Oklahoman Story About OMRF and Anthrax Vaccine

Daily Oklahoman, Jan. 31, 2007
"Experts take aim at anthrax"
Three Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation scientists took a novel approach 2½ years ago in trying to improve anthrax vaccines and treatment.
The approach is paying off halfway through a five-year, $13.8-million grant, with researchers reporting progress in identifying ways for future vaccines to work.

Around the Nation

Oklahoma House, Jan. 29, 2007
"Speaker Cargill & House GOP Announce Healthy Oklahoma Plat"
Speaking at St. John Medical Center in Tulsa on Monday, Speaker Lance Cargill and House Republican leaders launched the second platform in their 2007 Year of Ideas Agenda.
"Oklahoma’s pioneer spirit remains strong after the first 100 years of our history. Now we should harness that spirit to create a healthier society in our state," said Cargill (R-Harrah). "2007 should be the year of ideas. We have an opportunity this year, in our centennial year, to lay the groundwork for our state’s second century. And our healthcare system is a vital part of that future. Oklahoma is blessed with citizens who are hard working and who uphold traditional values. At the same time, we face challenges, and it’s time for solutions."
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Oklahoma State Senate, Jan. 30, 2007
"Senate Leaders: Henry May Need Tax Increase to Pay for Spending Promises"
Republican leaders in the evenly divided State Senate said Gov. Brad Henry may need to increase taxes to pay for the new spending he is promising for the upcoming legislative session.
In December, Gov. Henry publicly cautioned state lawmakers about new spending in what could be a tight budget year. But in the past week, he has proposed about half-a-billion dollars in new spending – with even more new spending proposals likely to come in the days before the State of the State address scheduled for February 5.
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Oklahoma State Senate, Jan. 25, 2007
"Gumm Files Legislation to Strengthen Teachers Retirement System"
With $140 million left on the table after the 2006 session of the Oklahoma Legislature, one lawmaker wants to use half of that money to shore up the Teachers’ Retirement System.
Senator Jay Paul Gumm, a Democrat from Durant, has introduced legislation to take $70 million of the so-called “spillover” dollars and put it into the beleaguered system. That money, left on the table after last year’s budget was written, would give the Oklahoma Teachers Retirement System (OTRS) a much needed shot in the arm.
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Oklahoma State Senate, Jan. 24, 2007
"Oklahoma Senate Republicans Unveil ‘Vision for a Better Oklahoma’"
Republicans in the evenly divided Oklahoma State Senate unveiled their 2007 legislative agenda – titled a “Vision for a Better Oklahoma” – at news conferences in Tulsa, Oklahoma City, and Lawton on Wednesday.
“Today we’re presenting our vision for making Oklahoma a superior state in which to live and raise a family, receive an excellent education, work at a quality job, succeed in business, and comfortably retire,” stated Senator Glenn Coffee, R-Oklahoma City, the Senate’s co-President Pro Tempore.
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The Arizona Republic, Jan. 29, 2007
"Gordon proposes medical district; Downtown would serve as hub for biosciences"
Phoenix hopes to add another layer to its downtown-revitalization effort in the form of a mile-long biomedical district that would allow multiple hospitals, specialty clinics and research institutions to expand or locate in the city's core.
The idea, the brainchild of Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon, could have a significant and lasting impact on the regional and state economy.
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USA Today, Jan. 30
"16 states see road deaths slashed"
Traffic deaths dropped substantially in 16 states last year, in many cases reflecting stepped-up enforcement and education campaigns, according to a USA TODAY analysis of statistics reported by the states.
Highway fatalities fell by at least 5% in those 16 states. In nine other states, deaths rose by at least that much. Texas and Georgia reported preliminary declines of more than 5%, but traffic safety agencies in those states expect the final totals to rise significantly.
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Memphis Commercial Appeal, Jan. 27, 2007
"Elected offices could vanish"
A landmark state Supreme Court ruling has opened the door for a major debate over whether to convert a number of elected positions in Shelby County government into appointed jobs.
Voters of Shelby County could be asked to decide whether to abolish the elected offices of assessor, county clerk, register, sheriff and trustee, and transfer those duties to appointed positions as a result of the high court's decision.
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Seattle Times, Jan. 30, 2007
"All-mail election requires officials to educate voters"
If Seattle voters show up at their normal polling places March 13 to cast a ballot on how to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct, they'll find no place to vote. There may not even be a sign noting there's an election that day.
The vote on replacing the viaduct will be the city's first all-mail election, leaving the King County elections division a little over a month to educate 133,000 Seattle poll voters on how to cast an absentee ballot.
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Pacific Business News, Jan. 29, 2007
"Lingle innovation ideas become bills"
Gov. Linda Lingle will appear before two committees of the Hawaii Legislature to testify in support of innovation in work force development.
Lingle was to appear before the House Committee on Labor and Public Employment at State Capitol Room 309 at 9 a.m., in support of House Bill 1280, "relating to innovation in workforce development," and then before the Senate Committee on Economic Development and Taxation at State Capitol Room 224 at 1:15 p.m., in support of Senate Bill 1365 "relating to the innovation economy." The two bills were electronically filed Monday.
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Sacramento Bee, Jan. 30, 2007
"Bullet train plan may never leave station"
The state's perpetually delayed high-speed rail project faces yet another funding setback. And this one could be fatal, dashing the dreams of bullet train enthusiasts, including many in California's Central Valley.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger proposes slashing funding for the High Speed Rail Authority from $14 million to $1.2 million, leaving the group with enough just to keep its doors open. The Legislature has yet to vote on the governor's spending plan.
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Los Angeles Times, Jan. 30, 2007
"Schwarzenegger's healthcare reform proposal could conflict with Bush's aim to balance federal budget"
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger wants $3.7 billion a year in new federal funding to cover a big chunk of his healthcare plan for Californians, putting him on a collision course with budget hawks in the nation's capital and leaders in other states seeking assistance.
The sheer size of the federal allocation Schwarzenegger's plan would require is raising eyebrows.
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New Jersey Star-Ledger, Jan. 30, 20007
"Bill offering $2B in tax credits clears Assembly; Homeowner-relief measure heads to Senate as 3 others go to Corzine"
The Assembly last night approved a $2 billion program of property tax credits that would mean a 20 percent reduction in many homeowners' tax bills and put new limits on increases in local government spending.
While sending that bill to the Senate for action next week, the Assembly gave final approval to three other measures designed to reduce the government spending that drives up property taxes. Those three bills now go to Gov. Jon Corzine.
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Minn. considering tech upgrades

