GALVESTON — A bill that passed with little resistance through a state Senate committee this week would make it easier for researchers to withhold some information from the public about deadly pathogens being handled at the new Galveston National Laboratory.
The University of Texas Medical Branch, which owns and operates the biodefense laboratory where researchers develop drugs and vaccines to battle infectious diseases, is working to secure passage of the bill, officials said.
Medical branch officials insist SB 2556 wouldn’t limit the public’s right to know what pathogens researchers were handling at the island facility or about accidents at the laboratory; rather, it would give state researchers the same privacy protections that exist under federal bioterrorism laws.
Some Opposition
One close observer of the state’s biodefense labs, however, said the change would give officials latitude to shield information, even when its disclosure posed no real security threat.
Meanwhile, he and other watchdog groups have criticized laboratory operators for invoking the same federal laws this bill seeks to mirror to shield basic information about such problems as laboratory-acquired infections.
The bill, authored by state Sen. Joan Huffman, a Republican representing part of Galveston County, would give Texas scientists protections available to researchers at federal laboratories under the Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002, officials said.
Medical branch officials several years ago soothed community fears by pledging transparency about a laboratory where scientists handle such deadly agents as Anthrax, avian flu, bubonic plague and hemorrhagic fevers, including Ebola.
Restricted Information
Huffman’s bill would restrict access to personal information about employees who handle so-called select agents and who potentially could be coerced by bioterrorists seeking information, medical branch official say.
The bill would deny public access to information about the location and use or intended use of an agent, information about security protections and the identity of people working with the agents at the Galveston National Laboratory and other state facilities.
Should the bill pass, medical branch officials would continue to make available what select agents are being handled at the island laboratory, officials said. But it was unclear Thursday whether they would be required to do so under the proposed legislation.
Mere Alignment
Huffman’s bill would align the state law with federal laws pertaining to select agents, said Jim Kelso, the medical branch’s chief compliance officer.
The medical branch already can use state laws to withhold information about lethal pathogens. But it and other Texas research must draw from various exceptions when they seek approval from the Texas Attorney General’s office to deny some requests about sensitive information, Kelso said.
Aligning state laws with federal rules would “streamline” efforts in handling public information requests regarding research at the laboratory, Kelso said.
“We’re not seeking greater protection, we’re seeking parity,” Kelso said.
Skirting Transparency?
Opponents of Huffman’s bill argue it has little to do with security and much to do with allowing research labs to skirt transparency.
Edward Hammond is a biodefense watchdog and one of the most prolific seekers of information about the Galveston National Laboratory. Hammond asserts the medical branch is trying to avoid divulging such information as agreements it has with private partners to share select agents.
“UTMB claims now that what it’s about is security, but that’s not what it’s about,” Hammond said.
In 2007, Hammond uncovered lab-related infections and illness at Texas A&M University.
Last year, Texas A&M agreed to pay the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services a $1 million civil penalty for violations involving research with biodefense materials, including failure to report exposures of researchers to toxic microbes. None of the researchers had lasting ill effects, according to reports.
Disclosure Would Continue
But should Huffman’s bill pass, the medical branch would continue to be transparent about its work with deadly pathogens, Dr. James LeDuc, deputy director of the Galveston National Laboratory, said.
It would continue to provide information to a Community Liaison Committee and keep the public apprised of activities and possible exposures through the laboratory’s Web site, he said.
Galveston National Laboratory officials have been open about work at the laboratory, said Jimmy Kessler, a Rabbi at Temple B’nai Israel who also is a member of the Community Liaison Committee.
“I think they have not only been upfront, they have revealed everything to us that has gone on in the laboratory since it opened,” Kessler said. “There’s no reason to suspect anything otherwise.”
The 186,267-square-foot Galveston National Laboratory is one of two approved in 2003 by the National Institutes of Health after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Researchers plan to develop drugs and vaccines to battle infectious disease, including deadly germs terrorists might use.
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On the Web
Find the Galveston National Laboratory on the Web at www.utmb.edu/GNL
