,,ii #aadth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #bacf ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,october #f1 #bjae ,mr4 ,vitter 7for himself and ,mr4 ,enzi7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,small ,business and ,entrepreneurship ,a ,,bill ,to establish the ,regional ,,sbir ,state ,collaborative ,initiative ,pilot ,program1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,improving ,small ,business ,innovative ,research and ,technologies ,act of #bjae4 #b4 ,regional ,,sbir ,state collaborative initiative pilot program ,section #i of the ,small ,business ,act 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #fch7 is amended-- 7#a7 in subsection 7mm7-- 7,a7 in paragraph 7#a71 by striking for the #c fiscal years beginning after the date of enactment of this subsection1 and inserting and until ,september #cj1 #bjag12 and 7,b7 by adding at the end the following3 7#g7 ,in general ,each ,federal agency that is required to conduct an ,,sbir program shall provide #ae percent of the funds allocated to the ,,sbir program of the ,federal agency that are set aside for administrative purposes under paragraph 7#a7 to the ,administration-- 7,a7 for the ,regional ,,sbir ,state ,collaborative ,initiative ,pilot ,program established under subsection 7tt72 7,b7 for the ,federal and ,state ,technology ,partnership ,program established under section #cd2 and 7,c7 to support the ,office of the ,administration that administers the ,,sbir program and the ,,sttr program1 subject to reasonable costs1 in carrying out those programs1 including any conference relating to the programs4 7#h7 ,pilot program ,of amounts provided to the ,administration under paragraph 7#a71 not less than #e1jjj1jjj shall be used to provide grants under the ,regional ,,sbir ,state ,collaborative ,initiative ,pilot ,program established under subsection 7tt7 for each fiscal year in which the program is in effect4 2 and 7#b7 by adding at the end the following3 7tt7 ,regional ,,sbir ,state collaborative initiative pilot program 7#a7 ,definitions ,in this subsection-- 7,a7 the term eligible entity means-- 7i7 a research institution2 and 7ii7 a small business concern2 7,b7 the term eligible ,state means-- 7i7 a ,state that the ,administration determines is in the bottom third of ,states with respect to the average number of annual ,,sbir program and ,,sttr program awards made to companies in the ,state for the preceding #c years for which the ,administration has applicable data2 and 7ii7 an ,e,p,s,co,r ,state that-- 7,i7 is a ,state described in clause 7i72 or 7,,ii7 is-- 7aa7 not a ,state described in clause 7i72 and 7bb7 invited to participate in a regional collaborative2 7,c7 the term ,e,p,s,co,r ,state means a ,state that participates in the ,experimental ,program to ,stimulate ,competitive ,research of the ,national ,science ,foundation1 as established under section #aac of the ,national ,science ,foundation ,authorization ,act of #aihh 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #ahfb;g72 7,d7 the term ,,fast program means the ,federal and ,state ,technology ,partnership ,program established under section #cd2 7,e7 the term pilot program means the ,regional ,,sbir ,state ,collaborative ,initiative ,pilot ,program established under paragraph 7#b72 7,f7 the term regional collaborative means a collaborative consisting of eligible entities that are located in not less than #c eligible ,states2 and 7,g7 the term ,state means any ,state of the ,united ,states1 the ,district of ,columbia1 the ,commonwealth of ,puerto ,rico1 and any territory or possession of the ,united ,states4 7#b7 ,establishment ,the ,administrator shall establish a pilot program1 to be known as the ,regional ,,sbir ,state ,collaborative ,initiative ,pilot ,program1 under which the ,administrator shall provide grants to regional collaboratives to address the needs of small business concerns in order to be more competitive in the proposal and selection process for awards under the ,,sbir program and the ,,sttr program and to increase technology transfer and commercialization4 7#c7 ,goals ,the goals of the pilot program are-- 7,a7 to create regional collaboratives that allow eligible entities to work cooperatively to leverage resources to address the needs of small business concerns2 7,b7 to grow ,,sbir program and ,,sttr program cooperative research and development and commercialization through increased awards under those programs2 7,c7 to increase the participation of ,states that have historically received a lower level of awards under the ,,sbir program and the ,,sttr program2 7,d7 to utilize the strengths and advantage of regional collaboratives to better leverage resources1 best practices1 and economies of scale in a region for the purpose of increasing awards2 7,e7 to increase the competitiveness of the ,,sbir program and the ,,sttr program2 7,f7 to identify sources of outside funding for applicants for an award under the ,,sbir program and the ,,sttr program1 including venture capitalists1 angel investor groups1 private industry1 crowd funding1 and special loan programs2 and 7,g7 to offer increased one-on-one engagements with companies and entrepreneurs for ,,sbir program and ,,sttr program education1 assistance1 and successful outcomes4 7#d7 ,application 7,a7 ,in general ,a regional collaborative that desires to participate in the pilot program shall submit to the ,administrator an application at such time1 in such manner1 and containing such information as the ,administrator may require4 7,b7 ,inclusion of lead eligible entities and coordinator ,a regional collaborative