Hearing slated for Patrick's $1b life sciences proposal

By Globe Staff

The vision is enticing: to make Massachusetts a leader in the biotech industry. But Governor Deval Patrick still needs to get his $1 billion proposal through the Legislature.

Today, a legislative committee will continue the process of collecting information on the proposal during a hearing at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.

The Committee on Economic Development and Emerging Technologies will hold an open hearing at the university, the only hearing on the bill in Western Massachusetts.

Patrick introduced the measure in May, with Senate President Therese Murray and House Speaker Salvatore DiMasi at his side, which made it seem a shoo-in for passage. But the Legislature hasn't approved it yet.

Over 10 years, the legislation would pump $25 million a year into research grants, $50 million a year into facilities and equipment grants, and $25 million a year into targeted tax incentives for biotech companies.

Patrick has warned that the state is losing its edge in one of its most important industries, saying the "threat is real, and the stakes are high."

Critics have argued that the plan costs too much and would reward biotech while ignoring other industries. Antiabortion activists have opposed the bill because it invests in embryonic stem-cell research, which they say destroys human life.

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