Vote NO on Proposition 71

Only 30% of prop 71 costs fund research

A full 50% of the costs for the initiative will go to pay interest on the bonds, indebting both you and your children for the next 30 years.

Funding for real estate and facilities?

Unbelievably, the California Stem Cell Research and Cures Initiative provides up to 300 million dollars for real estate development and facilities construction.1 In, fact "four real estate specialists" are called for in the initiative.2 This provision is virtually unheard of in funding of medical research grants. Established investigators already have research laboratories. These facilities are provided by the institution (usually provided by a university or biotech company). In the case of universities, these buildings are usually funded through donations. Therefore, any scientist worthy of funding for medical research already has a research lab. This provision of the initiative will probably be lining somebody's pockets, instead of funding medical research.

Indirect costs

Twenty-five percent of the bond costs will be paid to the institution or biotech company for their indirect costs.

Initiative Costs BreakdownAdministrative Costs

Three percent of the bond will be used for general administrative costs. Another 3 percent will be used for grant administration costs.3 In comparison, the National Institutes for Health budget calls for 4% in administrative costs.4 After all the extraneous costs, only 30% of the money spent will actually fund research.

References

  1. ARTICLE 1. California Stem Cell Research and Cures Act
    125281.13    Appropriation and Allocation of Funding.
    (4) Recognizing the priority of immediately building facilities that ensure the independence of the scientific and medical research of the Institute, up to 10 percent of the proceeds of the bonds authorized pursuant to section 125282.05, net of costs described in clauses (a) (ii), (a) (iv) and (a) (v) of section 125282.03 shall be allocated for grants to build scientific and medical research facilities of non-profit entities which are intended to be constructed in the first five years.
    (Source: The California Stem Cell Research and Cures Act)
  2. ARTICLE 1. California Stem Cell Research and Cures Act
    125281.12   Scientific and Medical Facilities Working Group
    (2) Four real estate specialists. To be eligible to serve on the Scientific and Medical Research Facilities Working Group, a real estate specialist shall be a resident of California, shall be prohibited from receiving compensation from any construction or development entity providing specialized services for medical research facilities, and shall not provide real estate facilities brokerage services for any applicant for, or any funding by the Scientific and Medical Research Facilities Working Group and shall not receive compensation from any recipient of Institute funding grants.
    (Source: The California Stem Cell Research and Cures Act)
  3. ARTICLE 1. California Stem Cell Research and Cures Act
    125281.13    Appropriation and Allocation of Funding.
    (B) Not more than three percent of the proceeds of bonds authorized by section 125282.05 may be used by the Institute for research and research facilities implementation costs, including the development, administration and oversight of the grant-making process and the operations of the working groups.
    (2)  Not more than three percent of the proceeds of the bonds authorized pursuant to section 125282.05 shall be used for the costs of general administration of the Institute.
    (Source: The California Stem Cell Research and Cures Act)
  4. National Institutes of Health 2005 Budget