MDMA Member Company Testifies Before Congress

President and Chief Executive Officer of Synapse Biomedical, Anthony Ignagni, testified before the House Science and Technology Subcommittee on Technology about the ways in which the SBIR program could be more effective in achieving its goals. Specifically, he made three concrete recommendations to improve the program:

• First, Congress should increase the dollar amount of Phase I and II awards so that they account for an inflationary adjustment as the amount of the awards hasn't increased since 1992.

• Further, he articulated the need to provide agencies with more flexibility in administering the SBIR program so that companies could apply for Phase II grants without having to first apply for a Phase I grant.

• Finally, he strongly encouraged Congress to return to the previous policy (prior to the 2003 rule change) so that majority venture backed companies could re-participate in the program.

Based on these three suggestions, Mr. Ignagni suggested that small business participation in the SBIR program would increase. The Committee seemed very receptive to his testimony and MDMA looks forward to continuing to work with Congress to legislatively fix the problem that majority venture capitol backed companies are experiencing.