Several U.S. government agencies will give you additional funding on your #SBIR/#STTR award to select your own commercialization services provider through an option called Discretionary Technical Assistance (DTA) or Commercialization Assistance. SBIR/#STTR TABA and DTA can be of great benefit to #SBIR applicants.
#SBIR/#STTR TABA and DTA essentially allow for you to select your own provider, and add additional funding to your #SBIR project to support commercialization activities, at no cost to your project.
In addition, As part of The John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019, a new term for this assistance was introduced… “Technical and Business Assistance (TABA)”. Some agencies have started to introduce the term and increased limits in their FY19 solicitations.
VIP!! Please refer to the solicitation from the agency to which you are applying for specifics as to if SBIR/#STTR TABA and DTA amounts are in addition to the funding threshold or included in the maximum.
Here are several organizations that support DTA and/or TABA:
| Agency | Phase I Amount | Phase II Amount |
| DoE | $6,500 | $50,000 |
| DoD (varies by agency component) | up to $6,500 | up to $50,000 |
| DoT | $5,000 | $10,000 |
| DHS | $6,500 | $50,000 |
| NASA | N/A | $5,000 |
| USDA | $6,500 | $50,000 |
| NSF | N/A | $10,000 |
| NIST | $6,500 | $6,500 |
| NIH | $6,500 | $50,000 |
TIP: In order for the company to select its own vendor – it must include a request to do so at the time that they submit their proposal/application, following the guidelines provided by the agency.
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