United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office of Research and
Development
Washington, DC 20460
vvEPA
EPA's Small Business Innovation
Research (SBIR) Program
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is one of 12 federal agencies that
participate in the SBIR Program established by the Small Business Innovation
Development Act of 1982. The purpose of this Act was to strengthen the role of
small businesses in federally funded R&D and help develop a stronger national base
for technical innovation. An SBIR small business is defined as a for profit
organization with no more than 500 employees. In addition, the small business
must be independently owned and operated, at least 51 percent owned by U.S.
citizens or lawfully admitted resident aliens, not dominant in the field of operation
in which it is proposing, and have its principal place of business in the United States.
Joint ventures and limited partnerships are eligible for SBIR awards, provided the
entity created qualifies as a small business.
EPA issues annual solicitations for Phase I and Phase II research proposals from
science and technology-based firms. Under Phase I, the scientific merit and
technical feasibility of the proposed concept is investigated. EPA awards firm-
fixed-price Phase I contracts of up to $70,000 and the period of performance is
typically 6 months. Through this phased approach to SBIR funding, EPA can
determine whether the research idea, often on high-risk advanced concepts, is
technically feasible, whether the firm can do high-quality research, and whether
sufficient progress has been made to justify a larger Phase II effort.
Phase II contracts are limited to small businesses that have successfully completed
their Phase I contracts. The objective of Phase II is to commercialize the Phase I
technology. Competitive awards are based on the results of Phase I and the
commercialization potential of the Phase II technology. In Phase II, EPA awards
contracts of up to $225,000 and the period of performance is typically 15 months.
EPA also offers up to $100,000 and 1 additional year as Phase II Options for firms
with third party financing for accelerating commercialization or for technologies
accepted into the EPA Environmental Technology Verification (ETV) Program.
EPA's next Phase I Solicitation will open on March 25, 2004 and close on
May 25, 2004. The Phase I Solicitation will be posted on the National Center for
Environmental Research WEBSITE at:
http://www.epa.gov/ncer/sbir
Please note that last year's Phase I solicitation is still posted on the EPA WEBSITE.
The solicitation includes a description of the SBIR Program, application requirements
and research topics. This solicitation is available by Fax. If you need a faxed copy or
if you have any questions, please call the EPA HELPLINE at:
1 (800) 490-9194
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