[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3603 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 3603
To require the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to
establish an Innovation Voucher Grant Program.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 23, 2023
Mr. Crow (for himself and Mr. Burchett) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Small Business
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the Administrator of the Small Business Administration to
establish an Innovation Voucher Grant Program.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Small Business Innovation Voucher
Act of 2023''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the
Administrator of the Small Business Administration.
(2) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means--
(A) an institution of higher education, as defined
in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 1001); or
(B) a nonprofit research lab, institution, or other
similar organization in the United States associated
with educational or research activities, including a
federally funded research and development center.
(3) Hubzone.--The term ``HUBZone'' has the meaning given
the term in section 31(b) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C.
657a(b)).
(4) Program.--The term ``Program'' means the Innovation
Voucher Grant Program established under section 3.
(5) Reservist.--The term ``Reservist'' means a member of a
reserve component of the Armed Forces named in section 10101 of
title 10, United States Code.
(6) Rural area.--The term ``rural area'' means any county
that the Bureau of the Census has defined as mostly rural or
completely rural in the most recent decennial census.
(7) Service-connected.--The term ``service-connected'' has
the meaning given the term in section 101 of title 38, United
States Code.
(8) Small business concern; small business concern owned
and controlled by veterans; small business concern owned and
controlled by women.--The terms ``small business concern'',
``small business concern owned and controlled by veterans'',
and ``small business concern owned and controlled by women''
have the meanings given those terms in section 3 of the Small
Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632).
(9) Small business concern in an underserved market.--The
term ``small business concern in an underserved market'' means
a small business concern--
(A) that is located in--
(i) a low- to moderate-income community;
(ii) a HUBZone;
(iii) a community that has been designated
as an empowerment zone or an enterprise
community under section 1391 of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986;
(iv) a community that has been designated
as a Promise Zone by the Secretary of Housing
and Urban Development;
(v) a community that has been designated as
a qualified opportunity zone under section
1400Z-1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986;
or
(vi) a rural area;
(B) for which more than 50 percent of the employees
reside in a low- to moderate-income community;
(C) that has been in existence for not more than 2
years;
(D) owned and controlled by socially and
economically disadvantaged individuals, including
minorities;
(E) owned and controlled by women;
(F) owned and controlled by veterans;
(G) owned and controlled by service-disabled
veterans; or
(H) not less than 51 percent owned and controlled
by 1 or more--
(i) members of the Armed Forces
participating in the Transition Assistance
Program of the Department of Defense;
(ii) Reservists;
(iii) spouses of veterans, members of the
Armed Forces, or Reservists; or
(iv) surviving spouses of veterans who died
on active duty or as a result of a service-
connected disability.
(10) Small business concern owned and controlled by
socially and economically disadvantaged individuals.--The term
``small business concern owned and controlled by socially and
economically disadvantaged individuals'' has the meaning given
the term in section 8(d)(3)(C) of the Small Business Act (15
U.S.C. 637(d)(3)(C)).
SEC. 3. INNOVATION VOUCHER GRANT PROGRAM.
(a) Establishment.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall establish a program to
be known as the ``Innovation Voucher Grant Program'' under which the
Administrator shall, on a competitive basis and in accordance with
subsection (g), award grants to small business concerns for the Federal
share of the cost of purchasing from eligible entities technical
assistance and services necessary to carry out projects to advance
research, development, or commercialization of new or innovative
products and services.
(b) Purposes of Program.--The purposes of the Program are--
(1) to foster collaboration between small business concerns
and research institutions or other similar organizations;
(2) to facilitate access by small business concerns to
capital-intensive infrastructure and advanced research
capabilities;
(3) to enable small business concerns to access technical
expertise and capabilities that will lead to the development of
innovative products;
(4) to promote business dynamism and competition;
(5) to stimulate United States leadership in advanced
research, innovation, and technology;
(6) to accelerate the development of an advanced workforce;
and
(7) to preserve and create new jobs.
(c) Application.--
(1) In general.--A small business concern desiring a grant
under the Program shall submit to the Administrator an
application with the eligible entity from which the small
business concern will purchase technical assistance and
services using funds awarded under the grant.
(2) Selection.--Not later than 180 days after the deadline
established by the Administrator to submit applications under
paragraph (1), the Administrator shall select the recipients of
the grants under the Program.
(d) Evaluation.--In evaluating an application for a grant under the
Program, the Administrator shall take into consideration--
(1) the likelihood that funds awarded under the grant will
be used to create or advance a novel product or service;
(2) the feasibility of creating or advancing a novel
product or service proposed to be created or advanced using
funds awarded under the grant; and
(3) whether creating or advancing a product or service
proposed to be created or advanced using funds awarded under
the grant could be accomplished without a grant awarded under
the Program.
(e) Amount.--A grant made under the Program shall be made in an
amount of not less than $15,000 and not more than $75,000, which shall
remain available to the grantee until expended.
(f) Amounts for Small Business Concerns.--
(1) In general.--Except to the extent that the
Administrator determines otherwise, not less than 40 percent of
the amounts made available for the Program in a fiscal year
shall be set aside and expended through--
(A) small business concerns in an underserved
market; or
(B) small business concerns in a region or State
that has historically been underserved by Federal
research and development funds.
(2) Remaining amount.--Any amount that is set aside under
paragraph (1) in a fiscal year that is not expended by the end
of the fiscal year shall be--
(A) except as provided in subparagraph (B),
available in the following fiscal year to make grants
to small business concerns described in subparagraphs
(A) and (B) of paragraph (1); and
(B) on and after October 1, 2026, available to make
grants to all small business concerns under the
Program.
(g) Federal Share.--The Federal share of the cost of purchasing
technical assistance and services described in subsection (a) using
funds awarded under a grant made under the Program shall be--
(1) not more than 75 percent, if the amount of the grant is
less than $50,000; and
(2) not more than 50 percent, if the amount of the grant is
not less than $50,000.
(h) Reports.--
(1) Reports from grant recipients.--Not later than 180 days
after the date on which a project carried out under a grant
awarded under the Program is completed, the recipient of the
grant shall submit to the Administrator a report on the
project, including--
(A) whether and how the project met the original
expectations for the project;
(B) how the results of the project were
incorporated in the business of the grant recipient;
and
(C) whether and how the project improved innovation
practices of the grant recipient.
(2) Report of the administrator.--Not later than 2 years
after the date on which the Administrator establishes the
Program, and every 2 years thereafter until the date on which
the amounts appropriated for the Program are expended, 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 grants
awarded under the Program, including--
(A) a description of the grants awarded;
(B) the estimated number of products or services
created or advanced under grants awarded under the
Program that could have been created or advanced
without grants awarded under the Program; and
(C) a description of the impact of the Program on
knowledge transfer and commercialization.
(3) Final report of the administrator.--Not later than 180
days after the date on which amounts appropriated for the
Program are expended, the Administrator shall submit to the
committees described in paragraph (2) a final report containing
the information described in subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C) of
that paragraph.
SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
(a) In General.--There is authorized to be appropriated to the
Administrator to carry out the Program $10,000,000 for each of fiscal
years 2023 through 2027, to remain available until expended.
(b) Administrative Costs.--Not more than 5 percent of amounts
appropriated under subsection (a) may be used for administrative costs.
<all>