Washington, D.C. – Congressman Tom Cole (OK-04), citizen of the Chickasaw Nation of Oklahoma, released the following statement after introducing the Strengthen the Pediatric Research Initiative Act. This legislation would prohibit future presidential candidates from using the Presidential Election Campaign Fund (PECF), eliminate the PECF and transfer all remaining funds to the already existing 10-Year Pediatric Research Initiative.
“There is nothing of greater importance than finding cures for childhood cancers and other deadly diseases,” said Cole. “Although Congress has made significant strides throughout the last decade to provide the funding to find these lifesaving cures, there is much more work to be done still. I’m proud to introduce the Strengthen the Pediatric Research Initiative Act to redirect this money from political campaigns toward this worthy cause.”
Background:
Created in 2014, The Gabriella Miller Kids First Research Act created the 10-Year Pediatric Research Initiative to support pediatric research, with an emphasis on childhood cancers. Congress funded this initiative by prohibiting political parties from drawing down monies from the PECF for their nominating conventions and transferring monies reserved for that purpose to the 10-Year Pediatric Research Initiative.
While the law did not change the ability of presidential candidates to tap the PECF for their campaign’s general election spending, no presidential candidate has used the PECF in a general election since 2008. Currently, the Pediatric Research Initiative is near the end of its funding while the PECF is sitting unused with a balance of $427 million as of December 2022.
Bill text is available here.
