03/14/2011 01:30 PM Senate JUDICIARY
| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| SB9 | |
| State of Litigation: Criminal Division, Department of Law (dol) | |
| HB7 | |
| Adjourn |
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| + | HB 7 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| = | SB 9 | ||
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
SENATE JUDICIARY STANDING COMMITTEE
March 14, 2011
1:30 p.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Senator Hollis French, Chair
Senator Bill Wielechowski, Vice Chair
Senator Joe Paskvan
Senator Lesil McGuire
MEMBERS ABSENT
Senator John Coghill
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
SENATE BILL NO. 9
"An Act relating to compulsory school attendance; and relating
to the crime of contributing to the delinquency of a minor."
- MOVED SB 9 OUT OF COMMITTEE
STATE OF LITIGATION: CRIMINAL DIVISION, DEPARTMENT OF LAW
- HEARD
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 7(JUD)
"An Act classifying certain substances as schedule IIIA
controlled substances; and providing for an effective date."
- HEARD & HELD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
BILL: SB 9
SHORT TITLE: RAISE COMP. SCHOOL ATTENDANCE AGE/TRUANCY
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) DAVIS
01/19/11 (S) PREFILE RELEASED 1/7/11
01/19/11 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/19/11 (S) EDC, JUD, FIN
02/14/11 (S) EDC AT 8:00 AM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
02/14/11 (S) Heard & Held
02/14/11 (S) MINUTE(EDC)
02/21/11 (S) EDC RPT 3DP
02/21/11 (S) DP: THOMAS, MEYER, STEVENS
02/21/11 (S) EDC AT 8:00 AM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
02/21/11 (S) Moved SB 9 Out of Committee
02/21/11 (S) MINUTE(EDC)
03/11/11 (S) JUD AT 1:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
03/11/11 (S) Heard & Held
03/11/11 (S) MINUTE(JUD)
03/14/11 (S) JUD AT 1:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
BILL: HB 7
SHORT TITLE: SYNTHETIC CANNABINOIDS
SPONSOR(s): REPRESENTATIVE(s) MUNOZ, HERRON, KERTTULA, GATTO,
LYNN, PRUITT
01/18/11 (H) PREFILE RELEASED 1/7/11
01/18/11 (H) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
01/18/11 (H) JUD, FIN
02/04/11 (H) JUD AT 1:00 PM CAPITOL 120
02/04/11 (H) Heard & Held
02/04/11 (H) MINUTE(JUD)
02/11/11 (H) JUD AT 1:00 PM CAPITOL 120
02/11/11 (H) Moved CSHB 7(JUD) Out of Committee
02/11/11 (H) MINUTE(JUD)
02/14/11 (H) JUD RPT CS(JUD) NT 6DP
02/14/11 (H) DP: LYNN, GRUENBERG, KELLER, THOMPSON,
HOLMES, GATTO
02/22/11 (H) FIN AT 1:30 PM HOUSE FINANCE 519
02/22/11 (H) Heard & Held
02/22/11 (H) MINUTE(FIN)
02/24/11 (H) FIN AT 1:30 PM HOUSE FINANCE 519
02/24/11 (H) Moved CSHB 7(JUD) Out of Committee
02/24/11 (H) MINUTE(FIN)
02/25/11 (H) FIN RPT CS(JUD) NT 7DP 1NR 1AM
02/25/11 (H) DP: T.WILSON, JOULE, GARA, COSTELLO,
FAIRCLOUGH, STOLTZE, THOMAS
02/25/11 (H) NR: DOOGAN
02/25/11 (H) AM: GUTTENBERG
02/28/11 (H) TRANSMITTED TO (S)
02/28/11 (H) VERSION: CSHB 7(JUD)
03/01/11 (S) READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS
03/01/11 (S) JUD, FIN
03/14/11 (S) JUD AT 1:30 PM BELTZ 105 (TSBldg)
WITNESS REGISTER
RICK SVOBODNY, Deputy Attorney General
Criminal Division
Department of Law
Juneau, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Delivered an update on the state of
litigation.
