Letter From the Department of Defense Assessment of the Defense Advanced Research Projects The number of new and innovative ideas submitted to the Agency has increased considerably due to the SBIR Program. The percentage of the small business community participation in Agency R&D has increased, with the concomitant results of more competition for Agency business and more second sources for vital defense technologies. Over 80% of the Agency program managers and administrators believe that their participation in the SBIR Program was worthwhile and that they received tangible benefits from it. Forty percent indicated that they were more aware of efforts in their technology area as a result of the Program. About twice as many Phase I and Phase II proposals are evaluated very highly and recommended for funding than are actually procured. This is indicative of the very high quality of SBIR work for which the Agency awards contracts. These results are based on a study of the SBIR Program at the Agency conducted by the SBIR program manager. Further results from this study indicate that the Congressional goals of the implementing legislation--the stimulation of technological innovation, the use of small business to meet federal R&D needs, and an increase in the private sector commercialization innovations--have been achieved. Letter From the Department of Defense Assessment of the Defense Nuclear Agency (DNA) Small The Defense Nuclear Agency believes that the SBIR program has had a beneficial effect on the agency's research and development programs. DNA's technical managers give the SBIR program high grades for both innovativeness and quality of performance. They feel it is a unique source of fresh, innovative ideas and offers an inexpensive opportunity to explore high risk, high payoff ventures. They rate the quality of performance equal to or better than that obtained on non-SBIR contracts. Some of them also feel that SBIR contractors give more value for the dollar than some of the larger contractors. The SBIR program has been valuable to DNA as a means of broadening its contractor base. It offers small businesses an opportunity to suggest ways they can contribute to DNA's research and development programs and affords DNA an inexpensive vehicle for judging the capabilities of companies new to DNA's areas of interest. Some of DNA's technical managers have suggested that the SBIR program might be improved by raising the suggested dollar levels for Phase I proposals to $75,000-$100,000. Letter From the Department of Education Secretary Bennett delegated responsibility for management of the Small Business Innovative Research Program to Assistant Secretary Chester E. Finn, Jr. I am responding on behalf of Assistant Secretary Finn to your request of December 9, 1987 for an assessment of the effect of the Small Business Act Department's research programs. on the The enclosed report contains four sections which (1) spell out the appropriate legislative provisions governing the SBIR program, (2) outline the parameters of the Department's SBIR program, (3) summarize the first five years of the SBIR program within the Department, and (4) provide our judgment on the effect of the SBIR legislation on the Department's research programs. If I can be of further assistance, please let me know. Letter From the Department of Education REPORT ON THE SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION RESEARCH PROGRAM IN THE UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION MARCH, 1988 As required by P. L. 99-443 Letter From the Department of Education The Department of Education (ED) is one of the eleven Federal agencies meeting the mandates of the Small Business Innovation Development Act, P. L. 97-219, signed by President Reagan in August, 1982, and further supported by a Presidential memorandum to agency heads in September, 1982. Since that time, the Department has complied with the provisions of the SBIR legislation. SBIR LEGISLATIVE AUTHORITY SBIR legislation requires every Federal agency with an extramural research and development budget exceeding $100 million to set aside a minimum graduating percentage of that budget up to 1.25 percent annually for a special competition limited to small, profit-making firms, to work on R and D problems of interest to the particular agency. The purposes of the Act are to stimulate technological innovation; to use small businesses to meet Federal R and D needs; to foster and encourage participation by minority and disadvantaged persons in technological innovation; and to increase private sector commercialization of innovations derived from Federal R and D. The law defines R and D as "...any activity which is (A) a systematic, intensive study directed toward greater knowledge or understanding of the subject studied; (B) a systematic study directed specifically toward applying new knowledge to meet a recognized need; or (C) a systematic application of knowledge toward the production of useful materials, devices, and systems or methods, including design, development, and improvement of prototypes and new processes to meet specific requirements." The legislation requires "... a uniform process having (A) a first phase for determining, insofar as possible, the scientific and technical merit and feasibility of ideas submitted pursuant to SBIR program solicitations; (B) a second phase to further develop the proposed ideas to meet the particular program needs, the awarding of which shall take into consideration the scientific and technical merit and feasibility evidenced by the first phase ... and (C) where appropriate, a third phase in which non-Federal capital pursues commercial applications of the research or research and development and which may also involve follow-on non-SBIR funded production contracts with a Federal agency for products or processes intended for use by the United States Government..." MANAGEMENT OF ED'S SBIR PROGRAM In a memorandum dated May 2, 1983, the Under Secretary of Education delegated responsibility for management of the Department's SBIR program to the Assistant Secretary for Educational Research and Improvement. The Assistant Secretary assigned responsibility for day-to-day management of the program across the Department to a Senior Program Coordinator in the Office of Educational Research and Improvement. Funding for the SBIR Program is provided by individual principal operating components (POCs) allocating monies to support work on topics they identify in the Department's annual Phase I request for proposal solicitation. Within the Department of Education five principal operating components--each with distinct and separate legislation and R and D foci--have participated in the SBIR program over the last five years. These program units are the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), the Office of Bilingual -1 |