Normally we don’t take activist stances, opting to play the hand we’re dealt rather than trying to predetermine the hand we get. Given the situation though (not just for a particular company, but for our tax money as well), maybe it’s not out of place for us to shake the chains a little, and let our Congressmen hear from us.
If you’ve got something to say to them - and you probably do - we’ll tell you how to do so below. And while you’re at it, you can specifically make a case for the stimulus idea we mentioned this past weekend… the one that would indirectly benefit CEL-SCI (CVM).
To be clear, we’re not ‘advocating’ you do this. We view this like voting… vote with your heart, gut, and mind. We support your decision to vote however you want to. However, we are making this information available to you - and presenting it as a choice - because we think it’s something the majority of you would want to do, if not as investors, than at least as supporters of ongoing healthcare R&D.
Or, if neither of those reasons apply to you, then you’re probably at least interested in how your tax dollars are going to be given to someone else.
The Congressional contact information is at the bottom of this blog entry.
Immediately below is the template letter that CEL-SCI’s CEO Geert Kersten provided to us. I recommend you read it and/or modify it to really say what you want to say, though the letter in itself is quite effective as-is. The point is the same either way though… if you agree with the idea, tell Congress you’d rather see the stimulus plan support this kind of research and development, as opposed to something they might have a personal interest in.
Anyway, here’s the basic form letter you might want to start with…
Re: Economic stimulus act help for tax and capital formation policies designed to promote innovation and job creation for America’s cutting-edge and research-intensive small companies, particularly biotechnology companies.Dear:
I applaud your commitment to economic stimulus legislation early in the 111th Congress. As part of this recovery plan, we respectfully urge you to include tax and capital formation policies designed to promote innovation and job creation for America’s cutting-edge and research-intensive small companies, particularly biotechnology companies.
Our nation’s small biotechnology companies, for example, are involved in the development of next-generation technologies to treat and cure diseases, yet are struggling to raise the necessary capital to survive the current financial crisis. Compared with 2007, funding raised by small biotech companies, both private and publicly-traded, has decreased by nearly 60 percent. The market for raising capital for these companies is now closed. Roughly one-third of small public biotech companies are currently operating with less than 6 months of cash-on-hand and nearly half have less than 1 year of cash remaining. In 2008, funds raised from initial public offerings (IPOs) have fallen a staggering 97 percent. Further, more and more small biotech companies throughout the United States have been forced into bankruptcy due to the financial crisis. These companies cannot simply be mothballed and resurrected when times are better. If Congress does not help quickly, a whole generation of new medicines will be destroyed in just a few months.
Small life sciences companies are a key component of the intellectual infrastructure of America’s 21st century economy. We fear that if no action is taken by the Congress to address the capital crisis facing small biotech companies, additional bankruptcies will occur, the search for new treatments will be threatened, and current drug development trials might be canceled. Additionally, the industry’s high-wage, high-skill American jobs will be put at risk. If small R&D-intensive companies are allowed to fail due to the current capital crisis, America’s overwhelming competitive edge in a variety of cutting-edge industries, such as biotechnology, could be lost.
As such, we urge you to include in the economic stimulus bill a provision allowing small companies to accelerate the use of their tax assets, such as net operating losses (NOLs), in order to receive critical funding now in return for giving up these tax benefits in the future. To ensure a stimulative effect for the economy, under this proposal any new funds received by companies would be required to be used for R&D activities in the U.S. or else would be recaptured by the U.S. Treasury.
Please insist on inclusion of this program for small cutting-edge and research-intensive small companies before signing off on this bill. The US used to be leading in finance and biotechnology. Now it is only leading in biotechnology, and unless Congress helps, that lead will be destroyed as well. Both the Canadian and British governments are working on similar support for their biotechnology companies, and we cannot yield the leadership to those nations. Too many high-wage high skilled jobs depend on this industry and too many of us depend on the new medicines that come from biotechnology.
Sincerely,
Just to reiterate, if you don’t believe in your heart that this is the right thing to do, don’t do it. The greatest part about this country is that we all have a say. You don’t have to side with the majority, and you can still fight a battle you know you’re going to lose… no hard feelings.
On the other hand, the first wave of bailout money (the first $350 billion from October) provided funds for ridiculous crap such as wooden toy bows and arrows and a rum company. Given the choice of how this money is allocated - which it will be, somewhere - I’d rather see it do some real good for the larger good. If we don’t tell ‘em where to use it, somebody else will.
While we’re at it, please feel free to modify or append the letter. Or, write your own. Or, write a different one that has to do with something else regarding any stimulus plan. We’ve been unheard long enough - let’s at least be heard this time.
Here are the links you can use to contact your appropriate Senators and Representatives. It probably goes without saying, but I will just to be sure… please don’t use this information to send spam, pointless inflammatory remarks, needless profanity-laden prose, or anything like that. That’s just waste of their time, and yours. The more legitimate your letter is, the more effective it will be.
Senators
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm
Representatives
https://writerep.house.gov/writerep/welcome.shtml
Did you know there are some thoughts and comments that only appear in the e-mail version of our newsletter? That’s right - if you’re just reading the blog or the online version of the newsletter, you’re not getting everything. Be sure to sign up for it today.
The pattern is really quite simple … PFF works its way into an oversold situation, and then bounces sharply by 10 points or more. We’re using a stochastics chart as an oversold/overbought indicator, which as you can see has been a very effective trading tool for PFF since October. More specifically, the iShares S&P US Preferred Stock Index Fund is bouncing around in a rising trading range, and we’ve just seen it push off the lower edge of that range.
cents. We commented that the momentum may have shifted to bullishness, having witnessed SPKL’s move above a couple of key moving averages. Well, now shares are at 23 cents, which isn’t leaps and bounds above where it was then, but it’s still a 9% gain over the span of three days. We’ve also continued to see higher highs and higher lows, and the heavier volume is still on the buying side of the table.I’m still hesitant to turn this slight upswing into a full-blown trade, as I want to see how these buyers respond when really tested. It’s on my radar though, and I think it should be on your’s too. Let’s see if SPKL is going to get traction or not. 
We were pleased to see 
