(AP) — Jackson County voters are being asked to approve a half-cent sales tax to pay for medical research at two Kansas City hospitals and the University of Missouri-Kansas City’s health professional schools.

Approval of Tuesday’s ballot measure would raise $800 million over the tax’s 20-year duration to fund research in translational medicine, which uses basic research to create new treatments and cures. Supporters say the funding could help establish Kansas City as a national medical research hub.

Opponents, such as the League of Women Voters and Catholic Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph, call the sales tax regressive and say it puts the burden to fund a national research program on the backs of low- and middle-class residents who can least afford it.