-edge technologies and capabilities, as well as create transparency through improved data collection and reporting.
Eric Blatt, the executive director of the Alliance for Commercial Technology in Government, said in a LinkedIn post that the bill’s most impactful reform is the creation of the Strategic Breakthrough program.
The Strategic Breakthrough program is designed to help agencies scale the most promising technologies beyond early development, while requiring companies to contribute matching funds and secure agency commitment.
“With the Senate vote complete, the path to reauthorizing SBIR and STTR is much clearer,” Blatt said in a statement to MeriTalk. “House committees have been part of the process and are ready to act on the Senate package. Given the strong bipartisan backing and the House’s prior action on an extension, we expect momentum to carry through.”