EconDefense
ACQ-18 / Research, innovation and experimentation

Purchase SBIR/STTR-derived technology through Phase III awards

Make follow-on awards, including qualifying sole-source awards, for development, testing, production or services derived from prior SBIR/STTR work using non-SBIR/STTR funding.

Action briefPDF dossier · original 168Download record
Authority / instrument · ACQ-18

Transition & scaling

Research, innovation and experimentation

Statute & instrument
Authority holder

Federal acquiring agency; DoD contracting/award officials and acquisition customers

What this does not authorize / hard limit

Phase III is not funded from Phase I/II set-aside; not a blanket sole-source award for unrelated offerings.

Recorded executor

Warranted contracting officer and program manager

Continue to actor →

Recorded executing role; this record-specific route is not an additional institutional office.

Legal basisSources linkedLegal sources and instrument limits are recorded.
RequirementsGates recordedRead the requirements for this instrument; applicability depends on the proposed action.
Public fundingRules recordedAcquisition customer supplies appropriate non-SBIR/STTR funds; no separate Phase III funding entitlement. Office budget figures are separate institutional context, not an allocation to this instrument.
Assigned rolesRoles recordedPublic sources describe institutional authority. The instrument identifies approval and execution roles; a specific signature remains transaction-dependent.
EngagementProcess sourcedPhase III starts with an actual SBIR/STTR lineage and a funded customer; the Navy publishes a practical split between program-office help and contracting authority. Program check: 2026-10-04; see each route for intake status.

Public evidence describes the institution and instrument; it is not approval of an individual transaction.

At a glance

Possible toolACQ-18 · Contracts & purchases

Authority holder: Federal acquiring agency; DoD contracting/award officials and acquisition customers

Contracts & purchases

Mechanism tags describe the source text; they do not expand the authority.

Availability and verification

Express statutory pathway; award-specific appropriations, available balances, delegations, implementation and approvals not independently verified.

Program process and intake

Checked 2026-10-04 · process documented. Program evidence is separate from legal authority, available funds and transaction approval.

Phase III starts with an actual SBIR/STTR lineage and a funded customer; the Navy publishes a practical split between program-office help and contracting authority.

Navy SBIR/STTR Phase III transition — illustrative buyer route

Who this route serves
Government customers and firms whose work derives from, extends or completes prior SBIR/STTR work
Administering office / routing lead
Customer program office and its contracting officer, with the relevant SYSCOM SBIR office providing lineage assistance
Direct implementation

SBA policy describes Phase III’s lineage and funding rules; Navy guidance illustrates execution without creating a Navy-exclusive statutory route.

What this evidence label means
Published transition process; no single intake competition

The Navy public page describes a customer/contracting-office route. Its linked guide is dated March 2020, so newer law and current solicitation terms also govern.

Status reference date: 2026-10-04 · research checked 2026-10-04

Department of the Navy Office of Small Business Programs — SBIR/STTR · Phase III: SYSCOM SBIR office, contracting-officer responsibilities and non-SBIR funding; associated guide is March 2020official program guidance · Evidence record

Program eligibility

  • The proposed work must have the required Phase I/II lineage; Phase III does not require the recipient still to meet the earlier small-business size test.

    SBA SBIR/STTR Policy Directive, May 2023 file · Sections 4(c) and 6(a); PDF pp. 27–35; later statutory amendments must also be appliedofficial program guidance · Evidence record

Steps and preparation

Funding, limits and authority relationship

Funding and financial terms

  • Customer procurement/R&D or other non-SBIR funds · Award-specific

    Phase III is financed by non-SBIR/STTR sources, including the purchasing customer; it is not a third draw on the SBIR/STTR set-aside.

    SBA SBIR/STTR Policy Directive, May 2023 file · Sections 4(c) and 6(a); PDF pp. 27–35; later statutory amendments must also be appliedofficial program guidance · Evidence record

Exclusions and limits

Authority relationship source

SBA SBIR/STTR Policy Directive, May 2023 file · Sections 4(c) and 6(a); PDF pp. 27–35; later statutory amendments must also be appliedofficial program guidance · Evidence record

Navy SBIR/STTR Phase III guidance →

transition guidance: Use the relevant SYSCOM SBIR office and funded government customer; not a universal application portal.

Research scope and sources checked

The first program-depth pass checked the cited program pages, notices and legal framework. Evidence is limited to the named routes and source-access notes; it does not establish every implementation of the statute.

What remains unverified

  • No proposed Phase III award, lineage file or customer funding was reviewed. The Navy page’s older data-rights language was deliberately not adopted as a current rule.

A dated source check is not continuing monitoring. Recheck the linked official notice before preparing a submission. Browse program research →

Requirements and limits

Eligibility & prerequisites

  • Demonstrable connection to SBIR/STTR-funded technology and award recipient.
  • Prior program competition and Phase III statutory rules; assess ownership/data rights and commercialization readiness.

Limits & exclusions

  • Phase III is not funded from Phase I/II set-aside; not a blanket sole-source award for unrelated offerings.
  • Statutory preference is to greatest extent practicable, with reporting/appeal safeguards.

Funding conditions

  • Acquisition customer supplies appropriate non-SBIR/STTR funds; no separate Phase III funding entitlement.

Read the funding and execution guide

Who contributes what

Need & planning

  • Operational requirement owner; Service/component portfolio acquisition executive and program manager

Resources

  • Sponsoring Service/component appropriations manager and comptroller

Approval

  • Service/component acquisition executive and authorized contracting authority, at applicable threshold

Execution

Partners & review

  • User command
  • Counsel, fiscal, engineering, testing, logistics and security staff as applicable

Office links are editorial matches to the original role text, not verified delegations. Composite labels and unmatched actors are preserved.

Coordination pathway

SBIR/STTR office documents lineage → program/requirements office sponsors adoption → contracting officer confirms Phase III and funds → award.

Actor and execution-role sources

Legal basis

What this research establishes

Legal basisSources linkedLegal sources and instrument limits are recorded.
RequirementsGates recordedRead the requirements for this instrument; applicability depends on the proposed action.
Public fundingRules recordedAcquisition customer supplies appropriate non-SBIR/STTR funds; no separate Phase III funding entitlement. Office budget figures are separate institutional context, not an allocation to this instrument.
Assigned rolesRoles recordedPublic sources describe institutional authority. The instrument identifies approval and execution roles; a specific signature remains transaction-dependent.
EngagementProcess sourcedPhase III starts with an actual SBIR/STTR lineage and a funded customer; the Navy publishes a practical split between program-office help and contracting authority. Program check: 2026-10-04; see each route for intake status.

Confidence: High on express authority and cited conditions; execution assignment is illustrative unless statute expressly names it.

Currentness: GovInfo 2024 Code (includes FY2025 NDAA, P.L. 118-159) read in full for cited provision; targeted FY2026 NDAA P.L. 119-60 amendment/repeal sweep. No claim of complete legislative currency through 2026-10-02; remaining 2026 delta needs counsel validation. P.L. 119-83 adds training and customer-access/commercialization changes; Phase III lineage must be verified per action.

Review scope: Original research target October 2, 2026; no record-specific last-review date supplied. Publication is not legal-currentness certification.

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