H. B. 4525


(By Delegates Spencer, Caputo, Longstreth,
Trump, Hatfield and Palumbo)
[Introduced February 13, 2006; referred to the
Committee on the Judiciary then Finance.]



A BILL to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by adding thereto a new article, designated §60A-10-1, §60A-10-2, §60A-10-3 and §60A-10-4, all relating to creation of the West Virginia Meth Free Act; setting forth findings and a purpose; providing a short title; regulating the sale of precursor products to the manufacture of methamphetamine; providing a criminal penalty for persons who intentionally violate a provision of section two of the article; requiring the State Police to maintain a registry of names of those convicted of crimes related to methamphetamine production or distribution; and, requiring the circuit clerks to provide abstracts of judgment to the State Police that reflect criminal convictions of persons relative to methamphetamine production or distribution.

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 §60A-10-1, §60A-10-2, §60A-10-3 and §60A-10-4 , all to read as follows:
ARTICLE 9. WEST VIRGINIA METH FREE ACT.
§60A-10-1. Findings and purpose.
The Legislature finds as follows:
(a) The clandestine manufacture of the illegal drug methamphetamine is a clear and present danger to the health and well-being of the citizens of this state.
(b) Methamphetamine is routinely manufactured in clandestine laboratories that are found across the entirety of this state, pervasively invading the entirety of the socio-economic strata of the citizenry of this state.
(c) These clandestine laboratories pose a clear and present danger to the health and well-being of many of our citizens. The operators of these laboratories are often armed while being involved in the corrupt practice of distributing methamphetamine. Further, the chemicals used in the production of methamphetamine when combined in the manufacturing process are extremely volatile and present the lethal danger of explosion and fire hazard. Frequently, toddler and infant children are on the premises of these clandestine methamphetamine laboratories and are therefore exposed to the gravest of danger.
(d) Methamphetamine laboratories pose a potentially lethal environmental hazard due to the unregulated and illegal use of harmful chemicals involved in the production of methamphetamine; and
(e) The Legislature desires to coordinate efforts with law enforcement, the health care industry, community agencies and other interested stakeholders to develop a comprehensive strategy including treatment and public awareness for addressing methamphetamine abuse.
§60A-10-2. Short title.
This article shall be known and cited as the "Meth-Free Act of 2006".
§60A-10-3. Access to precursor substances; penalty for violators.
(a) Except as provided in this section, any product that contains any immediate methamphetamine precursor may be dispensed only by a licensed pharmacy.
(b) A product or category of products that contain any immediate methamphetamine precursor shall be exempt from the requirements of this section if the ingredients are not in a form that can be used in the manufacture of methamphetamine. The Bureau for Public Health, in consultation with the State Police shall determine whether a product or category of products that contain any immediate methamphetamine precursor is not in a form that can be used in the manufacture of methamphetamine. In making the determination, the bureau shall solicit the written opinion of the West Virginia Board of Pharmacy and work with the Board of Pharmacy to develop procedures that consider, among other factors:
(1) Ease with which the product can be converted to methamphetamine, including the presence or absence of a molecular lock completely preventing a product's use in methamphetamine manufacture;
(2) Ease with which pseudoephedrine can be extracted from a product and whether it forms a salt, emulsion, or other form;
(3) Any other pertinent data that can be used to determine the risk of a product being a viable component in the manufacture of methamphetamine.
(c) The Bureau of Public Health shall maintain a public list of exempted products. Any person may request that a product be included on the exemption list. The list must include products in the form of gel capsules and liquid preparations that contain any immediate methamphetamine precursor. The term "gel capsule" means any soft gelatin liquid-filled capsule that contains a liquid suspension which in the case of pseudoephedrine, is suspended in a matrix of glycerin, polyethelyne glycol, and propylene glycol, along with other liquid substances.
(d) A pharmacy may not sell to any one person at one time more than three individual packages of any nonexempt product containing any immediate methamphetamine precursor, nor may it sell to any one person any combination of products containing more than nine grams of ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, or their salts, isomers, or salts of isomers, during the same thirty-day period. The nine gram limit applies to the total amount of base ephedrine and pseudoephedrine contained in the products, and not the overall weight of the products. The prohibition contained in this section does not apply to any person who obtains the product pursuant to a valid prescription.
(e) Any sale of a product containing any immediate methamphetamine precursor by a pharmacy requires the person purchasing the product to produce for inspection a valid government-issued identification. The pharmacy shall maintain an electronic record of the sale. The record shall include the name of the purchaser, the name and quantity of the product purchased, the date of purchase, the purchaser identification type and number and the identity of the dispensing pharmacist.
(f) Nonexempt products containing an immediate methamphetamine precursor shall be maintained behind the counter of the pharmacy or in a locked case within view of and within twenty-five feet of the counter.
(g) Any person who intentionally violates any provision of this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not more than five hundred dollars.
§60A-10-4. State Police to maintain registry of names of persons convicted of methamphetamine manufacture.

(a) The Criminal Identification Division of the State Police shall maintain a registry containing the names of persons convicted under the provisions of section four hundred eleven, article four, chapter sixty-a of this code and under the provisions of article ten, chapter sixty-a of this code. The registry shall be maintained by the Criminal Identification Division and made available for public inquiry on the Internet. The registry shall consist of the person's name, date of birth, the offenses for which he or she was convicted requiring their inclusion on the registry and any other identifying information considered necessary to properly identify the person: Provided, That, in no event, may the information include a person's social security number.
(b) The circuit clerks throughout the state shall forward certified copies of abstracts of judgment containing any criminal convictions had under the provisions of section four hundred eleven, article four, chapter sixty-a of this code or under article ten, chapter sixty-a of this code to the Criminal Identification Division of the State Police within forty-five days of the order of conviction.


NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to create the West Virginia Meth Free Act. The bill sets forth findings and a purpose while providing a short title. It includes provisions regulating the sale of precursor products to the manufacture of methamphetamine by pharmacies which, in part include keeping electronic records of all purchases of precursor products. The bill provides a criminal penalty for persons who intentionally violate any provisions concerning the regulation of sales of precursor products by pharmacies. Finally, it requires the State Police to maintain a registry of names of those convicted of crimes related to methamphetamine production or distribution while requiring the circuit clerks to provide abstracts of judgment to the State Police that reflect criminal convictions of persons for methamphetamine production or distribution.

This article is new; therefore, strike-throughs and underscoring have been omitted.