Phil Drake

pdrake@greatfallstribune.com

HELENA — Signature collection has been approved by the secretary of state for an initiative for the Nov. 8 ballot that will issue as much as $200 million in bonds over 10 years to fund Montana-based biomedical research into brain diseases and disorders and mental illnesses.

Montanans for Research and Cures, the organization behind I-181, otherwise known as the Montana Biomedical Research, Veterans Care and Cures Act, will now begin collecting the 24,175 signatures needed to qualify the initiative for the ballot, organizers said Wednesday.

If approved, the state will be authorized to issue $20 million in general obligation bonds every year for no more than 10 years for specialized research in Montana. The initiative requests that the Legislature appropriate the proceeds of the bonds to pay for the program.

“This initiative provides hope for hundreds of thousands of Montanans suffering from brain diseases and disorders — and their families — by creating an innovative, smart and common-sense strategy that builds on world-class research already occurring in Montana and will create many new jobs and new treatments,” said Randy Gray, former Great Falls mayor, board member on the McLaughlin Research Institute for Biomedical Sciences and campaign treasurer.

It must be filed with the state by July 15.

Bob Story, a former state lawmaker who is now executive director of the Montana Taxpayers Association, said he had never heard of a bond being passed this way.

“Most are local, I’ve never heard of a statewide bond election,” he said adding he didn’t know if the state Constitution allows voters to appropriate money.

He said his organization would be opposed to the proposal.

“We wouldn’t support statewide bonding, especially for research. It’s a risky proposition we would not get a cash flow return on it,” Story said.

Gray agrees it’s an unusual approach, but says the committee made sure the initiative is constitutional.

Gray said McLaughlin has experienced decreased funding from the National Institutes of Health.

He said such a bond could help McLaughlin and other Montana-based groups such as University of Montana, Montana State University, Shodair, Benefis and others plan for long-term projects that may come up with cures for chronic conditions.

And it could bring better-paying jobs to the state, Gray said, as for every key scientist, there are nearly a half-dozen associates working with them.

“This could be a very important economic development driver,” he said.

Gray, who has multiple sclerosis, said the initiative already has received strong support statewide, and it shifts focus from long-term chronic care to early intervention therapies.

“This is not a partisan issue,” he said. “It’s not only bipartisan, it’s nonpartisan,” he said. “People understand this needs to happen.”

The initiative will create a Montana Biomedical Research Authority, which will award grants for scientific research in Montana. An independent panel of doctors, scientists, nurses and patient advocates will decide which organizations receive research grants, organizers said.

The research will include Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, brain cancer, multiple sclerosis, diabetes, autism, post-traumatic stress disorder, concussive injuries, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig’s disease), depression, addictive disorders and schizophrenia.

Grants funded by this measure would be awarded to researchers and institutions within the state and annual financial audits from an independent, certified public accounting firm would be required, and made publicly available, to ensure strict financial accountability, organizers said.

Gray said the bonds would be paid back after 40 years.

Gray said one of the initiative’s benefits will allow Montana residents to participate in clinical trials, which allow people be on the cutting edge of medical discoveries.

He said the bond initiative also allows for long-term planning, which he said institutions need.

“There has to be some reliability for researchers to participate,” Gray said.

Sen. Ed Buttrey, R-Great Falls, called it “a smart solution that saves taxpayer dollars in the long run, and I’m proud to support this investment in Montana’s future.”

Gray said he was ready to field questions saying this initiative was created to favor McLaughlin.

He said McLaughlin’s board encouraged initiative organizers to come up with a proposal that would have a statewide perspective, as it was not just McLaughlin hampered by funding cuts.

“It affects everybody,” Gray said. “This isn’t about McLaughlin, this is about the state of human health here in Montana.”

To know more

Visit www.montanacures.org.

To read the ballot proposal, go to: http://1.usa.gov/1SNbEq4.