BILL ANALYSIS �
AB 714
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CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 714 (Wieckowski)
As Amended June 24, 2013
2/3 vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |68-3 |(May 29, 2013) |SENATE: |39-0 |(September 9, |
| | | | | |2013) |
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Original Committee Reference: HEALTH
SUMMARY : Appropriates $1 million from the General Fund (GF) to
the spinal cord injury (SCI) research fund authorized by the
Roman Reed Spinal Cord Injury Research Act of 1999 (Roman Reed
Act).
The Senate amendments are technical and nonsubstantive.
EXISTING LAW establishes the Roman Reed Act and authorizes the
University of California (UC) to establish a SCI research fund
to accept public and private funds for the purpose of injury
research programs and grants.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations
Committee, one-time $1 million General Fund appropriation.
COMMENTS : According to the author, California is home to
approximately 650,000 people living with paralysis, and this
number is increasing steadily. The author states nationally,
someone suffers a traumatic SCI every 41 minutes, adding
anywhere from 12,000 to 20,000 new SCI patients annually.
According to a report prepared for AB 1657 (Wieckowski), a
similar bill from 2012, a study commissioned by the Christopher
and Dana Reeve Foundation and the federal Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention reveals that approximately 5.6 million
Americans are afflicted by some form of paralysis, and almost
1.3 million individuals are living with a catastrophic SCI. The
report states this is five times higher than earlier estimates
of the prevalence of SCI in the United States. The author
maintains that the disability, loss of earning power, and loss
of personal freedom resulting from SCI is devastating for the
injured individual and creates a huge financial burden for the
state. The author asserts that associated health care costs and
lost income potential associated with spinal injuries cost the
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state upwards of $1 billion per year. The author claims that
promising research-driven therapies currently underway could
greatly improve the quality of life and functionality of
individuals with spinal cord injuries and offset a significant
portion of these state costs. The author indicates that the
funds have resulted in remarkable research projects and at least
175 peer-reviewed publications and that discoveries financed by
the fund are in the pipeline toward clinical translation.
The author indicates that state funding for the Roman Reed Fund
has been eliminated, jeopardizing the research that this program
undertakes in spinal cord injuries and paralysis. The author
states that by investing new funds in this research, California
can ensure the continued success of this impressive program and
remain a world leader in neural sciences. This bill, the author
maintains, will provide the critical funding needed to make this
program viable. The author points out that in vetoing AB 1657
in 2012 the Governor indicated that this type of valuable
research should be supported through General Fund activities,
rather than penalty assessments on vehicle offenses and this
bill addresses that veto message.
AB 750 (Dutra), Chapter 777, Statutes of 2000, established the
Roman Reed Act to support scientific research related to spinal
cord injuries for five-years and was renewed for an additional
five years through AB 1794 (Dutra), Chapter 414, Statutes of
2004. Over its 10-year history, the Roman Reed Fund provided
approximately $1.5 million per year for SCI research in the
State of California. The Roman Reed Act funds were allocated to
University of California (UC), and administered by the
Reeve-Irvine Research Center at UC Irvine. According to the
author, between 2000 and 2009, over 300 scientists, technical
staff, and students have participated in 129 Roman Reed Research
projects and that the $15.1 million in state contributions to
the Roman Reed Fund leveraged $84 million in non-state funds,
such as from the National Institutes of Health.
The Roman Reed Program has three components: 1) research grants
to promote innovative, high-impact research projects focusing on
SCI or nerve cell regeneration. Principal Investigators must be
from institutions within the State of California; 2) the Roman
Reed Core Laboratory which provides a means for investigators
who are new to the field of SCI research to launch novel
research projects and obtain training in SCI research
techniques. The main purpose of the Core Laboratory is to
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support experiments by scientists with novel ideas, but who are
not yet directly engaged in SCI research in their own labs; and,
3) an annual meeting fostering collaboration and communication
throughout California, both for scientists and the lay public.
According to Dr. Oswald Steward, the Roman Reed Project
Director, there have been no grants funded by the Roman Reed
Spinal Cord Injury Research Act since 2010 (in other words, no
funding from the Legislature). UC provided funding to continue
the grants program in a modified form for one additional year
and it continues to be called the "Roman Reed Program" for
continuity. These funds were distributed in 2012. A panel of
experts from the SCI field assembled to provide outside peer
review of Roman Reed Grant applications. Submitted grants were
evaluated for scientific merit and the top 10 were funded. A
total of $749,311 in grants were awarded.
Baybio, the California Healthcare Institute, and others write in
support that California is a leader in neurological and SCI
research. Baybio further states in support that if we are to
maintain our prominence in this field of research, additional
funding for SCI research to replace GF contributions must be
found or we risk losing the matching funds and other grants that
we successfully attracted in the recent past. According to
supporters, many discoveries supported by the Roman Reed Fund
are in the pipeline toward clinical translation including: 1)
the world's first clinical trial for stem cells for SCI; 2) a
treatment initially developed for SCI in clinical trials for
inflammatory bowel disease; and, 3) new surgical techniques
developed to treat people with nerve injuries.
The California Catholic Conference writes in opposition that
although recent amendments have shifted the funding from traffic
fines to the GF, this bill continues the unfortunate policy of
spending money on speculative research. This opposition points
out that at a time in which we have cut funding for our state's
safety net-upon which our poor and vulnerable Californians
rely-it is highly inappropriate to divert money to University
researchers.
Analysis Prepared by : Marjorie Swartz / HEALTH / (916)
319-2097
FN: 0002228
AB 714
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