WASHINGTON –Senator Chuck Grassley today continued his efforts to keep meth off the streets and out of the homes of Iowans. Legislation he co-sponsored with Senator Dianne Feinstein to help control meth precursor chemicals, passed the Senate tonight by unanimous consent. It will now be sent to the House for consideration.
“Iowa has been hit harder than most states by the meth epidemic. Passage of the Combat Meth Act in 2006 provided us with a good deal of success in reducing the domestic meth supply, but it’s tough to stay a step ahead. So, we’re looking to do more to get this dangerous drug out of the hands of people across the country,” Grassley said.
The Combat Methamphetamine Enhancement Act is designed to improve the effectiveness of the self-certification process required by the Combat Meth Act (signed into law in 2006). The bill does this by:
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requiring all regulated persons engaged in retail sales of ephedrine or pseudoephedrine products to self-certify that they have trained their personnel and agree to comply with the Combat Meth Act (currently, mail-order retailers of these drugs are exempted from the self-certification requirement);
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requiring distributors of these products to sell only to retailers who are either DEA-registered to sell controlled substances or who have filed such self-certifications with the DEA;
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requiring the DEA to provide a downloadable database of all retailers who have filed such self-certifications on its website, so that distributors can check their customers against this database to ensure compliance;
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and clarifying that a retailer who negligently fails to file self-certifications as required can face civil fines.
Grassley has long been a leader in the fight against illegal drugs and substance abuse. He led the effort to pass the Combat Meth Act which limits the amount of meth precursor drugs – such as pseudoephedrine – that a customer can buy and requires pharmacies to keep written or electronic logbooks recording each purchase of the drugs. The approach was based off successful state laws in Iowa and Oklahoma and has led to a drop in the number of meth labs discovered in many other states. He has also worked to raise awareness about the rising abuse of prescription and over-the-counter drugs across the country.