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H. 3299
STATUS INFORMATION
General Bill
Sponsors: Rep. Davenport
Document Path: l:\council\bills\nbd\11161ac07.doc
Introduced in the House on January 17, 2007
Currently residing in the House Committee on Judiciary
Summary: Human Cloning Prohibition Act
HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS
Date Body Action Description with journal page number ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/17/2007 House Introduced and read first time HJ-34 1/17/2007 House Referred to Committee on Judiciary HJ-34
View the latest legislative information at the LPITS web site
VERSIONS OF THIS BILL
TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING SECTION 16-17-745 SO AS TO ENACT THE "HUMAN CLONING PROHIBITION ACT" TO MAKE IT UNLAWFUL FOR A PERSON TO PERFORM OR PARTICIPATE IN HUMAN CLONING, TO DERIVE ANY PRODUCT FROM HUMAN CLONING, OR TO SHIP, RECEIVE, TRANSPORT, TRANSFER, OR DISTRIBUTE IN INTRASTATE COMMERCE AN EMBRYO DERIVED FROM HUMAN CLONING, TO DEFINE HUMAN CLONING, TO PROVIDE CRIMINAL PENALTIES, AND TO PROVIDE FOR REVOCATION OF THE PROFESSIONAL LICENSE OF A PERSON VIOLATING THIS ACT.
Whereas, the General Assembly finds that:
(1) At least one company has announced that they have successfully cloned a human being at the early embryonic stage of life, and others have announced that they will attempt to clone a human being using the technique known as somatic cell nuclear transfer.
(2) Efforts to create human beings by cloning mark a new and decisive step toward turning human reproduction into a manufacturing process in which human beings are made in laboratories to preordained specifications and, potentially, in multiple copies.
(3) Creating cloned live-born human children, "cloning to produce children", begins by creating cloned human beings at the embryonic stage of life, a process which some also propose as a way of creating human embryos for destructive research as sources of stem cells and tissues for possible treatment of other humans, "cloning for biomedical research".
(4) Many scientists agree that attempts at "cloning to produce children" pose a massive risk of either producing children who are stillborn, unhealthy, or severely disabled, and that attempts at "cloning for biomedical research" always results in the destruction of human beings at the embryonic stage of life when their stem cells are harvested.
(5) The prospect of creating new human life solely to be exploited "cloning for biomedical research" in these ways has been condemned on moral grounds by many, as displaying a profound disrespect for life.
(6) The distinction between "therapeutic" and "reproductive" cloning is a false distinction scientifically because both begin with the reproduction of a human being at the embryonic stage of life, one destined for implantation in a womb, one destined for destructive farming of its stem cells. Regardless of its ultimate destiny, all human embryos are simultaneously human beings.
(7) It will be nearly impossible to ban only attempts at "cloning to produce children" if "cloning for biomedical research" is allowed because:
(a) cloning would take place within the privacy of a doctor-patient relationship;
(b) the implantation of embryos to begin a pregnancy is a simple procedure; and
(c) any government effort to prevent the implantation of an existing cloned embryo, or to prevent birth once implantation has occurred would raise substantial moral, legal, and practical issues.
Whereas, based on the these findings, it is incumbent upon the General Assembly to prohibit the use of cloning technology to initiate the development of new human beings at the embryonic stage of life for any purpose.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. This act may be cited as the "Human Cloning Prohibition Act".
SECTION 2. Article 7, Chapter 17, Title 16 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
"Section 16-17-745. (A) As used in this section:
(1) 'Asexual reproduction' means reproduction not initiated by the union of oocyte and sperm.
(2) 'Embryo' means an organism of the species homo sapiens from the single cell stage to eight weeks development.
(3) 'Fetus' means an organism of the species homo sapiens from eight weeks development until complete expulsion or extraction from a woman's body or removal from an artificial womb or other similar environments designed to nurture the development of such organism.
(4) 'Human cloning' means human asexual reproduction, accomplished by introducing nuclear material from one or more human somatic cells into a fertilized or unfertilized oocyte whose nuclear material has been removed or inactivated so as to produce a living organism, at any stage of development, that is genetically virtually identical to an existing or previously existing human organism.
(5) 'Product' of human cloning includes stem cells and all other constituent parts of an embryo created through human cloning.
(6) 'Somatic cell' means a diploid cell, having a complete set of chromosomes, obtained or derived from a living or deceased human organism at any stage of development.
(B) No person shall knowingly or with reckless disregard:
(1) perform or attempt to perform human cloning or derive any product from human cloning;
(2) participate in an attempt to perform human cloning or derive any product from human cloning; or
(3) ship, receive, transport, transfer, or distribute in intrastate commerce for any purpose an embryo produced by human cloning or any product derived from such embryo.
(C) A person who violates subsection (B) is guilty of a felony and, upon conviction, must be fined not more than fifty thousand dollars or imprisoned for not more than five years, or both. However, in the case of a violation that involves the derivation of a pecuniary gain, the person must be fined not less than one hundred thousand dollars and not more than an amount equal to the amount of the gross gain multiplied by two, if that amount is greater than one hundred thousand dollars. Each violation constitutes a separate offense.
(D) A license to practice a profession or occupation issued by a board, agency, or department of this State must be revoked immediately upon conviction of a licensee violating subsection (B) while engaging in that profession or occupation.
(E) Nothing in subsection (B) restricts areas of scientific research not specifically prohibited by this section, including in vitro fertilization, the administration of fertility enhancing drugs, and research in the use of nuclear transfer or other cloning techniques to produce molecules, DNA, tissues, organs, plants, or animals, other than humans, or cells other than human embryos.
(F) Subsection (B)(3) must be interpreted to apply to the maximum extent not inconsistent with the federal commerce clause."
SECTION 3. If any section, subsection, paragraph, subparagraph, sentence, clause, phrase, or word of this act is for any reason held to be unconstitutional or invalid, such holding shall not affect the constitutionality or validity of the remaining portions of this act, the General Assembly hereby declaring that it would have passed this act, and each and every section, subsection, paragraph, subparagraph, sentence, clause, phrase, and word thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more other sections, subsections, paragraphs, subparagraphs, sentences, clauses, phrases, or words hereof may be declared to be unconstitutional, invalid, or otherwise ineffective.
SECTION 4. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
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