Present Campaign

Missouri Roundtable For Life’s present campaign to limit or repeal the effects of Amendment 2 contains multiple components, presenting the strongest possible front against this deceitful law, which mandates that taxpayer dollars fund human cloning and stem cell research, including embryonic stem cell research. Our campaign components are as follows:

NEW CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS
We have submitted three petitions to the Secretary of State, each of which would limit or repeal the effects of Amendment 2 in different ways (see below for the text of each). We hoped one or more of these would appear as amendments on the ballot this November but the Secretary of State’s proposed ballot language summarizing each initiative was inaccurate and misleading. As a result, we filed 3 lawsuits that assert the insufficiency of her language. The lawsuits are pending but we are encouraged that one or more of these amendments could be up for a vote on the 2010 ballot. With the help of our coordinators’ campaign to educate voters, Missourians will be well-prepared to vote ‘YES’ on these amendments and succeed in undoing the fiscal and ethical burdens that Amendment 2 wrought on the state.

EFFORTS IN THE COURTS
In an effort to clarify the power of Amendment 2 to override previously existing laws, as it seems to do, on June 30 we asked the circuit court for a temporary restraining order to freeze funds in the Life Sciences Research Trust Fund (one of the funding entities detailed in our most recent publication) until the court answers the following:

Do Amendment 2 provisions override those of the Life Sciences Research Trust Fund itself, thereby allowing it to fund human cloning, abortion services and prohibited human research? All of these were previously prohibited from receiving funds under the provisions which established the Life Sciences Research Trust Fund.
Is the appropriation authority of the state legislature limited by Amendment 2 given Amendment 2’s mandate that entities receiving public funds for stem cell research not have their state funding reduced?

Our request for a temporary restraining order to freeze funds was denied but we will have a hearing in the fall wherein a judge must answer these 2 questions. In addition, the defendants in the case assured us in court that current dollars in the Fund will not be spent before 2009. That buys us time, but not much comfort. Please see below for press releases related to this court event.

Proposed Amendments

1st Proposed Constitutional Amendment:

Section 38(e). In any fiscal year, the first $200 million disbursed from the Life Sciences Research Trust Fund shall be expended on primary healthcare for low-income Missourians, provided, however, that no such funds shall be expended on abortion services, human cloning, or prohibited human research, as such terms are defined in the Revised Statutes of Missouri Section 196.1127, L.2003, H.B.688.

2nd Proposed Constitutional Amendment:

Section 38(e). Nothing in Section 38(d) of Article III of the Missouri Constitution shall be construed as limiting in any way the powers of the Missouri general assembly to appropriate, eliminate, reduce, deny, or withhold any public funds.

3rd Proposed Constitutional Amendment:

Section 38(e). In order to assure the power of the Missouri general assembly over appropriations of money and public funds, Section 38(d) of Article III of the Constitution of Missouri is hereby repealed.

Press Releases

Date: Thu, 3 Jul 2008

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Contact: Todd Jones, Exec. Dir., Missouri Roundtable for Life – (314) 854-1381 or todd@moroundtable.org

STATE DEFENDANTS ADMIT THAT TAXPAYER DOLLARS FLOW TO PRIVATE ENTITIES BUT CONCEDE THAT THEY WILL NOT GIVE TAX DOLLARS AWAY UNTIL 2009

JEFFERSON CITY – Missouri Taxpayers Fred N. Sauer and the Missouri Roundtable for Life today responded with gratitude today to the on-the-record admissions and concessions of the Missouri State defendants.

'We respect Judge Beetem and his thoughtful consideration of our motion for temporary restraining order and, although we are sorry the motion was denied, we are gratified with the admissions made by the Defendants' said plaintiff Fred N. Sauer. 'The Defendants have made clear - on the record - that no Missouri tax dollars will be spent until 2009. As soon as possible, we hope to finally resolve our concerns about taxpayer money possibly being used for abortion services or human cloning and the question of entitlement that has been raised by us and by the Missouri Cures proponents. (for more on this see - 'Did the Stem Cell Amendment benefit our state budget, taxpayers and our economy?').

Transcripts of the on-the-record Defendants' admissions may be obtained through the court reporter for the Cole County Circuit Court through Judge Beetem's chambers.

Plaintiffs Missouri Roundtable for Life and Fred Sauer have scheduled an August 1st hearing for preliminary injunction before Judge Richard Callahan.