HR1151 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR1151 LRB094 20113 RLC 57804 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The Governor issued Executive Order No. 6 in July 2005 establishing the Illinois Regenerative Medicine Institute (IRMI) under the Department of Public Health to provide grants to entities that engage in stem cell research; and

WHEREAS, The Fiscal Year 2006 budget included an appropriation of $10 million to the Department of Public Health to award these grants; and

WHEREAS, The Governor further bypassed the legislative process and the rulemaking process by amending his Executive Order No. 6 in February to provide the Department of Public Health with the power to implement the Institute, outlined the functions of IRMI, and established requirements and conditions for grantees; and

WHEREAS, The Governor's amended Executive Order was published in the Illinois Register on February 24th in lieu of Department rules; and

WHEREAS, The Department of Public Health has since established the new Institute and is currently considering grant applications that were due to the Department on March 17th; and

WHEREAS, The Department anticipates awarding grants to eligible entities on April 17th; and

WHEREAS, The Governor, in his proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2007, is seeking a $15 million appropriation from Tobacco Settlement monies for IRMI; and

WHEREAS, The Governor has further stated that he anticipates increasing this base appropriation by $2.5 million each year for the next 5 years in order to provide the Institute with an appropriation of $100 million by Fiscal Year 2011; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we require the Governor and the Department of Public Health to provide full disclosure of how the current appropriations for the Institute are being spent; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Governor and the Department of Public Health, upon awarding the grants, disclose all information regarding the grantees, the process by which these grantees were selected, as well as the information on those grant applications that were rejected and the reasons why those applications were rejected; and be it further

RESOLVED, That the Governor and the Department disclose any and all other information pertinent to the status and operation of the Institute, including, but not limited to, the oversight and reporting processes in place; and be it further

RESOLVED, That any future appropriation made to the Department for the purposes of the Institute must be approved by the General Assembly as a stand alone appropriation; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this Resolution be presented to the Governor and the Director of Public Health.