Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions

Floor Speech

STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS -- (Senate - May 03, 2007)

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Mr. GRASSLEY. Mr. President, I am pleased to join my colleague, Senator DURBIN, in introducing the Methamphetamine Production Prevention Act of 2007. Together we offer this important legislation in an effort to strengthen existing law by providing some necessary changes and updates.

During my time in the Senate, I have come to the floor many times to speak about methamphetamine and how it has destroyed individuals, families, and
communities across the country. The Midwest was hit especially hard by meth and the impacts of this drug were devastating to rural areas. As opposed to other illegal drugs, meth is often times home cooked and made in rural areas using ingredients that are largely available over the counter. I am proud to say that Congress has taken action to attack this problem head on by working to cut off access to these over the counter products that form the basis of the drug.

Legislation such as the Combat Methamphetamine Act of 2005, Combat Meth Act of 2005, which was included into the USA Patriot Act Reauthorization in 2005 immediately impacted the production of home cooked meth. Just a week ago when I joined with Senator FEINSTEIN in introducing two other separate bills, the Saving Kids from Dangerous Drugs Act and the Drug Endangered Children Act, I noted that because of the efforts of Congress in passing the Combat Meth Act, the number of clandestine meth lab seizures has dropped across the country.

The Combat Meth Act was a tremendous step in the right direction limiting access to psuedoephedrine, PSE, the main ingredient in methamphetamine. The Combat Meth Act required this product to be removed from store shelves and placed behind the counter at pharmacies across the country. It also limited the number of products containing PSE a person could buy at once. Further, it required a logbook system be kept by pharmacies containing information regarding the individuals that purchased products containing PSE.

Despite these successes, ever determined meth cooks and users have learned how to game this system and continue to produce home grown meth.

The preferred method of these meth cooks is to ``smurf'' between different pharmacies for PSE products. Smurfing occurs when a person visits a number of different locations buying the legal maximum amount of PSE product at each site. The result is an amount of PSE sufficient to produce home cooked meth. Smurfing occurs because the Combat Meth Act only required that retailers keep a logbook which could be kept on paper or electronically. It did not require interoperability or electronic transmission of data. As a result, these unscrupulous individuals have learned that if they provide false information or visit multiple stores, tracking and arresting these individuals is more difficult and time consuming for law enforcement. This is especially true in metropolitan communities that share a common border, one such example is the Quad Cities on the Iowa/Illinois border.

Recently, the Quad City Times highlighted the successes of the Combat Meth Act in an article titled, The Next Step in Meth War. This article detailed the efforts of a Scott County Deputy and his dedication in fighting the meth war. One noteworthy portion of this article raised a question about the lengths that were required for this deputy to do his job in combating mom and pop meth labs. The article stated, ``Now we're stuck with this image of a detective in each Iowa county sorting through thousands of paper forms.'' It read further, ``He must call county to county to find out if those purchasing the limit in Scott County might be doing so elsewhere as well.'' This statement gets right to the heart of our bill. We can't effectively combat meth if we don't close the smurfing loophole.

To address this loophole, Senator DURBIN and I have introduced the Methamphetamine Production Prevention Act of 2007. This legislation would revise the technical requirements of the Combat Meth Act to allow for electronic logbook systems. The bill would also create a Federal grant program for states looking to create or enhance existing electronic logbook systems. Finally, this bill would prioritize these Federal grants to states that design and implement the most effective systems for sharing information via an electronic logbook system.

This legislation will take a big step forward in closing this loophole that home grown meth cooks abuse. Additionally, it does so without creating burdensome mandates upon states to meet requirements. This bill facilitates innovation and growth by offering financial assistance to states looking to create an electronic logbook system. By avoiding mandates, this legislation seeks to promote innovation and growth of electronic logbook systems.

This bill has broad support from the law enforcement community and has been endorsed by the National Sheriffs' Association, the National Narcotics Officers' Associations' Coalition, National Alliance of State Drug Enforcement Agencies, the National Criminal Justice Association, the National Troopers Coalition, the National District Attorneys Association, the National Association of Counties, and the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America among others.

As you can see, this legislation has a broad base of support. Working together, state and local governments can use this legislation and grant program to create interoperable networks that will reduce the illegal smurfing of PSE products and lead us to the goal of ending domestic production of meth. I urge my colleagues, join us in support of this important legislation and pass the Methamphetamine Production Prevention Act of 2007 and help wipe out domestic production of meth.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the aforementioned article be printed in the RECORD.

There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:

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