California Personhood Begins at Conception Initiative (2014)

Not on Ballot
This measure was not put on an election ballot

A California Personhood Begins at Conception Initiative (#13-0020) was approved for circulation in California as a contender for the November 4, 2014, ballot as an initiated constitutional amendment.

The measure would have added language to the California Constitution that defines the term "person" as "it is applied to all living human beings, applies to all living human beings from the beginning of their biological development as human beings (i.e., human organism), regardless of the means by which he or she was procreated, method of reproduction, age, race, sex, gender, physical well~being, function, size, level of development, environment, and/or degree of physical or mental dependency and/or disability."

Text of measure

Ballot title:

Constitutional Definition of a Person. Fertilized Human Eggs. Initiative Constitutional Amendment.

Official summary:

"Extends constitutional protections of due process and equal protection to all fertilized human eggs by redefining "person" as including each and every human organism from the commencement of biological development."

Fiscal impact statement:

Note: The fiscal impact statement for a California ballot initiative authorized for circulation is jointly prepared by the state's legislative analyst and its director of finance.

"Potentially significant costs to state and local governments from the establishment of due process and equal protection rights for zygotes, embryos, and fetuses."

Path to the ballot

See also: Signature requirements for ballot measures in California

• Walter B. Hoye II, Gilbert Montelongo, Ronnie Allen, Harold Hervey, Jesse Peterson, George McKinney and Bruce Rivers submitted a letter requesting a ballot title on September 27, 2013.
• A title and summary were issued by California's attorney general's office on November 21, 2014.
• 807,615 valid signatures were required for qualification purposes.
• Supporters had until April 21, 2014, to collect the required signatures.
• Proponents failed to collect enough signatures by the deadline.

External links

Suggest a link

• Letter requesting a ballot title for Initiative 13-0020

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This article about a California ballot proposition is a sprout.