KARE 11 (Minneapolis), Jan. 29, 2007
"Pawlenty seeks $213 million for state computer upgrades"
Governor Tim Pawlenty is asking lawmakers for $213 million to make technology improvements in state agencies and elsewhere in 2008 and 2009.
Of that amount, the biggest piece - $60 million - would go for computer upgrades in the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system.

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Tulsa World, Jan. 26, 2007
"OSU hospital projects approved"
Plans are to spend $10.6 million to renovate and expand the Tulsa medical center.
The Oklahoma State University Medical Authority gave approval Thursday to $10.6 million worth of expansion and renovation projects for the newly named OSU Medical Center in Tulsa.
It is the first of several phases to improve the teaching hospital and create a "world-class residency program," said David Johnson, chairman of the authority's board.
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Sacramento Bee, Jan. 26, 2007
"Bush's call for ethanol may drive up price of corn"
President Bush's State of the Union call for a sevenfold increase in ethanol production within a decade could have the unintended consequence of sparking corn shortages and driving up the prices of a wide array of food products.
Bush said Tuesday that he wanted 35 billion gallons of ethanol in the nation's fuel supply by 2017, and he proposed an ethanol subsidy of as much as $17.8 billion over a decade, as well as grants and loan guarantees.
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Denver Post, Jan. 25, 2007
"Colo. immigration law falls short of goal"
Colorado's new law banning state spending on illegal immigrants has cost more than $2 million to enforce - and has saved the state nothing.
Less than a year after politically charged debates on illegal immigration, officials are reporting high costs, no savings and unexpected problems with the new laws.
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New York Times, Jan. 25, 2007
"Big States’ Push for Earlier Vote Scrambles Race"
As many as four big states — California, Florida, Illinois and New Jersey — are likely to move up their 2008 presidential primaries to early next February, further upending an already unsettled nominating process and forcing candidates of both parties to rethink their campaign strategies, party officials said Wednesday.
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(Note: Oklahoma's Primary is Feb. 5)

Government Computer News, Jan. 22, 2007
"Treasury, Illinois pilot federal-state tax payment system"
The Treasury Department and Illinois Revenue Department are testing the ability of state business taxpayers to be able to pay their state withholding taxes at the same time as their federal taxes through a single system.
While Treasury’s Electronic Federal Tax Payment System has been available for federal tax payments for more than 10 years, the pilot with Illinois is the first time that business taxpayers may pay their state withholding taxes through EFTPS.
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Dallas Morning News, Jan. 23, 2007
"Council OKs revised ordinance"
Apartment owners would still be banned from renting to most illegal immigrants under a new ordinance adopted unanimously Monday night.
Although the measure largely mirrors an ordinance passed in November, it makes changes that some observers say were designed to overcome legal challenges, including that the city had violated the Texas Open Meetings Act.
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New orleans Times-Picayune, Jan. 24, 2007
"300 students turned away by N.O. schools"
In an exceedingly rare move for a public school system, hundreds of children seeking spots in the city's schools have been turned away -- "wait-listed" -- and told that the campuses have no room, school officials said Tuesday.
In the state-run Recovery School District, where 300 students have been placed on a waiting list since Jan. 8, officials are scrambling to open additional buildings and hire more teachers.

