A three-judge panel of the California First District Court of Appeal in San Francisco on Monday ruled unanimously that California's Proposition 71 -- approved by voters in 2004 to provide $3 billion for human embryonic stem cell research -- is constitutional, the New York Times reports (Pollack, New York Times, 2/27).
State voters in November 2004 approved Proposition 71 to provide $295 million annually for 10 years for human embryonic stem cell research, and two taxpayer groups and the California Family Bioethics Council in 2005 filed a lawsuit arguing that the measure violates the state constitution. California Superior Court Judge Bonnie Sabraw in April 2006 ruled that the plaintiffs failed to show the proposition "is clearly, positively and unmistakably unconstitutional," adding that the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine and the Independent Citizens' Oversight Committee -- which are charged with implementing Proposition 71 -- "are operating in the same fashion as other state agencies." The plaintiffs appealed the ruling. Until the suits are resolved, CIRM is unable to sell state bonds required to fund the program, institute officials have said. The California Stem Cell Research and Cures Finance Committee in November 2006 unanimously approved a $181 million loan to CIRM, which includes $150 million from the state's general fund ordered by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) and $31 million from private donations (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 2/16).