Regarding other reproductive issues, Brown says that he supports a woman's ability to access contraception and use birth control, but he did vote against requiring businesses with religious objections to provide birth control. As a state legislator, he also supported stem-cell research voting for a bill that included embryonic stem-cell research in 2005. He authored legislation to fund research for stem cells from umbilical cords. In 2005, he broke with his party by voting with Democrats in support of a bill to allow embryonic stem cell research. However, he later opposed funding for embryonic stem-cell research.