California Legislation on UC Berkeley Gene Testing

Posted by Jesse Reynolds June 29, 2010
Biopolitical Times

The California legislature is taking steps to essentially halt the controversial gene testing of incoming freshman and transfer students at the University of California, Berkeley. A bill was introduced last week that would ask the UC system to refrain from "making an unsolicited request to an enrolled or prospective student of that segment for a DNA sample for the purpose of genetic testing." It would also require that the universities report how much they are spending on such tests; the schools would then have their funding reduced by that amount.

The bill was introduced (or more accurately, gutted-and-amended) as an emergency measure. It would take effect immediately upon passage, but requires a 2/3 supermajority for passage.

Previously in Biopolitical Times: