Anti-Meth Measure in Patriot Act Deal (USA)

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/printstory.mpl/ap/politics/3651107

By ERICA WERNER Associated Press Writer
© 2006 The Associated Press

WASHINGTON — The Patriot Act compromise agreed to Friday included a provision to combat illegal methamphetamine by limiting sales of cold remedies used to make the highly addictive drug.

A number of states have already moved to curb the sale of cold pills containing pseudoephedrine, the ingredient used to cook meth in makeshift labs around the country. The federal measure would impose restrictions nationwide.

Stores would be required to keep medicines like Sudafed and Nyquil behind the counter, and consumers would be limited to 3.6 grams, or about 120 pills, per day, and 9 grams, or about 300 pills, per month. Purchasers would need to show a photo ID and sign a logbook.

The limits target meth dealers who buy large quantities of the drugs to extract the pseudoephedrine.

The measure is a compromise reached after months 'of haggling over the 30-day limit. Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., and Jim Talent, R-Mo., who pushed the legislation in the Senate, insisted the limit was needed.

They had sought various ways to get their legislation through Congress, finally attaching it to the Patriot Act, only to find their efforts frustrated when the bill stalled in December over concerns that civil liberties protections were being shortchanged.

On Friday, House Speaker Dennis Hastert agreed to a Patriot Act compromise reached between the White House and Senate Republicans, clearing the way for passage by both houses of Congress with the meth legislation included.

"With this agreement on the Patriot Act, Congress is but a step away from passing the most significant anti-meth bill in a decade," Feinstein said. "The heart of this legislation is a strong standard for keeping pseudoephedrine products out of the hands of meth cooks."

Many leading retailers _ including Kmart, Walgreens, Target and Wal-Mart _ have already adopted guidelines to limit customer access to cold products or to limit their sales. Some states that have passed their own laws, including Oklahoma and Oregon, have reported the number of meth labs plunging.

Under the legislation, stores with pharmacies would have to keep the medicine behind the pharmacy counter. Stores without pharmacies could sell cold medicines from a locked case behind a store counter if they gain approval from the Drug Enforcement Administration.

The measure would provide nearly $100 million a year for five years to train state and local law enforcement to nab meth offenders, would provide $40 million to help children affected by meth, and would enhance criminal penalties for meth production and trafficking.