Contact: Ernie Blazar 202.224.7627 Shana Stribling 202.224.0309
Thursday, April 26, 2001

WASHINGTON - Senator Kit Bond today cosponsored legislation introduced by Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas which would outlaw human cloning. The Brownback bill is similar to The Human Cloning Prohibition Act that Bond sponsored in 1998.

“Human cloning is something we cannot and should not tolerate. This type of research on humans is morally reprehensible. The creation of a human being should not be for spare parts, or as a replacement, or for other selfish purposes that are not in the best interest of the child,” Bond said. Bond has long been a supporter of biotechnology, genome mapping, and plant and animal cloning. But he distinguished his support for a human cloning ban from other efforts. “We can draw a clear line here. For plants and perhaps animals, it makes sense to clone healthier specimens to improve the food supply or to produce genetically-identical copies for use in research. And certainly the genome mapping project at NIH and most of the research that stems from it must continue to improve human health. But when we are talking about creating an entire human being, identical to another, that is a moral issue. And that is where we must draw the line,” Bond said.

The Brownback bill would ban human cloning by outlawing in humans the use of the specific technology -- somatic cell nuclear transfer -- that is used to clone animals. The penalty for violating the anti-cloning law is up to 10 years in prison, and in addition not less than a $1 million civil penalty if the cloning procedure was performed for profit. This bill will likely be referred to the Judiciary Committee.