Summary — SB 5455 (2025): Administration of the Andy Hill Cancer Research Endowment
Status and effective date
- Enacted (Governor signed 5/2/2025); Chapter 199, 2025 Laws.
- Effective date: July 27, 2025.
- No state appropriation included in the bill; fiscal note available.
Purpose
- To revise how the Andy Hill Cancer Research Endowment (the Endowment) is governed, administered, and how certain grant and matching-fund rules apply — with the intent of simplifying administration, expanding operational flexibility, and clarifying use of funds for community outreach and clinical trial participation efforts.
Key provisions and changes
- Program administrator(s):
- The Endowment may designate more than one program administrator (previously a single administrator).
- The Board may create one or more tax‑exempt nonprofit corporations to perform some or all administrator duties.
- The Administrator(s) must be paid an administrative fee set by the Board and may be reimbursed for mutually agreed operating costs.
- The statutory requirement that the program administrator have expertise in conducting/managing research-granting activities is removed.
- Grants and scientific review:
- Solicitation, evaluation, and awarding of grants specifically for community outreach to increase participation in cancer clinical trials are exempted from the statutory grant evaluation criteria and from review by the independent scientific review and advisory committee.
- “Clinical trial” is explicitly defined as a cancer clinical trial.
- Match Transfer Account and matching requirements:
- Money expended from the Andy Hill Cancer Research Endowment Fund Match Transfer Account (Match Transfer Account) for community outreach grants is not subject to existing matching-fund requirements or the prior “agreement to demonstrate consideration.”
- Funds from the Match Transfer Account used for cancer research, prevention, or care remain subject to matching requirements.
- The Match Transfer Account may include state appropriations outside of matching funds; nonstate/private contributions used to trigger matching funds must be committed contributions.
- Treatment of fund money:
- Moneys in the Andy Hill Cancer Research Fund are no longer treated as state money, common cash, or state revenue in any circumstance (previously this non‑state treatment applied only once an agreement demonstrating consideration for state matching funds was in place).
- Board composition:
- Board nomination/appointment provisions are updated to reflect the 2022 merger of the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance and Fred Hutch into the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center.
Who is affected
- The Andy Hill Cancer Research Endowment Board, program administrator(s), community-based organizations receiving outreach grants, universities and health systems partnering to improve clinical trial diversity, private donors, and entities that previously participated in or depended on matching-fund procedures.
Legislative history & support
- Passed Senate 48–1 (3/10/2025) and House 95–0 (4/15/2025). Public testimony was supportive; no recorded opposition.
Potential implications and considerations
- Pros: Greater administrative flexibility, streamlined processes for community outreach grants, potential for expanded local partnerships and more nimble outreach to underrepresented communities in cancer trials.
- Cons/risks: Removing scientific review for outreach grants and loosening match requirements may raise concerns about oversight, consistency of evaluation, and financial accountability; eliminating the expertise requirement for administrators could affect grant management capacity unless the Board’s contracting choices mitigate that risk.
Key RCWs amended or reenacted: 43.348.010, 43.348.020, 43.348.040, 43.348.060, and 43.348.080.