KENDRA KLOSTER Staff to Representative Cathy Munoz
Alaska State Legislature
Juneau, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Introduced HB 7 on behalf of the sponsor.
KATE BURKHART, Executive Director
Advisory Board on Alcohol Abuse and Drug Abuse (ABADA)
Juneau, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in strong support of HB 7.
STEVEN STUBER, representing himself
Kenai, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to HB 7.
ANNE CARPENETI, Assistant Attorney General
Criminal Division
Department of Law
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided information related to HB 7.
JERRY LUCKHAUPT, Assistant Revisor of Statutes
Legislative Legal Services
Legislative Affairs Agency
Juneau, AK
POSITION STATEMENT: Provided information on HB 7 as drafter.
ACTION NARRATIVE
1:30:47 PM
CHAIR HOLLIS FRENCH called the Senate Judiciary Standing
Committee meeting to order at 1:30 p.m. Senators Paskvan,
Wielechowski, and French were present at the call to order.
SB 9-RAISE COMP. SCHOOL ATTENDANCE AGE/TRUANCY
1:33:42 PM
CHAIR FRENCH announced the consideration of SB 9 and noted that
the bill was heard previously and public testimony was taken.
Finding no amendments, comments, or discussion, he solicited a
motion.
1:34:09 PM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI moved to report SB 9 from committee with
individual recommendations and attached fiscal note(s). There
being no objection, SB 9 moved from the Senate Judiciary
Standing Committee.
At ease from 1:34 p.m. to 1:35 p.m.
^State of Litigation: Criminal Division, Department of Law (DOL)
1:35:32 PM
CHAIR FRENCH announced the next order of business would be an
update by the Department of Law (DOL) on litigation of
legislation that passed last year.
1:36:27 PM
RICK SVOBODNY, Deputy Attorney General, Criminal Division,
Department of Law (DOL), stated that the three pieces of
substantial legislation that passed last year were the Bail
Bill, SB 222 dealing with sexual assault and domestic violence,
and the very complicated post conviction relief DNA bill. He
noted that the state has been sued on the first two, but not
Senator French's DNA bill.
He reminded the committee that last year the Legislature did the
first comprehensive review of the bail statutes since 1966.
While some major changes were made, about half the provisions
were not changed because they were working. For the most part,
he said, that bill is working as envisioned. He cited a recent
case in Wrangell of sexual assault in the second degree. The
defendant was entitled to bail, but he didn't meet his burden of
proof as to whether he was a flight risk or a danger and he was
remanded to custody.
1:40:13 PM
MR. SVOBODNY told the committee that the day before the Bail
Bill was to become effective the ACLU of Alaska sued the state
and asked for injunctive relief on behalf of the Alaska
Association of Defense Attorneys (AADA) and three particular
defense attorneys. The plaintiffs asserted that 13 portions of
the bill were unconstitutional. The majority of those provisions
related to specific conditions of bail that the Legislature said
a trial judge could impose, some of which were existing law.
CHAIR FRENCH commented that the suit was a broadside attack on
the bail statute as it stood and it also branched off to attack
some of the provisions that were recently passed.
MR. SVOBODNY agreed. What changed was that the window for
setting bail was expanded from 24 hours to 48 hours. The
plaintiffs alleged that that provision was unconstitutional and
asked for injunctive relief. This was in spite of that fact that
neither the Alaska Constitution nor the U.S. Constitution have a
time element, and that the U.S. Supreme Court had previously
ruled that 72 hours was the outside limit for setting bail. They
also asked for injunctive relief on a provision that precluded a
defendant in a domestic violence case from returning to the home
of the victim for a period of 20 days. Following the cooling off
period, additional criteria must be met. Judge Michalski heard
the application for injunctive relief and only granted the
request dealing with domestic violence because he thought those
conditions were very close to what the Legislature had done in
1996 or 1997 when it passed the first protective order. While
the judge did not grant the relief that the defense asked, which
was to enjoin the executive branch, he did enjoin the superior
court judges from imposing the condition the way the Legislature
intended. Judge Michalski said that as a matter of law a judge
has to use discretion with regard to the 20-day cooling down
period.
