LANSING-State Senator Gretchen Whitmer (D-East Lansing) offered the following statement on President Barack Obama’s signature of an executive order today easing restrictions on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research, an act that could benefit Michigan researchers greatly.

Senator Whitmer’s statement is as follows:

“Michigan has been missing out on these federal research dollars and increased high-tech jobs for too long. I’ve fought to allow embryonic stem cell research in Michigan, both in the Legislature and successfully on the statewide ballot, and President Obama’s executive order today will further expand on those efforts. This increase in federal funding would be moot for researchers in Michigan, including some of the top experts on stem cell research in the world, if we hadn’t overturned our state’s outdated law. Instead, this means federal money will be coming in to create more Michigan jobs.”

Sen. Whitmer has been an ongoing advocate for searching for cures and diversifying Michigan’s economy through expanding stem cell research. She has previously introduced legislation to overturn Michigan’s ban on embryonic stem cell research in the State Senate, and successfully led a statewide ballot proposal campaign, Proposal 2, that put the issue before Michigan voters and passed overwhelmingly.

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