When the states settled with the tobacco companies in 1998, the state of Michigan received one billion dollars, which it used to create the Life Sciences Corridor. The purpose of the Corridor, according to University spokeswoman Sally Pobojewski, was to "nurture the biotechnology industry and research base here in the state of Michigan."

Most of the state money goes to scientific research, with a lesser portion dedicated to commercial development. Participants in this initiative other than the University include Michigan State University, Wayne State University and the Van Andel Institute of Grand Rapids.

Biotechnology is one of the fastest-changing and most talked about fields in science today. From the vast disease-curing potential of stem cell therapy research to the many mysteries waiting to be unraveled by the human genome project, human beings stand to benefit immensely from all the field has to offer.

But, like so many great public education programs of late, the LSC may soon receive an ugly funding cut from the government. A bill currently facing the state House of Representatives would shrink 2002 life sciences funding by $10 million. The Senate passed this bill last month. While this latest attempt by the Legislature to balance the budget at our expense is not surprising, it is worthy of our criticism. Governor Engler recently approved a 2002 budget that would grant a meager 1.5 percent increase (or a $324 million) to the state"s 28 public universities. Since the rate of inflation is more than double that at 3.6 percent, this forced the University to raise 2002 tuition by a staggering 6.5 percent.

Meanwhile, Engler"s budget increases funding the state corrections funding by two percent, for an overall corrections budget of $1.7 billion. The Legislature has been looking to higher education to fill its funding gaps far too frequently. The LSC would be an excellent place to stop the House should kill this bill while it has the chance.

Since 1998, the University has received nearly $50 million dollars from the LSC, with Ann Arbor businesses receiving $11 million. Without this cash flow, countless important studies would have been left incomplete or uninitiated.

Cutting 20 percent of the budget for this advanced technological research affects biotechnological businesses and researchers, both of which play vital roles in the development of new technology. As other states are continuing to invest in this hot research area, the Legislature must not allow our state to be left in the dust..

Ann Arbor denizens should be especially outraged by this bill, since the largest share of the funds traditionally go to the University and the businesses most likely to be affected by the cut are Ann Arbor based.

Michigan universities have to struggle every year to get the funds they need to provide solid educations for their tuition-paying students. Now, the Legislature may force upper echelon organizations like the LSC to reconfigure their budgets with significantly slashed funds.

It is understandable that the state legislature is looking for funds to balance the budget. But removing a fifth of the LSC"s budget, taking away money specifically earmarked for this purpose, is unjustified and insulting. If the House does not cease these funding cuts immediately, there is not telling how long they"ll go on. Today, the life sciences bear the brunt. Tomorrow, it could be any other department. If our representatives value education, they will vote against this bill.