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Virginia State Senator Herring Honored as BIO Legislator of the Year

May 4, 2010

via Earth Times.org

WASHINGTON - (Business Wire) The Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) announced today its selection of Virginia State Senator Mark Herring (D) of Leesburg as Legislator of the Year for 2009-2010. Senator Herring received the award today in the Virginia pavilion at the 2010 BIO International Convention taking place this week in Chicago, IL.

“As a sponsor of the Science and Technology Research Development and Commercialization Act, Senator Herring skillfully negotiated a compromise that ensured the bill’s passage,” said Patrick Kelly, BIO’s vice president of State Government Relations and Alliance Development. “Senator Herring is helping to ensure that his state remains a globally recognized center for science and technology.”

“This year, Senator Herring sponsored and passed the Virginia Innovation Investment Act, which offered targeted, long-term capital gains tax exclusion for Virginia bioscience investments,” said Mark Herzog, executive director of the Virginia Biotechnology Association. “This is a first-in-the-nation policy that has earned broad bipartisan support.”

The BIO award was established to honor public servants such as Senator Herring for their leadership and commitment to advancing biotechnology and promoting the public’s health and well-being.

BIO represents more than 1,200 biotechnology companies, academic institutions, state biotechnology centers and related organizations across the United States and in more than 30 other nations. BIO members are involved in the research and development of innovative healthcare, agricultural, industrial and environmental biotechnology products. BIO also produces the BIO International Convention, the world’s largest gathering of the biotechnology industry, along with industry-leading investor and partnering meetings held around the world.