ICYMI: Congress Must Join Ernst in Standing up to China, Delivering for Warfighters

WASHINGTON – In case you missed it, national security leaders are urging Congress to join U.S. Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee Chair Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) in standing up to China and delivering for our warfighters by supporting the INNOVATE Act.

Ernst’s bill reforms and reauthorizes the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) programs, which are set to expire on September 30th, with key changes to safeguard American intellectual property from foreign espionage and ensure that funding goes to the best and brightest companies to strengthen our national security.

Here is some of the coverage:

US taxpayers are funding China’s innovation — we must stop

“This isn’t partisan politics, it’s basic competence. When China is spending $55 billion on research and development in 2025 while we’re letting our innovation programs get exploited, every month of delay costs America competitive advantage.”

Modernize SBIR and STTR to fuel America’s innovators

“The program must evolve to keep pace and drive improved results. The INNOVATE Act, led by Sen. Joni Ernst, chair of the Senate Small Business Committee, addresses these concerns through a common-sense series of reforms and improvements to modernize the SBIR/STTR program to drive improved outcomes for cutting-edge technologies.”

Delivering For Small Businesses

“Congress must continue delivering for small businesses and build upon the momentum of the One Big Beautiful Bill by passing my INNOVATE Act to expand opportunities for Iowa entrepreneurs, stand up to China, and support America’s warfighters.”

Defense Companies Getting Outplayed on Contracts

“The INNOVATE Act offers an opportunity to restore SBIR's original purpose of funding genuine American innovators developing breakthrough technologies for defense applications.”

INNOVATE Act strengthens national defense by empowering small businesses

“If we are serious about preserving our technological superiority and preparing for tomorrow’s threats, we must support innovators who can deliver faster, smarter and more affordable solutions. The INNOVATE Act is not just a reform bill. It is a national security imperative.”

The INNOVATE Act continues to gain support from businesses leaders across the country:

"Small businesses are critical to American innovation, especially in autonomy, robotics, and advanced defense technologies. Programs like SBIR and STTR have long provided a crucial pathway for emerging companies to transform promising research into deployable capabilities that serve both national and commercial interests. The INNOVATE Act ensures these programs remain agile, secure, and focused on transition. Importantly, the INNOVATE Act modernizes due diligence and reinforces safeguards to protect U.S. intellectual property and SBIR-STTR investments from foreign exploitation, ensuring taxpayer-funded innovation supports American security, not adversarial regimes," said Association for Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International President and CEO Michael Robbins.

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