Bush signs Blunt’s anti-meth report

The Combat Meth Act is intended to strengthen criminal penalties, enhance the regulation of meth byproducts and regulate the sale of meth ingredients.

“Meth is wrecking lives and ripping families and communities apart,” Blunt said in a news release. “More than half of all crimes in my district are directly or indirectly related to meth, according to southwest Missouri prosecutors.”

Provisions of the report include:

• The restriction of the sale of medicines containing meth ingredients, such as pseudoephedrine, ephedrine and phenylpropanolamine, by placing them behind the counter, requiring purchases to show identification and sign a logbook and limiting individual purchases to 9 grams a month and 3.6 grams a day;

• The creation of the Scheduled Listed Chemicals Section in the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Controlled Substances Act to impose tougher penalties for meth cooks while allowing legitimate consumers to access the medicines they need;

• Providing an additional $99 million per year for the next five years to local law enforcement and governments under the Meth Hot Spots program for training in investigation and lock-up methods and for personnel and equipment;

• The enhancement of international enforcement against meth trafficking, requiring new reporting and certification procedures for exporting and importing meth ingredients;

• Providing $20 million in grant funding this year and in 2007 for Drug Endangered Children rapid response teams;

• The enhancement of environmental regulation of meth byproducts, requiring reports to Congress of hazardous materials and waste; and

• Providing tools to more effectively prosecute meth cooks and traffickers.[[In-content Ad]]