WASHINGTON – Today President Obama signed into law a temporary extension of the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. “The Small Business Act and the Small Business Investment Act Temporary Extension” (S. 1513) temporarily reauthorizes SBIR and other small business programs until September 30, 2009. The SBIR program was set to expire today, July 31. Senator Landrieu commented on the temporary extension:

“This temporary extension ensures that this important program will continue creating cutting-edge technologies and high-paying jobs. While this two-month extension was essential, and is good news, it is critical that the SBIR and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs be more permanently reauthorized. We have been working hard with the House of Representatives to reach a fair compromise that will reauthorize and strengthen the SBIR and STTR programs and that will guarantee that these programs remain for truly small businesses. With one in four SBIR inventions resulting in the sale of groundbreaking new products, it is crucial that the integrity of these programs remain intact to ensure America has the innovations it needs to stay competitive in the global marketplace.”