SENATE
HOUSE
JOINT
BILL STATUS
STATE LAW
REPORTS
EDUCATIONAL
CONTACT
home
home
Introduced Version House Bill 4524 History

   |  Email
Key: Green = existing Code. Red = new code to be enacted
ole.gif

H. B. 4524

 

         (By Delegates Skaff, Eldridge, Reynolds,

          Staggers, Campbell, Ireland, Miller, Craig,

                   Morgan and Arvon)

         [Introduced February 13, 2014; referred to the

Committee on Health and Human Resources then the Judiciary.]

 

A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new article, designated §15-14-1 and §15-14-2; and to amend said code by adding thereto two new sections, designated §60A-10-5a and §60A-10-5b, all relating to stopping the sale of ephedrine, pseudoephedrine and phenylpropanolamine for illicit purposes; creating within the State Police a methamphetamine registry; requiring the Superintendent of the State Police to propose rules relating to the methamphetamine registry; restricting the sale of ephedrine, pseudoephedrine or phenylpropanolamine to individuals on the registry; and defining and creating a penalty for smurfing.

Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:

    That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended by adding thereto a new article, designated §15-14-1 and §15-14-2; and that said code be amended by adding thereto two new sections, designated §60A-10-5a and §60A-10-5b, all to read as follows:

CHAPTER 15. PUBLIC SAFETY.

ARTICLE 14. REGISTRY OF CONVICTIONS FOR METHAMPHETAMINE OFFENSES.

§15-14-1. Registry of convictions for methamphetamine offenses; required information; procedures.

    (a) There is created within the Criminal Identification Bureau of the West Virginia State Police a methamphetamine registry of persons convicted of a violation of either of the following provisions of this code:

    (1) Section four hundred eleven, article four, chapter sixty-a; and

    (2) Section four, article ten, chapter sixty-a of this code.

    (b) The registry shall consist of the person’s name, date of birth, offense or offenses requiring the person’s inclusion on the registry, the conviction date and county of those offenses, and any other available information the bureau deems important. Under no circumstance may the registry make available to the public the person's social security number, driver’s license number, or any other state or federal identification number.

§15-14-2. Reports of certain convictions by prosecuting attorneys; providing website information; superintendent to propose rules.

    (a) A prosecuting attorney, upon conviction of a person for violating the provisions of section four hundred eleven, article four, chapter sixty-a of this code or section four, article ten, chapter sixty-a of this code, shall report the conviction to the registry, provided in a form furnished by the bureau for registry purposes. Reporting procedures and the process for removal from the registry after ten years shall be developed by the bureau in conjunction with the West Virginia Prosecuting Attorneys Institute and the Administrator of the Supreme Court of Appeals.

    (b) Information relating to convictions prior to the effective date of this section shall, to the extent feasible and practicable, be placed on the registry.

    (c) The registry shall be accessible through a website maintained under the direction of the State Police.

    (d) The Superintendent of the State Police shall propose legislative rules in accordance with the provisions of article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code designed to implement the provisions of this article.

CHAPTER 60A. UNIFORM CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES ACT.

ARTICLE 10. METHAMPHETAMINE LABORATORY ERADICATION ACT.

§60A-10-5a. Restrictions on the sale to individuals on the registry.

    (a) Before completing a sale of a product containing ephedrine, pseudoephedrine or phenylpropanolamine, an owner or employee of a pharmacy or retail establishment shall, use the driver’s license or a valid government-issued photo identification showing the date of birth of the person attempting to purchase the product to electronically submit information on the person to the National Precursor Log Exchange. The National Precursor Log Exchange shall in real-time electronically consult the Methamphetamine Registry information, as supplied by the State Police, and established under section one, article fourteen, chapter fifteen of this code.

    (b) If the person is listed on the Methamphetamine Registry, the National Precursor Log Exchange shall alert the owner or employee processing the transaction to not sell to that person.

    (c) If a pharmacy or retail establishment selling a nonprescription product containing ephedrine, pseudoephedrine or phenylpropanolamine experiences mechanical or electronic failure and is unable to comply with this requirement, the pharmacy or retail establishment shall follow the same procedure it uses if the MSRTTS would fail.

§60A-10-5b. Penalties for smurfing.

    (a) It is unlawful for any person to knowingly sell, transfer, distribute or dispense any product containing ephedrine, pseudoephedrine or phenylpropanolamine, or their salts, isomers or salts of isomers, if the person knows that the purchaser will use the product as a precursor to manufacture methamphetamine or another controlled illegal substance or if the person sells, transfers, distributes or dispenses the product with reckless disregard as to how the product will be used (smurfing).

    (b) A violation of this section is a felony punishable by imprisonment for a term of not more than ten years.

    (c) Any person who sells, transfers, distributes or dispenses any product containing ephedrine, pseudoephedrine or phenylpropanolamine, or their salts, isomers or salts of isomers, in a negligent manner, with knowledge or reason to know that the product will be used as a precursor to manufacture methamphetamine or another controlled illegal substance, or with reckless disregard as to how the product will be used, is liable for all damages, whether directly or indirectly caused by the sale, transfer, distribution, dispensation or furnishing of the product.

    (1) Damages may include, but are not limited to, any costs of detecting, investigating and cleaning up or remediating clandestine or other unlawfully operated or maintained laboratories where controlled dangerous substances are manufactured, any costs of prosecuting criminal cases arising from such manufacture, and any consequential and punitive damages otherwise allowed by law.

    (2) A civil action to recover damages against persons, corporations or other entities violating this subsection may be brought only by the Attorney General, the Superintendent of the West Virginia State Police or by any district attorney in whose jurisdiction a person may be shown to have committed a violation of this subsection. Any funds recovered from an action shall be used for payment or reimbursement of costs arising from investigating or prosecuting criminal or civil cases involving the manufacture of controlled dangerous substances, for drug education programs or for payment or reimbursement of remediating contaminated methamphetamine laboratory sites.




    NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to create within the State Police the Methamphetamine Registry to track those caught purchasing ephedrine, pseudoephedrine or phenylpropanolamine for illicit purposes, and to create a penalty for “smurfing” ephedrine, pseudoephedrine or phenylpropanolamine in behalf of methamphetamine producers.


     The language in this bill is new; therefore, it is completely underscored.

This Web site is maintained by the West Virginia Legislature's Office of Reference & Information.  |  Terms of Use  |   Email WebmasterWebmaster   |   © 2024 West Virginia Legislature **


X

Print On Demand

Name:
Email:
Phone:

Print