Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2004. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
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San Francisco Examiner - December 14, 2004
Marisa Lagos, Staff Writer
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante and Controller Steve Westly on Monday announced their nominations of Klein to chair the Independent Citizens Oversight Committee. The nominations come four days before the 27 appointed ICOC members are to vote on the chair and vice chair positions at their first meeting, to be held at UC San Francisco.
The owner of a Palo Alto real estate investment banking consulting company, Klein helped draft Proposition 71, the stem cell initiative, and donated more than $3 million to the effort. He has been a particularly poignant advocate for the cause because of his personal interest in stem cell research. His son was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes in 2001, and his mother has Alzheimer's.
In a statement Monday, Klein said he was "gratified and honored" by the nomination and vowed his commitment to "transparency in process, public oversight and accountability and the highest medical and ethical standards possible."
Schwarzenegger and Westly also nominated Edward Penhoet, a Bay Area biochemist and entrepreneur, as vice chair to the committee. Bustamante nominated Oakland urologist Frank Staggers as vice chair.
The ICOC is made up of 27 appointed members: 10 advocates for specific diseases, five representatives of UC medical schools and 12 researchers or scientists from universities and research institutions. The appointed chair and vice chair are required to have experience advocating for stem cell research and are nominated by the governor, lieutenant governor, treasurer and controller.
Included on the ICOC is San Francisco Deputy City Attorney David Serrano Sewell, appointed by Bustamante on Monday. Serrano Sewell, who was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis three years ago, will act as a patients' advocate for MS and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. He is one of five Bay Area residents appointed to the ICOC, including San Francisco AIDS activist Jeff Sheehy, who will serve as a patients' advocate for HIV and AIDS.
Serrano Sewell, who represents the Port Commission for The City, said Monday that he was honored by the appointment.
"I don't want to be confined by the MS/ALAS designation, but be an advocate for everyone who is suffering," he said. "The exciting part about stem cell research is the promise it holds for everyone. ... I have a fundamental belief that through scientific research and inquiry we can find cures."
On Nov. 2, Californians approved Proposition 71 by 59 percent of the vote, creating the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine and authorizing $3 billion in bonds over the next 10 years for stem cell research. Scientists hope stem cell research will one day cure diseases like AIDS, Parkinson's and multiple sclerosis.
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