Various factors affect the development of small business. Among these are self-regulation and state regulation. The authors focus on the impact that self-regulation and state regulation have on small business, study their interrelation, and interplay in the infrastructural support for the small business development. Both self-regulation and state regulation have their own objectives, guiding principles, inherent functions, and a set of methods and tools to influence the development of small businesses. The authors conclude that, in present day Russia, the focus is on shifting from state regulation to self-regulation without providing additional conditions for development, which reduces the social efficiency of self-regulation. Self-regulation as an alternative to state regulation should be chosen based on the level of the social relations development in general and in the regulated area, in particular. Currently, the development of innovative small businesses as drivers in the economic development attracts much attention. Without state regulation of innovative processes, sustainable socio-economic development of Russia is almost impossible. The economic mechanism of control over the innovative business should include the infrastructure to favor the conditions for the development and introduction of innovative products by small enterprises; the regulatory framework to create equal conditions for business operations, considering the specifics of production and its priority for the region it takes place in; the HR-related matters to plan 42 business activities considering the professional competence of specialists and the ability to improve their skills. The transition to the innovative development path should include the possibilities of both self-regulation and the need for state regulation to form the conditions for a favorable innovative environment.