Wisconsin Assembly approves broad human cloning ban News
Wisconsin Assembly approves broad human cloning ban

[JURIST] The Wisconsin Assembly [official website] voted Thursday to approve one of the country's broadest bans on human cloning [bill text, PDF] in the state where embyonic stem cell research was pioneered [U. Wisconsin Stem Cell Research Program website] and a huge biotechnology infrastructure exists. In a 59-38 vote the Republican-dominated Assembly passed a measure that bans not only cloning to create another human life but also "therapeutic cloning" aimed at procuring stem cells. The Wisconsin Senate is expected to begin debating the issue as soon as next week but Democratic Governor Jim Doyle [official profile], who pushed hard to have "therapeutic cloning" removed from the ban, has said he will veto the measure. The University of Wisconsin-Madison holds the patents to the only US stem cell lines approved for federal funding. In a politically-related move earlier this month the Wisconsin Assembly voted to ban the "morning-after" emergency contraceptive pill [JURIST report] from state college campuses AP has more.