Utah Hosts U.S. House Ways and Means Committee Field Hearing
July 12, 2024
The U.S. House Ways and Means Committee learned how lawmakers can enable and sustain innovation in life sciences from a panel of Utah witnesses at a July 12 field hearing in Salt Lake City. Witnesses included BioUtah President and CEO Kelvyn Cullimore; Kasey DeLynn Shakespear, rural health champion and parent of a rare disease patient; Dr. Heloisa Soares, associate professor and medical director of clinical trials office at Huntsman Cancer Institute; and Frank Watanabe, president and CEO at Arcutis Biotherapeutics.
Rep. Blake Moore (R-UT), a member of the Committee, helped lead the discussion along with Representatives Celeste Maloy (R-UT) and Burgess Owens (R-UT), who also participated. In addition to the hearing, nearly 20 life sciences companies showcased important contributions Utah makes to further health care innovation.
The policy discussion included the need to restore full and immediate R&D expensing as well as the need to reverse harmful provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act that impede the search for new medicines and cures. The challenging landscape for mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and tax measures designed to spur innovation were also raised.
Cullimore emphasized the significance of the life sciences industry in Utah, which employs over 182,000 people and has an annual economic impact exceeding $22 billion on the state. “From 2012 to 2022, the number of jobs in Utah’s life sciences industry increased by 5.1% per year on average versus 3.5% in other states, and 3.4% in other Utah industries,” said Cullimore. “Utah’s life sciences industry has been the third fastest growing bio innovation hub in the nation over the last decade.”
In terms of M&A, Cullimore urged Members of Congress to recognize the important role of M&A to the innovation cycle and to consider measures “to counter the current aggressive approach” taken by the Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice, which “could inadvertently stymie pro-competitive M&A.”
“Looking ahead to 2024, this Committee is exploring how the tax code can better facilitate innovation, especially in the biotech industry,” said Chairman Jason Smith (R-MO).
Arcutis Biotherapeutics President, Frank Watanabe, recommended changes to the tax code to improve the monetization of net operating losses (NOLs), which would allow give startups
Rep. Blake Moore (R-UT) expressed interest in the issue. “The NOL monetization concept is very important for early-stage companies because, as they’re doing research, they’re building up these losses,” noted Cullimore. “The ability to monetize those losses through the tax code, for instance, would generate capital and allow these companies to accelerate development of innovative products for patients.”
The full hearing and written statements can be found HERE.