Scientific research is the most powerful tool we have against disease. Incremental discoveries made in the lab today are vital in developing new treatments for cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, and other conditions affecting our community.

Federal funding fuels research in Washington. In 2014, the state received $906 million from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), $143 million from the National Science Foundation, $45 million from the United States Department of Agriculture, and $23 million from the Department of Energy Office of Science in research grants.

And the San Juan Islands play a vital role in the research funded by the federal and state governments. Between 1961 to 1988, working at the Friday Harbor Laboratories of the University of Washington on San Juan Island, Osamu Shimomura collected around 1 million specimens of the bioluminescent jellyfish Aequorea victoria that live in the waters surrounding the San Juan Islands. From these jellyfish, he extracted a fluorescent protein called the green fluorescent protein, or GFP. In the years since, GFP has become a powerful research tool that allows scientists to unravel amazing details of the inner functioning of living cells. In 2008, Shimomura and two colleagues were awarded the Nobel Prize in chemistry for their work.

Today, scientists, students, and support staff continue to rely on funding from the US government. Their efforts yield new discoveries and train our high-skill workers. But limited funding could hinder scientific advances. When adjusted for inflation, the NIH budget has declined by nearly 25 percent in the past decade. This jeopardizes our country’s global leadership in science and technology.

Please join me in urging Washington’s congressional delegation to complete its work and pass a 2016 spending bill that includes increases for federal science agencies. If Congress doesn’t act, critical research will be disrupted, and those who are waiting for cures will pay the price.

Tom Baldwin

Eastsound