Stem Cell Initiative Certified for Ballot

[Freddie Stubbs]

The $3-billion measure puts California in the forefront of an ongoing national debate

By Carl Ingram and Jordan Rau, Times Staff Writers


SACRAMENTO — An initiative that would have state taxpayers underwrite $3 billion worth of research into using embryonic stem cells to develop cures for Alzheimer's and other debilitating diseases qualified for the Nov. 2 ballot Thursday, propelling California to the forefront of a national battle at the intersection of science and morality.

The California Stem Cell Research and Cures Initiative is one of 14 propositions that will face the state's voters in this presidential election year, officials said. Advocates contend that stem cell research, which would be financed by a state bond issue over 10 years, could lead to breakthroughs in curing numerous diseases.

The ballot initiative is an implicit referendum on an executive order that President Bush issued in 2001. That action limited the use of federal funds for stem cell research to a small number of cell colonies already extracted from human embryos.

At the time, Bush said he chose to limit research to avoid doing anything that would "encourage further destruction of human embryos."

more: http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-stem4jun04.story