Brandon Keim
Science

As Funding Stalls, Genome Research Chiefs Knee-Deep in Dollars

Note: The Howard Hughes Medical Center does not receive NIH funding. Thomas Cech’s salary should not be viewed in the context of the NIH funding crises. Politicians and activists regularly criticize the extravagant salaries earned by pharmaceutical company executives — but their nonprofit counterparts are rolling in the dough, too. GenomeWeb News did some digging […]

VenterNote: The Howard Hughes Medical Center does not receive NIH
funding. Thomas Cech's salary should not be viewed in the context of the NIH funding crises.

Politicians and activists regularly criticize the extravagant salaries earned by pharmaceutical company executives -- but their nonprofit counterparts are rolling in the dough, too.
*
GenomeWeb News* did some digging into the salaries of leaders at genomic research institutions that are funded by public donations and government grants:

The five genomic nonprofit institutes with the highest-paid CEOs in 2005 were the Howard Hughes Medical Center, which paid President Thomas Cech $836,000; the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, which paid Branch Director Boon Thierry $533,000; the Research Triangle Institute, which spent $532,000 on VF Haynes, its president and CEO; the Translational Genomic Institute, which paid CEO Jeffrey Trent $530,000; and the J. Craig Venter Institute, which paid Venter [right], the chairman and president, $413,000.

According to the tax filings, salaries of genomic nonprofit CEOs surged
19 percent between 2003 and 2004 and increased 7.5 percent between 2004
and 2005.

To be fair, GenomeWeb did a disservice by comparing the salaries to those of executives at other nonprofit groups. Genomic research groups compete for personnel with deep-pocketed pharmaceutical companies, and have no choice but to sweeten the pot.

However, the findings come with the NIH, the nation's largest biomedical research funder, facing a money crunch. Its budget is expected to flatline in fiscal years 2007 and 2008. With the rate of so-called biomedical inflation -- the rising price of lab materials and other research costs -- at a whopping 3.4%, a flat budget is a de facto cut.

This could mean major grant reductions to research institutes, and it'll be interesting to see how their well-paid executives respond. How about it, guys? You're already making 25% more than you were five years ago. Are you willing to be a little less ridiculously wealthy in order to support science?

Despite Looming NIH Cash Crunch, Genomic Nonprofit CEOs Enjoy Soaring Salaries [GenomeWeb News]