BUSINESS NEWS

The Southern California Biomedical Council (SoCalBio; Los Angeles), Biocom (San Diego), and BayBio (San Francisco), which together represent life sciences firms and research organizations across California, have announced an alliance to promote the state's life sciences industry. Under the terms of the three-year agreement, the organizations will pool resources and work together to address a range of public policy and joint advocacy efforts at the state and federal levels. The organizations will also collaborate on life sciences industry conferences and joint purchasing group opportunities.

Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick signed into law a measure aimed at strengthening the state's life sciences sector through tax incentives, research funding, and university-building projects. As part of the $1 billion, 10-year commitment, $10 million is being committed to fund the Massachusetts Medical Device Development Center at the University of Massachusetts-Lowell.