shall include in an application submitted under subparagraph 7,a7-- 7i7 the name of each lead eligible entity from each eligible ,state in the regional collaborative1 as designated under paragraph 7#e72 and 7ii7 the name of the coordinator for the regional collaborative1 as designated under paragraph 7#f74 7#e7 ,lead eligible entity 7,a7 ,in general ,each eligible ,state in a regional collaborative shall designate #a eligible entity located in the eligible ,state to serve as the lead eligible entity for the eligible ,state4 7,b7 ,authorization by ,governor ,each lead eligible entity designated under subparagraph 7,a7 shall be authorized to act as the lead eligible entity by the ,governor of the applicable eligible ,state4 7,c7 ,responsibilities ,each lead eligible entity designated under subparagraph 7,a7 shall be responsible for administering the activities and program initiatives described in paragraph 7#g7 in the applicable eligible ,state4 7#f7 ,regional collaborative coordinator 7,a7 ,in general ,each regional collaborative shall designate a coordinator from amongst the eligible entities located in the eligible ,states in the regional collaborative1 who shall serve as the interface between the regional collaborative and the ,administration with respect to the management of grants received under the pilot program4 7,b7 ,limitation ,a regional collaborative may not appoint as coordinator under subparagraph 7,a7 an eligible entity located in an ,e,p,s,co,r ,state described in paragraph 7#a77;,b77ii77,,ii74 7#g7 ,use of ,funds ,each regional collaborative that is awarded a grant under the pilot program shall1 in each eligible ,state in which an eligible entity of the regional collaborative is located-- 7,a7 establish an initiative under which first-time applicants for an award under the ,,sbir program or the ,,sttr program are reviewed by experienced1 national experts in the ,united ,states1 as determined by the lead eligible entity designated under paragraph 7#e72 7,b7 engage national mentors on a frequent basis to work directly with applicants for an award under the ,,sbir program or the ,,sttr program1 particularly during ,phase ,,ii1 to assist with the process of preparing and submitting a proposal2 7,c7 create and make available an online mechanism to serve as a resource for applicants for an award under the ,,sbir program or the ,,sttr program to identify and connect with ,federal labs1 prime government contractor companies1 other industry partners1 and regional industry cluster organizations2 7,d7 conduct focused and concentrated outreach efforts to increase participation in the ,,sbir program and the ,,sttr program by small business concerns owned and controlled by women1 small business concerns owned and controlled by veterans1 small business concerns owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals 7as defined in section #h7;d77#c77;,c771 and historically ,black colleges and universities2 7,e7 administer a structured program of training and technical assistance-- 7i7 to prepare applicants for an award under the ,,sbir program or the ,,sttr program-- 7,i7 to compete more effectively for ,phase ,i and ,phase ,,ii awards2 and 7,,ii7 to develop and implement a successful commercialization plan2 and 7ii7 to create more competitive proposals to increase awards under the ,,sbir program and the ,,sttr program2 and 7,f7 to assist applicants for an award under the ,,sbir program or the ,,sttr program to identify sources of outside funding1 including venture capitalists1 angel investor groups1 private industry1 crowd funding1 and special loan programs4 7#h7 ,grant amount 7,a7 ,in general ,the ,administrator may award a grant to each eligible ,state in which an eligible entity of a regional collaborative is located not more than #cjj1jjj to carry out the activities described in paragraph 7#g74 7,b7 ,limitation 7i7 ,in general ,an eligible ,state may not receive an award under both the ,,fast program and the pilot program for the same year4 7ii7 ,rule of construction ,nothing in clause 7i7 shall be construed to prevent an eligible ,state from applying for an award under the ,,fast program and the pilot program for the same year4 7#i7 ,duration of grant ,a grant awarded under this subsection shall be for a period of not more than #a year1 and may be renewed by the ,administrator for #a additional year4 7#aj7 ,termination ,the pilot program shall terminate on ,september #cj1 #bjag4 7#aa7 ,report ,not later than #a year after the date on which the pilot program terminates1 the ,administrator shall submit to the ,committee on ,small ,business and ,entrepreneurship of the ,senate and the ,committee on ,small ,business of the ,house of ,representatives a report on the pilot program1 which shall include-- 7,a7 an assessment of the pilot program and the effectiveness of the pilot program in meeting the goals described in paragraph 7#c72 7,b7 an assessment of the best practices1 including an analysis of how the pilot program compares to the ,,fast program and a single ,state approach2 and 7,c7 recommendations as to whether any aspect of the pilot program should be extended or made permanent4 4 #c4 ,,fast program ,section #cd of the ,small ,business ,act 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #feg;d7 is amended-- 7#a7 in subsection 7h7-- 7,a7 in paragraph 7#a71 by striking #bjja through #bjje and inserting #bjaf and #bjag2 and 7,b7 in paragraph 7#b71 by striking fiscal years #bjja through #bjje and inserting each of fiscal years #bjaf and #bjag2 and 7#b7 in subsection 7i71 by striking ,september #cj1 #bjje and inserting ,september #cj1 #bjag4