Update on the effort to ban human cloning in Missouri

House Joint Resolution 11 (HJR 11) is a proposal to place on the next statewide ballot (2008) an initiative to ban all human cloning, and return to our legislators the right to provide oversight and regulation of the biotech industry.  A simple majority vote on HJR 11 and its companion bill in the Senate, SJR20 is all that is necessary to accomplish this goal.

The resolution process allows the legislature to control the ballot language. The other method of getting an initiative on the ballot is an initiative petition which would require thousands of hours and thousands of dollars, but more importantly, would turn over control of the ballot language to the Secretary of State.
 
In order to move HJR 11 out of the House Health Care Policy Committee, where it has stalled, the sponsor of the bill, Representative Jim Lembke, has initiated a discharge petition. This is a legitimate move to advance a bill to the informal calendar where it can be scheduled for a vote of the full House. The discharge petition requires the signature of 55 members of the House of Representatives.

ACTION NEEDED:
Please call your Representative with the following message:

Missouri  voters deserve an opportunity to vote on a true ban on all human cloning.  Please sign the discharge request on HJR 11.

To find out who your Representative is and how to contact him/her, visit www.house.mo.gov
 
Please call the Speaker of the House, Rep. Rod Jetton (573-751-5912) and the Majority Floor Leader, Rep. Tom Dempsey (573-751-1141) and tell them you want HJR 11 to advance to the House floor and be voted on by the House.

 

Please click here to see the list of those who have currently signed the discharge petition. Missouri Right to Life maintains this list with daily updates.