Sacremento Bee, Jan. 23, 2007
"Huge pension fund will offer investment products to government workers"
The nation's largest public pension fund is getting into the financial services business.
Looking to boost fee income and build off its global reputation, the influential California Public Employees' Retirement System unveiled Monday an ambitious three-year plan to offer its own lineup of investment products for local government workers with the potential of rolling out a nationwide program for consumers.
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Arizona Republic, Jan. 24, 2007
"Ariz. to share water duties with Nevada"
Nevada and Arizona have agreed to share the pain of a serious drought on the Colorado River with a deal involving a mix of water and cash.
Under terms of the deal, already reviewed by water boards in both states, Nevada would join Arizona in giving up water if drought triggered a shortage on the river. Nevada would also pay Arizona $8 million to help secure other water sources.
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"State seeks oversight of leefy crops"
As demands increase for stronger oversight of the food supply, California took its first steps Wednesday to regulate the state's huge lettuce and spinach crops.
A plan by the California Department of Food and Agriculture calls for processors of the leafy greens to sign a "marketing agreement," meet a set of still-unspecified health regulations, undergo compliance inspections and contribute as much as 5 cents a package to fund the program.
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Interesting articles about the biotech industry

The Winnipeg Free Press, Jan. 25, 2007
"Biotech sector needs depth"
This week, Kane Biotech Inc. of Winnipeg received a U.S. patent that will protect technology Kane is developing to reduce biofilm formation in a variety of applications, including medical devices.
Kane is a tiny company that is a long way away from having a product for sale on the market. But in the meantime, it raised $1.5 million in new investment in May to continue its work. Its shares trade on the TSX Venture Exchange and closed Wednesday at 35 cents.
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Pharmaceutical Technology Europe, Jan. 1, 2007
"A New Year for biotech "
The year ahead will see plenty of action on the biotech scene — from technical advances through to regulatory developments. Smarter, leaner and faster manufacturing is top of the agenda. And on the business side, big pharmas will continue to build biologics into their portfolios by generating a flow of deals.
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Worcester (Mass.) Telegram and Gazette News, Jan. 25, 2007
"Legislative caucus to push biotech; Lawmakers agree to statewide effort"
Legislative leaders yesterday formed a special caucus to advance legislation critical to the biotechnology industry, and Lt. Gov. Timothy P. Murray urged them to help promote biotechnology research and development not just in the Boston and Cambridge area, but in cities and towns across the state.
Mr. Murray met with about two dozen lawmakers as the formation of what was described as the first biotechnology legislative caucus in the country was announced with the goal of allowing the state to maintain a global lead in the fast-growing field.
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Speaker Cargill & House GOP Announce Entrepreneurial Society Agenda

Less than a month into Oklahoma’s centennial year, House Speaker Lance Cargill and House Republicans took the first step in laying out a new vision for the state’s second century Tuesday.

Speaking at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation (OMRF) -- a premiere 60-year-old research facility that is a focal point for a growing bioscience industry in the state -- Cargill introduced the first part of the House Republican caucus 2007 legislative agenda.

The Entrepreneurial Society platform will focus on removing barriers to economic growth and opportunity in Oklahoma. Cargill and House leaders will unveil more of the agenda over the next two weeks.

(Click Here For More)

Interesting story in today's Oklahoman

Looking at biotech; State impresses Israeli observers
By Jim Stafford
Business Writer
Daily Oklahoman
The Oklahoma that a group of Israeli scientists and businessmen did not know was introduced to them Monday at the Presbyterian Health Foundation Research Park.
The two-hour orientation session was quite a revelation, said Alex Harel, managing director for Brilliant Biomedical Magnetic Solutions Ltd., an Israeli company working to commercialize magnetic technology for the medical industry.

"I think the biotech industry in Israel is not aware enough of the opportunities in Oklahoma,” Harel said. "I definitely didn't know that Oklahoma was so advanced in biotech.”

Harel is one of five Israelis visiting Oklahoma this week as part of an Israel/Oklahoma Bioscience event sponsored by the state Commerce Department. The Israeli group participated in an orientation Monday morning at the Research Park Conference Center in which they heard from the state's biotech industry and economic development leaders.

"I think what we heard today how the state government is supporting early stage companies is very impressive,” Harel said. "I think that is the way to go.”
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