Internal emails obtained by STAT show that the American Association of Immunologists (AAI), the field's leading scientific society, is sharply divided over California's Proposition 38, an $8.4 billion ballot measure that would fund immunology research. The association's policy and advocacy committee recommended in July that AAI rescind its endorsement after learning that the measure would likely channel a large share of taxpayer money to a research center co-founded by billionaire philanthropist Gary Michelson, the measure's leading backer.
Despite that recommendation, AAI's governing council voted in August to keep the endorsement after meeting with Michelson. According to an email from the association's director of government affairs, five council members voted to maintain the endorsement, one opposed, and two abstained. The association, which represents more than 7,700 immunologists, did not plan to make the vote public.
The episode highlights tension between the field's interest in new funding and concerns about a possible conflict of interest. The source report notes that half of Prop 38's funds appear earmarked for the Michelson-co-founded center, but it does not indicate that the council's decision was unanimous or that the internal disagreement has been resolved.