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Putting in My Two cents on the SBIR VC Eligibility Issue: ....in my opinion

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  • aware of published materials - feature stories, Op-Ed pieces etc that are not listed here, please forward them to us either as attachments to an email OR by providing the url...in my Opinion pieces
  • interested in submitting a piece that you're working on or would like put into the mix, please do that too. Such working pieces might include the equivalents of
    • Letters to the Editor,
    • Op-Ed pieces in preparation
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    Within the bounds of established policies, all have a place here -- Disclaimer. Simply email as an attachment direct to ... in my (personal) Opinion
    		•
    Pieces which examine possible options to find resolution to this complex matter are particularly encouraged.
    The issue of SBIR eligibility by VC-funded firms has been on the Agenda for almost two years now, beginning in the Fall 2003. Divisive from the outset, in recent months the noise level surrounding the issue -- and with it the volume of printed matter -- has increased substantially. Introduction of the BIO-VC legislation has further upped-the-ante and changed the dynamics of debate. The clamor surrounding this matter can be expected to increase in the upcoming weeks/months.

    The effort here is to put much of these relevant materials in one place so that those who may be affected can quickly get a handle on the issues, examine the various points that are being raised and make up their mind where they stand. For convenience, these pieces are divided here into two categories:

    • Those documents/presentations which have come out of a somewhat formal setting - Congressional Hearings, printed articles and media coverage, prepared analytical studies etc.
    • Less formal - but equally useful here - are personal submissions and individually prepared pieces that are longer and more thought through than what might come out of participation, for example, in a threaded message area. Importantly, these pieces have not been formally distributed. They may address only part of the issue but they should be part of the record.
    By deliberate choice, positions on ALL SIDES of
    this critical issue are provided here.

    To download required reader: ACROBAT
    Formal Printed Materials:
    analytical and policy documents
    Congressional Hearings These are the submitted Written Testimony of witnesses invited to testify before Congressional (sub)Committees with interest in and/or jurisdiction over this issue. Actual oral remarks are much shorter and, along with any subsequent interactions between members and Witnesses, are part of the Hearing Transcript which is eventually published. That process can take soem considerable time and those documents are not yet available.
    Committee Date Number of Witnesses Names and Remarks
    House Science
    		 06/27/2005 6
    Details
    House Small Business
    		 07/27/2005 6
    Details
    SBA Size Standard Hearings

    Below are the relevant testimonies extracted from issued transcripts of the open-access SBA Size Standard Hearings held at various locations around the country during June 2005. The SBIR VC issue was one of several addressed at these hearings. Witnesses were permitted Five Minutes to voice their opinions on their topic of choice
    Location Date Number of Witnesses Names and Remarks
    Chicago, IL 06/20/2005 4
    Details
    Denver, CO 06/14/2005 8
    Details
    Los Angeles, CA 06/29/2005 5
    Details
    Portland, ME 06/07/2005 2
    Details
    San Francisco, CA 06/28/2005 4
    Details
    Seattle, WA 06/02/2005 10
    Details
    St. Louis, MO 06/02/2005 5
    Details
    Atlanta, GA 06/09/2005 3
    Details
    Dallas, TX 06/22/2005 10
    Details
    New York, NY 06/16/2005 1
    Details
    Washington, DC 06/17/2005 8
    Details
    Community Documents
    This grouping of discussion pieces are those not (yet) formally presented elsewhere but are in similar thought-through, analytical and longer format. Again with the provisos indicated in the Disclaimer below, you are encouraged to submit pieces for availability here. Simply email as an attachment direct to ... in my (personal) Opinion.
    Date of most recent upload Number of Uploads Names and Remarks
    08/17/2005 3
    Details

    Disclaimer: unlike Survey Comments and Discussion input, ...in my Opinion pieces do NOT post automatically. We commit, in most cases, to upload received materials within 48 hours - even when the pieces are controversial and we disagree with the position taken. However, we do exercise the right
    • to refuse to post submitted materials which are completely inappropriate and/or
    • to print only extracts from some submitted pieces.