WHEREAS, the State of Wisconsin is recognized as a national leader in stem cell research and commercialization; and
WHEREAS, the National Institutes of Health have made Wisconsin home to the nation’s first and only National Stem Cell Bank; and
WHEREAS, Wisconsin’s biotech firms annually contribute nearly $7 billion to Wisconsin’s economy and account for 22,000 jobs; and
WHEREAS, expert predictions suggest that the market for stem cell products could reach as much as $10 billion by 2015, which would likely translate into 100,000 or more jobs; and
WHEREAS, stem cell therapies may one day lead to dramatic cures for life-threatening and debilitating diseases such as cancer, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, kidney disease, multiple sclerosis, and a host of other illnesses; and
WHEREAS, stem cell therapies also show considerable promise in helping to repair catastrophic spinal injuries and assisting victims of paralysis regain movement; and
WHEREAS, the federal government has taken measures to severely restrict stem cell research in this country; and
WHEREAS, the State of Wisconsin has a responsibility to continue fostering an environment that encourages promising and potentially life-saving, stem cell research; and
WHEREAS, the State of Wisconsin is focused on recruiting and helping to fund companies that turn stem cell technology into high-paying jobs;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, JIM DOYLE, Governor of the State of Wisconsin by the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the Laws of this State do hereby:
- Declare that it shall be the goal of the State of Wisconsin to capture at least ten (10) percent of the stem cell technology market by the year 2015; and
- Direct the Department of Commerce to invest at least $5 million in recruiting and growing companies in the stem cell industry; and
- Direct the Department of Commerce to work with Forward Wisconsin, Inc., to help market Wisconsin’s position as a stem cell leader.
IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Great Seal of the State of Wisconsin to be affixed. Done at the Capitol in the City of Madison this twenty-fifth day of April, in the year two thousand and six.
JIM DOYLE
Governor
By the Governor:
DOUGLAS LA FOLLETTE
Secretary of State
