Aggregated News
The global financial crisis may do what opponents of California's $3 billion state-sponsored stem cell research experiment could not: dry up funding.
The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine next month will weigh a contingency financing plan that could include bond anticipation notes and a private placement with major philanthropic backers.
The move, which would have to be approved by the state stem cell bond committee and Treasurer Bill Lockyer, comes against the backdrop of a financial markets meltdown that has clipped access to capital for companies and government agencies alike.
It also comes after Bob Klein, who has not taken a salary as the chairman of CIRM's oversight board, was awarded a $150,000 salary for a half-time position. That, and a salary for CIRM's vice chairman - a position currently unfilled - could become tricky to justify as the agency's funding evaporates.
CIRM has enough cash to fund existing grant programs and new grants through June 30, Klein said. Plus, he added, it has "sufficient reserves." But grants for one of CIRM's biggest programs - a $210 million program aimed...
The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine next month will weigh a contingency financing plan that could include bond anticipation notes and a private placement with major philanthropic backers.
The move, which would have to be approved by the state stem cell bond committee and Treasurer Bill Lockyer, comes against the backdrop of a financial markets meltdown that has clipped access to capital for companies and government agencies alike.
It also comes after Bob Klein, who has not taken a salary as the chairman of CIRM's oversight board, was awarded a $150,000 salary for a half-time position. That, and a salary for CIRM's vice chairman - a position currently unfilled - could become tricky to justify as the agency's funding evaporates.
CIRM has enough cash to fund existing grant programs and new grants through June 30, Klein said. Plus, he added, it has "sufficient reserves." But grants for one of CIRM's biggest programs - a $210 million program aimed...