Paisano

Issue date: 10/23/07 Section: News

Media Credit: Carla Gomez

As federal support for medical advances and breakthroughs dwindles, the Texas legislature looks at making its own contribution through the passing of Proposition 15. The proposition, heavily supported by the Lance Armstrong Foundation, calls for $3 billion in bonds for cancer research.

Educating students about the debt Proposition 15 would incur for Texans was not the only reason the Young Conservatives of Texas (YCT) spent two hours in the UC answering questions on Oct. 17. The legislation of Proposition 15 states that 15 percent of the money would go to projects other than those dedicated to cancer research such as cancer prevention campaigns and the construction of facilities, both of which indirectly help fund a cure.

Despite legislations' benevolent intentions, some question whether the state can afford $3 billion of debt, and whether the Texas legislature should get involved in medical research.

"When the government gets involved, it creates a bureaucracy, which usually ends up either wasting tax dollars or creating a big mess, rather than actually having a cure for cancer," said Young Conservatives of Texas (YCT) president Laura Elizabeth Morales.

"What Proposition 15 does is it incurs a $3 billion debt in the state of Texas. Rather than actually finding a cure for cancer, the finance and oversight cost so much that it's only a drop in the bucket when we actually get down to it," Morales said.

"So what we're talking about here is that we think the private sector can better handle this and that this proposition is poorly written and doesn't responsibly allocate money."

The $3 billion in bonds would have to be paid off and the House Research Organization predicts the cost of financing the research funds would amount to $1.6 billion, roughly more than half of the amount dedicated to research.

Early voting for the proposition began on Oct. 22 and will continue through Nov. 2. Election Day for Proposition 15 is on Nov. 6.

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