An Earmark for your relative?

While not quite rising to the level of nepotism, the bill sponsored by Representatives Joe Tolson & Tricia Cotham should raise some eyebrows. It will provide $3,000,000 to the North Carolina Biotechnology Center to fund the expansion of it's headquarters building. With 170 elected representatives in the NC Legislature surely one of the other 169 could have introduced (in the senate) or co-sponsored this bill in the house so that the relationship of one of the primary sponsors to the President & CEO of this private non-profit would not be an issue. Of course the Biotechnology Center has been a major recipient of state money so why change things now...