Florida lawmakers look to cap biotech investment

Over the past two years, Florida's Innovation Incentive program has pumped all of its money--hundreds of millions of dollars--to persuade a group of prestigious research centers [1] to set up operations in the state. Supporters say that it is one of the most successful economic incentive programs in biotech (and made FierceBiotech's Top 5 biotech economic development list [2] two years running).

But some lawmakers say the state shouldn't be putting all its investment eggs in one biotech basket. A new bill would limit any one industry to half of the funds available and give the state a share of any royalties from commercialization efforts. Palm Beach officials, though, say that a move like that would limit its efforts to attract more biomedical research to the area.

''We are concerned that decreased funding certainly would take away from the momentum that the state has developed in attracting the bioscience industry,'' Kelly Smallridge, president of the Business Development Board of Palm Beach County, told the Palm Beach Post. "There are still a number of sizable institutions considering our location.

- read the article [3] from the Palm Beach Post

Related Articles:
Florida--Top Five Regions Targeting Biotech Companies, 2008. Report [2]
Max Planck Society eyes Florida research center. Report [4]
Florida moves up the charts in tech spin-offs. Report [5]
Florida gets an honorable mention, with a warning. Report [6]
Can Florida woo biotechs? Report [1]