NIH Reform bill in the house

According to a brief report in ScienceNOW, Joe Barton (R-TX) introduced a bill, which would give the NIH a 5% annual increase each year for two years (most likely in 2008 and 2009). The bill will not be voted on until congress gets back to work after the 6 week election break. The other tie-up in this process is that the Senate will also need to introduce an accompanying bill, and then the House and Senate have to come to a compromise. I remember reading about how Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) was a big supporter of the NIH, and maybe he would sponsor the bill in the Senate. We'll see if I get some free time, I'll email him, and post what I find out on the blog.