1:44:43 PM
SENATOR MCGUIRE joined the committee.
MR. SVOBODNY continued to explain that when judges were enjoined
from enforcing that domestic violence provision, both the state
and the ACLU petitioned the Alaska Supreme Court to take up the
matter. In a 2:2 decision the court decided not to review the
case and remanded it to the trial court. It is there today. The
state has asked Judge Michalski to dismiss the case and oral
argument on the dismissal is scheduled for March 18, 2011. The
state's position is that these lawyers lack standing because
they have no clients that were damaged and there is no case in
controversy. The fact that the court didn't accept the petition
for both sides suggests that Judge Michalski may revisit those
issues. He noted that in a recent decision in Togiak the court
said it gives great deference to what the Legislature has done
and that there ought to be a case in controversy before talking
about declaring a statute passed by the Legislature
unconstitutional.
1:48:04 PM
CHAIR FRENCH asked for confirmation that the burden-shifting
aspect of the Bail Bill was challenged as well, but there was no
injunction.
MR. SVOBODNY said yes and that's an issue in a pending case in
Palmer. The court has told the defendant that she has a right to
bail and that it's been set, but the burden is on her to show
why it should be changed. He noted that Judge Michalski did not
enjoin anybody about burden shifting.
CHAIR FRENCH found no further questions on the Bail Bill and
asked Mr. Svobodny to brief the committee on the book-sellers
issue.
1:49:05 PM
MR. SVOBODNY explained that the ACLU is also representing
several commercial entities, including Title Wave Books and the
Alaska Library Association, in a suit against the state as a
result of the passage of SB 222. The ACLU said that both the
changes that the legislation made to the statute and the
existing provisions were unconstitutional. The case was filed in
federal court and the district court judge enjoined the state
from prosecuting cases under the new provisions in AS 11.61.128
and the preexisting provisions of the law.
He reminded the committee that AS 11.61.128 previously said it
was a crime to electronically distribute indecent material to
somebody who was under age 16 or to somebody the offender
thought was under age 16. Last year the Legislature said if it's
against the law to distribute indecent material by computer, it
should also be against the law to hand it to someone under age
16. During the committee process the ACLU suggested several
changes in the law that the Legislature accepted. The
booksellers' complaint is that a company like Amazon does not
know that it is distributing to somebody under age 16 and it
probably doesn't know the content of the material that it is
distributing. The state's point is that under Alaska law you
must knowingly distribute and at least be reckless as to whether
the recipient is under age 18. The state attempted to find
acceptable language to take to the Legislature and the case was
put on hold in the federal district court. That time limit is
about up and there are cross motions for summary judgment. The
court will probably send that on for oral argument very soon, he
stated.
1:54:25 PM
CHAIR FRENCH summarized that Judge Beistline issued the stay and
it continued during negotiations, but agreement wasn't reached
so arguments before Judge Beistline will begin shortly.
MR. SVOBODNY agreed and added that Judge Beistline made a
sweeping order and then clarified that investigations could be
done, but no prosecutions.
CHAIR FRENCH thanked Mr. Svobodny for the update.
HB 7-SYNTHETIC CANNABINOIDS
1:55:14 PM
CHAIR FRENCH announced the consideration of HB 7. [CSHB 7(JUD)
was before the committee.] He asked the sponsor's representative
how this differs from the companion bill
1:55:33 PM
KENDRA KLOSTER, staff to Representative Cathy Munoz, sponsor of
HB 7, explained that the bill schedules 10 different chemicals
that are known as synthetic cannabinoids. Use of these chemicals
can cause hallucinations, panic attacks, and death. She noted
that one death occurred in the Anchorage area and most recently
an 18 year-old in Iowa had a severe reaction to one of these
chemicals and he died.
SB 7 classifies these 10 synthetic cannabinoids as a schedule
III controlled substance. The Department of Law and Legislative
Legal Services both agree that this is the appropriate
classification. She noted that on March 1, 2011 the Drug
Enforcement Administration (DEA) classified five of these
chemicals as a schedule I controlled substance.
CHAIR FRENCH asked what a schedule I classification means from
the DEA perspective.
