Pubdate: Sat, 04 Mar 2006 Source: Herald and News (Klamath Falls, OR) Copyright: 2006 Herald and News Contact: http://www.heraldandnews.com Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2600 Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine) NEW METH LAW LAUDED Klamath County's district attorney says new nationwide legislation curbing methamphetamine will reinforce the efforts of the county's meth task force - finally. "Now the efforts we do locally will mean even more," said District Attorney Ed Caleb, who has called meth the "most serious law enforcement problem in Klamath County." The task force, headed by Caleb, has worked in recent years to educate businesses about drug testing and has developed educational projects in local schools, among other efforts. But legislation restricting international drug cartels who bring in meth gets to the heart of the problem, Caleb said. The U.S. Senate passed the legislation Thursday as part of a bill reauthorizing the USA Patriot Act. The House is expected to pass the Patriot Act next week and send it to President Bush. Bush has promised to sign it by March 10. The law, co-sponsored by Sen. Jim Talent, R-Mo., and Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., would limit access to cold pills like Sudafed that contain pseudoephedrine. The Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act will impose nationwide controls on cold remedies that contain pseudoephedrine, meth's essential ingredient, and dramatically expand U.S. authority over global trade in the chemicals. Under the bill, consumers would be limited to 3.6 grams, or about 120 cold pills, per day, and 9 grams, or about 300 pills, per month. Buyers would need to show photo identification and sign a logbook. Oregon and other states have already passed laws limiting access to common cold medicine, and the number of labs seized by police in those has declined. But when local labs close, production is often filled by Mexican drug cartels that ship the drug into the United States. Rick Doan, supervisor of the Klamath Interagency Narcotics Team, said the restrictions on other states will deter the county's drug users who often go to different states to purchase pseudoephedrine products. "With those people being more restricted will help Oregon because they can't go shopping next door to Washington or California," Doan said. More than 75 percent of Klamath County's drug cases are meth-related and more than 50 percent of the area's foster care cases involve the parents' use of meth, according to the county's task force's report released earlier this year. Language written by Rep. Darlene Hooley of Oregon will allow the Drug Enforcement Administration to demand sales records from foreign manufacturers, to help track the destination of ephedrine and pseudoephedrine shipments globally. Companies that refuse could lose the ability to sell their chemicals in the United States. Another section of the law would require the U.S. to set import quotas for ephedrine and pseudoephedrine based on legitimate need. "The big part of the bill, in my mind, is the international controls on pseudoephedrine," said Rob Bovett, executive director of the Oregon Narcotics Enforcement Association. "Because if the administration is not successful in getting voluntary compliance from China, India and Mexico to cut off the supply of pseudoephedrine feeding the superlabs, then we need to take strong action." - --- MAP posted-by: Beth Wehrman