The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program has been providing near-term growth with long-term benefits for many years now. It is an established yet dynamic program created and administered by the federal government. http://www.sba.gov/aboutsba/sbaprograms/sbir/index.html
Because the program administration and guidelines are already in place, an expansion of the program could be accomplished almost overnight, perhaps by merely generalizing a previous Executive Order (for example, 13329).
Here are a few ideas on what/how to do:
1) Increase the funding, perhaps temporarily. This could be done by increasing the percentage and funding. Some federal government agencies are obligated to dedicate a two (2) percent of their research & development budgets to the SBIR program. An increase -- perhaps to five (5) or eight (8) percent – would have a significant positive outcome on the economy with the potential for long-term growth as well.
2) Expand the scope of activities. The scope is currently limited to specific types of research activities.
3) Expand the scope of organizations. There are many Government organizations that do not participate in the SBIR program at all. Some organizations currently participate in the SBIR program on a voluntarily basis (for example, the National Geospatial Agency is one such organization).
4) Add funding for "matching" awards at the state and local levels.
5) Support the re-authorization of the SBIR program by Congress (and embrace the newer, increased levels of the maximum awards).