What is State Science & Technology Institute (SSTI)?
It is a national nonprofit organization based outside of Columbus, OH, that is dedicated to leading, supporting, and strengthening public-private efforts to improve regional economies through science, technology and innovation. Part of SSTI’s mission is to serve as a neutral convener for discussion and advancement of key issues to further state and federal cooperation on science and technology. With the reauthorization of SBIR required for the highly successful program to continue, our state members asked SSTI to explore ways to support the program’s continuation.
How important is SBIR to your organization?
SBIR over the past 25 years has evolved into a state-federal-industry partnership in ways that I do not believe are fully realized by the federal agencies and perhaps even Congress. Today nearly every state has some form of SBIR-related outreach or assistance on its books, has localized SBIR assistance programs, or both. In fact, as has been the case for more than a decade, SBIR assistance remains one of the most widely applied state strategies to encourage technology-based economic development.
What are the benefits of state interest in SBIR?
A seldom recognized benefit has been to help broaden the geographic and demographic reach of the federal SBIR program – explicit goals of the legislation under consideration by the [House Small Business] Committee today.
With regards to Congress, what actions would SSTI like to see occur?
We recommend that they consider including language in the reauthorization bill that leads to timely release of information regarding federal SBIR program applicants and recipients. The result would be more small businesses receiving technical and financial assistance at earlier stages in developing SBIR-funded research and future SBIR applications, increasing the likelihood of commercial success.
Another suggestion is the development and implementation of an intensive training and certification program for state and regional SBIR assistance efforts. The training program would address the skills that federal agencies desire in state SBIR efforts and the educational needs identified by small technology businesses and state SBIR assistance providers. The result will be unified and higher quality technical assistance being provided everywhere in the country, helping to level the playing field for small tech firms located in areas and within populations that do not perform as well historically in the SBIR program.
Anything else?
Two of the greatest barriers to growth for small technology companies are 1) access to early stage capital and 2) adequate technical and managerial expertise to carry an innovation into commercial success. Over the past 25 years, the SBIR program has proven to be a valuable financial tool for small technology firms during the high risk stages of research feasibility and proof of concept.
Mark Skinner is Vice President of the State Science & Technology Institute (SSTI). This post is an excerpt of his testimony to the House of Representatives Committee on Small Business (March 13, 2008).
Filed under: Congress, Finding Cures, Non Profit | Tagged: House Small Business Committee, Innovation, Mark Skinner, Non Profit, research, SBIR, SSTI
