WASHINGTON, DC – House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) (click here) today kicked off debate on H.R. 2019, the Gabriella Miller Kids First Research Act. This bill would redirect wasteful spending on political conventions to important, scientific, pediatric research. H.R. 2019 was introduced by committee member Rep. Gregg Harper (R-MS) in April....
This bill will take monies from taxpayer donations to support political party conventions and put it instead in a fund for pediatric research. The $3.00 people check on their income tax return to fund conventions for candidates for President.
There was an article last year in the LA Times that explains how the editors believe the monies people pay should not be used for the purpose it was originally legislated to do.
Editorial
July 05, 2012
...We agree. (click here) It's true that the $18.4 million each convention will receive for expenses comes from a pool of funds created by the decision of some taxpayers to designate $3 of their income taxes to the Presidential Election Campaign Fund. (Whether taxpayers realize their contributions underwrite conventions as well as candidates is another question.) But every dollar not spent on what has become a substanceless media event is a dollar that could be spent on something else.
More to the point, the subsidy hasn't prevented the evil it was designed to curb: special-interest funding for convention-related activities that might put the parties and their nominees in the donors' debt. Although the parties themselves may spend only what they receive from the U.S. Treasury, local "host committees" can solicit private funds. The committee for this year's Democratic convention in Charlotte, N.C., has set a fundraising goal of almost $37 million; Republicans hope to raise $55 million....
The complaint by Representative Hoyer is that there is actually no monies proposed for this in a way that matters and defunds the NIH of $800 million they already receive for pediatric research. In other words, the NIH is being defunded.
I have to look at the bill, but, in my opinion if the federal government is going to play with monies voluntarily paid for the purpose of free and equal elections they are overreaching their authority.
What this bill will do is provide a convention paid for by special interests. That isn't a convention. That is a platform for cronies. These monies are used in several ways already, one is for party conventions and the other for candidates. In the past two elections the President refused these funds and accepted donations as a candidate. However, both party conventions received these monies. I find it really interesting this is even an issue when in fact those monies are still in use by majority parties. That seems strange to me. Why not defund the candidate monies if they aren't being used? But, to simply transfer monies from this fund to arbitrary PROJECTS by the GOP is unconstitutional. These funds were always to be used by both parties not just one.
There was an article last year in the LA Times that explains how the editors believe the monies people pay should not be used for the purpose it was originally legislated to do.
Editorial
July 05, 2012
...We agree. (click here) It's true that the $18.4 million each convention will receive for expenses comes from a pool of funds created by the decision of some taxpayers to designate $3 of their income taxes to the Presidential Election Campaign Fund. (Whether taxpayers realize their contributions underwrite conventions as well as candidates is another question.) But every dollar not spent on what has become a substanceless media event is a dollar that could be spent on something else.
More to the point, the subsidy hasn't prevented the evil it was designed to curb: special-interest funding for convention-related activities that might put the parties and their nominees in the donors' debt. Although the parties themselves may spend only what they receive from the U.S. Treasury, local "host committees" can solicit private funds. The committee for this year's Democratic convention in Charlotte, N.C., has set a fundraising goal of almost $37 million; Republicans hope to raise $55 million....
The complaint by Representative Hoyer is that there is actually no monies proposed for this in a way that matters and defunds the NIH of $800 million they already receive for pediatric research. In other words, the NIH is being defunded.
I have to look at the bill, but, in my opinion if the federal government is going to play with monies voluntarily paid for the purpose of free and equal elections they are overreaching their authority.
What this bill will do is provide a convention paid for by special interests. That isn't a convention. That is a platform for cronies. These monies are used in several ways already, one is for party conventions and the other for candidates. In the past two elections the President refused these funds and accepted donations as a candidate. However, both party conventions received these monies. I find it really interesting this is even an issue when in fact those monies are still in use by majority parties. That seems strange to me. Why not defund the candidate monies if they aren't being used? But, to simply transfer monies from this fund to arbitrary PROJECTS by the GOP is unconstitutional. These funds were always to be used by both parties not just one.
H.R.2019 - Kids First Research Act of 2013 (click here)
Introduced in House (05/16/2013)
Kids First Research Act of 2013 - Amends the Internal Revenue Code to terminate: (1) the taxpayer election to designate $3 of income tax liability for financing of presidential election campaigns, (2) the Presidential Election Campaign Fund, and (3) the Presidential Primary Matching Payment Account.
Redesignates the Presidential Election Campaign Fund as the 10-Year Pediatric Research Initiative Fund. Makes amounts in the Fund available only for allocation to national research institutes and national centers through the Common Fund for making grants for pediatric research under this Act. Requires deposit into the Treasury general fund of any amounts in the Pediatric Research Initiative Fund that remain unobligated on October 1, 2024.
It would place grants in private institutions. The purpose here is to shift funding of the NIH in pediatric research to that of private industry. It is a crony bill. The NIH already receives $800 million for pediatric research and instead the GOP wants to take these monies and provide private institutes with funding.
Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), through the Division of Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives, to allocate funds appropriated under this Act to the national research institutes and national centers for making grants for pediatric research representing important areas of emerging scientific opportunities, rising public health challenges, or knowledge gaps that deserve special emphasis and would benefit from conducting or supporting additional research that involves collaboration between two or more national research institutes or national centers, or would otherwise benefit from strategic coordination and planning.
Authorizes $13 million out of the 10-Year Pediatric Research Initiative Fund for each of FY2014-FY2023 for pediatric research through the Common Fund. Requires such funds to supplement, not supplant, funds otherwise allocated by NIH for pediatric research. Prohibits the use of such amounts for any purpose other than making grants for pediatric research described in this Act.
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