WHEREAS, the 144^th General Assembly considers it essential that the State of Delaware establish a responsible, ethical policy regarding the rapidly-emerging science of cloning in the State of Delaware; and

WHEREAS, it has been reported that experimenters are currently trying to produce cloned human embryos for use in destructive experiments while persons conducting experiments in other countries have announced their intent to create cloned embryos using a human nucleus and the eggs from other mammalian species; and

WHEREAS, experiments creating human embryos through asexual methodologies as well as those that create human/non-human embryos through any methodology represent a fundamental threat to human dignity and integrity and are therefore unethical; and

WHEREAS, the pursuit of scientific knowledge through unethical experiments not only can cause great harm but can also slow the advancement of science and cripple the institutions that do such research by undermining the public trust and confidence that is necessary for them to carry out their functions.

NOW THEREFORE:

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:

Section 1. Amend Title 16, Delaware Code by inserting a new Chapter as follows:

“Chapter 30D. The Delaware Human Cloning Prohibition Act.

§ 3001D.

(1) Human cloning prohibition. No person in the State of Delaware shall clone a human embryo, participate or assist in cloning a human embryo or attempt to clone a human embryo. A person who knowingly clones or engages, participates or assists, directly or indirectly, in the cloning of a human embryo is guilty of a class E felony and shall be subject to a fine not to exceed $1,500,000 for each offense as well as the revocation of any professional license granted by the State of Delaware.

(2) Prohibition on creating human/non-human embryos. No person shall attempt to create or participate or assist in creating a human/non-human embryo whether by cloning or any other method. A person who knowingly creates or engages, participates or assists, directly or indirectly, in the creation of a human/non-human embryo or human/human chimeric embryo is guilty of a class E felony and shall be subject to a fine not to exceed $1,000,000 for each offense as well as the revocation of any professional license granted by the State of Delaware.

(3) Prohibition on the sale, donation, or transfer of a cloned human embryo, human/animal chimeric embryo or a human/human chimeric embryo. A person in the State of Delaware who knowingly sells, donates or otherwise transfers a cloned human embryo, a human/non-human chimeric embryo or a human/human chimeric embryo, or who knowingly participates or assists in the State of Delaware in the sale, donation or other transfer of a cloned human embryo, a human/non-human chimeric embryo or a human/human chimeric embryo is guilty of a class E felony and shall be subject to a fine not to exceed $1,000,000 for each offense as well as the revocation of any professional license granted by the State of Delaware.

(4) Definitions. As used in this Section only:

(a) The ‘Human genome’ means the total amount of nuclear and extra nuclear DNA genetic material in a cell that constitutes an organism as an individual member of the human species.

(b) The term ‘human embryo’ is used herein in its scientific and medical sense as any human organism through eight-weeks development, whether produced sexually, asexually or a combination of both, that possesses a genome specific for and consistent with an individual member of the human species, including any embryo, zygote, morula, blastocyst, fertilized egg or older embryo from the beginning of the s ingle-cell stage through eight-weeks development that possesses a genome specific for and consistent with an individual member of the human species.

(c) ‘Cloning’ means the asexual creation or manufacture of an organism by any means including but not limited to, twinning, pronuclear transfer, mitochondrial transfer, parthenogenesis and the transfer of the nucleus from a human/non-human or human-human cell from whatever source into human/non-human or human-human egg (oocyte) cell fertilized egg cell, embryonic, fetal, or adult cells from which the nucleus has been removed for the purpose of creating a new organism.

(d) A ‘clone’ is any organism created asexually by any means.

(e) A ‘human/non-human chimeric embryo’ or ‘human/human chimeric embryo’ is an artificially produced embryo that is produced by combining natural or artificially made human genetic material with natural or artificially made genetic material of another species or of another human organism.

(f) ‘Parthenogenesis’ is the production of an embryo from either a female or male gamete in the absence of any contribution of the gamete of the opposite sex.

(g) An ‘organism’ is a living whole being, an individual, even if that organism is compromised of just one cell.

(h) A ‘human being’ is a living whole human organism, a human individual, from the beginning of the single-cell stage onward, produced by any means.”.

SPONSOR:	Rep. Miro & Sen. McBride & Sen. Copeland ;
	Reps. Spence, Lee, Atkins, Blakey, Booth, Carey, Ewing, Hocker, Lavelle, Lofink, Outten, D. Short, Thornburg, Brady; Sens. Bunting, Bonini, Cloutier, Simpson, Still