“A bill to require the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to establish an Innovation Voucher Grant Program.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section defines key terms used in the Act, including (1) Administrator as the Administrator of the Small Business Administration; (2) eligible entity as an institution of higher education (as defined in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965) or a nonprofit research lab, institution, or similar U.S. organization associated with educational or research activities (including a federally funded research and development center); (3) Program as the Innovation Voucher Grant Program established under section 3; and (4) small business concern as that term is defined in section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632).
This section establishes the Innovation Voucher Grant Program, under which the Administrator awards competitive grants of $15,000 to $75,000 to small business concerns for the federal share (not more than 75% for grants under $50,000 and not more than 50% for grants of $50,000 or more) of costs to purchase technical assistance and services from eligible entities to advance research, development, or commercialization of innovative products and services. The program fosters collaboration between small businesses and research institutions, must be established within 180 days of enactment, and requires grant recipient selection within 180 days of the application deadline based on project novelty, feasibility, and necessity. Grant recipients must submit project outcome reports within 180 days of completion, and the Administrator must submit biennial reports to the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship and the House Committee on Small Business—covering grants awarded, projects that could have proceeded without funding, and program impacts on knowledge transfer and commercialization—until appropriated funds are expended, followed by a final report within 180 days thereafter.
This section authorizes appropriations of $10 million for each of fiscal years 2026 through 2030 to the Administrator to carry out the Program, with funds remaining available until expended. It limits administrative costs to no more than 5% of amounts appropriated.