Prop. 38 leaves UC Santa Cruz off the council that would hand out $4 billion in research grants

Santa Cruz voters looking at Proposition 38, the $8.4 billion bond for immunology and immunotherapy research on the Nov. 3 ballot, may want to read the fine print about their local university. (Our explainer covers the measure as a whole.)

How the money would be split

CalMatters found that more than $4 billion, about half the bond, would go to one unnamed nonprofit institute. The eligibility rules require ties to a UC campus with a very large medical center. CalMatters concluded those rules very likely fit only the California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy, which is housed on UCLA-owned property and was co-founded by Gary K. Michelson, a chief backer of the measure. A UCLA spokesperson told CalMatters that only that institute, among UCLA-affiliated nonprofits, could meet the criteria. A Yes on 38 spokesperson said the language was not tailored to any one institute.

The other half would be awarded through competitive grants. Those grants would be chosen by a council appointed by the chancellors of seven of the 10 UC campuses, along with officials from other universities and nonprofit research groups. UC Santa Cruz, UC Merced and UC Santa Barbara are the three campuses left out. Winning proposals can only come from employers represented on the council, CalMatters reported.

The Santa Cruz argument

In a Lookout Santa Cruz op-ed published Oct. 28, Robert M. Kaplan wrote that Santa Cruz residents "should be outraged" that the measure leaves UCSC, "one of the state's most accomplished research universities," without the guaranteed seat given to seven other campuses. Kaplan, a former associate director at the National Institutes of Health now at Stanford's medical school, publicly opposes the proposition. He told CalMatters that steering a huge share of funding to one institution is "a bad idea."

Cost to taxpayers

The Legislative Analyst's Office estimates bond payments of about $500 million a year for 25 years, bringing the total cost to more than $12 billion. Backers say federal research cuts make state investment necessary, and that drugs developed with bond money would be discounted 20% for Californians.

How to vote

Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 3. Polls and vote centers close at 8 p.m., and mailed ballots must be postmarked by Election Day and arrive within seven days. You can check your registration and ballot status at sos.ca.gov/elections. California lets you register and vote the same day at a vote center.