Ranking Member Markey and listening session participants at The Engine at MIT in Cambridge, Mass.
(Boston, August 19) - Ranking Member Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) today hosted a listening session to hear directly from Massachusetts research and innovation small businesses about how the Trump administration’s cuts to federal agencies and research, attacks on universities, and reckless tariff policies are harming small businesses and the innovation economy. During the session, Ranking Member Markey and the small business representatives also discussed the importance of the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs to the small business innovation ecosystem. The discussion took place at The Engine at MIT in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
“President Trump is trying to tear down every pillar of the innovation ecosystem,” said Ranking Member Markey. “He has threatened to withhold billions of dollars in funding for universities that do not bend to his wishes. His administration has frozen billions in grants to research institutions. This is unacceptable and will set our country on an irreversible course, destroying all that we’ve built together here in Massachusetts and across the country. We will fight back.”
"The Engine was grateful to host this important discussion between Senator Markey and innovative small businesses,” said Ben Downing, Chief Growth Officer of The Engine. “Every day, 115 Tough Tech teams come to work at The Engine to solve some of the world's biggest challenges in climate, health and more. Flexible funding, like the SBIR program and other support for research, translation and commercialization provide, is key to accelerating their work and getting us closer to the future we are all trying to build together."
“The New England Innovation Alliance is very fortunate to have Ed Markey as the Ranking Member of the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee,” said William Marinelli of the New England Innovation Alliance (NEIA). “Massachusetts has been a leader in the development of SBIR funded technologies through the close relationships we have between small businesses and our leading research institutions, now threatened by the current administration. Senator Markey has been a strong supporter of the SBIR program since his time in the House, emphasizing merit-based awards. His leadership is critical especially in this current environment to protect federal funding for innovation.”
“MassBio was pleased to have member companies participate in today’s roundtable and share their stories directly with Senator Markey,” said Kendalle Burlin O’Connell, CEO & President of MassBio. “We are grateful for the opportunity to highlight how programs like SBIR fuel innovation and encourage its timely reauthorization. We look forward to continuing this dialogue to ensure Massachusetts remains at the forefront of research, development, and job creation.”
“The strength of Massachusetts’ economy, and America’s economy, is attributed to the interconnected network of universities, small businesses, and research institutions that together, generate breakthroughs and drive progress,” said Brian Johnson, President of Massachusetts Medical Device Industry Council (MassMEDIC). “This is especially true in healthcare innovation. For years, the SBIR program has demonstrated how public investment can empower small companies to take risks that lead to transformative cures and treatments that patients around the globe demand. MassMEDIC greatly appreciates Sen. Markey’s efforts to expand and improve the program. His work will help keep the United States at the forefront of global innovation.”
“On behalf of the 19,000 scientists, researchers, and entrepreneurs we have trained, VentureWell is deeply grateful for Senator Markey’s steadfast leadership in championing science and technology innovation funding, and for his unwavering support of small businesses through the SBIR/STTR program,” said Chelsea Schiller, Director of Health Commercialization Programs at VentureWell. “Continued federal research investments, SBIR/STTR funding, and evidence-based entrepreneurial and commercialization support programs are essential to accelerating business growth and attracting capital. As a Massachusetts-based organization with nationwide impact, we look forward to continuing to work with the Senator and other federal partners on solutions that reduce costs, save lives, and strengthen the innovation economy.”
Last month, at a Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship hearing titled “Innovation in the Crosshairs: Countering China’s Industrial Espionage,” Ranking Member Markey slammed the Trump administration’s devastating cuts to government agencies and research institutions and emphasized the importance of supporting American innovation through federal programs such as SBIR/STTR. In May, Ranking Member Markey and House Committee on Small Business Ranking Member Nydia Velázquez (NY-07) introduced the SBIR/STTR Reauthorization Act in the Senate and the House, which would make permanent and expand the SBIR/STTR programs before they expire on September 30 of this year.