MS. KLOSTER replied that classification applies to the most
dangerous drugs that have no medical purpose. This is a
temporary classification while further research is done, but the
DEA felt that immediate action was warranted because of
burgeoning use.
CHAIR FRENCH asked if the DEA classification essentially
criminalizes these chemicals without congressional action.
1:57:56 PM
MS. KLOSTER responded that the five chemicals that were
classified are now illegal to sell and possess. This action is
authorized under the Controlled Substance Act, primarily because
of imminent danger to the public. She noted that the Anchorage
Assembly passed an ordinance on this and the City and Borough of
Juneau Assembly is considering one.
CHAIR FRENCH clarified that the CBJ passed the ordinance. He
added that he'll talk with the sponsor, but the committee is
focused on setting the penalty levels so that they stop the
behavior without needlessly making a lot more criminals.
MS. KLOSTER commented on how difficult it is to detect these
chemicals.
CHAIR FRENCH said the committee heard from Orin Dym who said
it's possible to detect them, but the test is expensive.
2:00:14 PM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI reviewed the language in Section 1 and
asked for an explanation of salts, isomers, and salts of
isomers.
MS. KLOSTER explained that with a salt a hydrogen atom has been
removed, but it's basically the same product. With an isomer the
atoms have been rearranged and it's theoretically a different
substance, but the molecular structure is the same. She added
that similar language is used for schedule II drugs and this is
an update to ensure that similar products are captured.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if this might ban common household
items.
MS. KLOSTER answered no.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if someone who possessed a teaspoon
of the substance would be convicted under the bill since it says
any quantity.
MS. KLOSTER explained that it would be a class A misdemeanor to
possess three grams or less of a schedule III drug. Possession
of over three grams would be a felony.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI said his understanding is that this
substance is typically sold in three-ounce packages.
MS. KLOSTER clarified that large amounts can be purchased and
then broken into small portions, but an Internet purchase is
generally a three-gram package.
CHAIR FRENCH directed attention to the handout showing an
Internet solicitation for real K2 incense and the first size
option is a three-gram packet.
SENATOR PASKVAN reviewed the explanation of salts and isomers
and questioned why these synthetic cannabinoids should be
classified differently than marijuana.
MS. KLOSTER replied they're trying to mimic the effects of THC
but these chemicals are more potent and hallucinogenic than
marijuana. That's why the DEA classified these as a schedule I
controlled substance and other states consider them a
hallucinogen, she stated.
2:04:48 PM
SENATOR PASKVAN asked if someone will testify to that because
the same argument was used on marijuana 40 years ago.
MS. KLOSTER said there is testimony in the packet from
individuals who have tried it.
CHAIR FRENCH pointed out that a young person from Juneau
testified that he tried it and had a very bad experience.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if anyone has died from using
marijuana.
MS. KLOSTER replied she isn't aware of anyone but this is a very
different and more dangerous product than marijuana.
2:06:27 PM
CHAIR FRENCH reiterated that the committee is looking at how it
can take this off the street without producing a lot more felons
that cost the state $50,000 a year to house.
SENATOR MCGUIRE said she is very hesitant to create more felons
and is inclined to make this a misdemeanor until the public is
better educated and understands synthetic cannabinoids.
2:15:26 PM
MS. KLOSTER said the intention of the sponsor is not to make a
bunch of kids felons but to remove this product from the shelves
and to bring awareness of how dangerous this really is.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if tobacco and alcohol should be
banned because they are the first and second leading cause of
death in the country.
MS. KLOSTER agreed that those are also harmful substances and
suggested that that's for another piece of legislation.
2:18:15 PM
SENATOR PASKVAN asked if the three-gram measurement is the inert
leaf or the unlawful substance.
MS. KLOSTER replied the leafy product with the chemical on it is
what would be measured, not just the chemical itself.
CHAIR FRENCH said that's his understanding as well.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if she had data on the number of
people who are in jail because of drug possession.
MS. KLOSTER said the information should be in the packets and
reminded the members that in drug cases the person may be in
jail for a number of reasons.
2:20:57 PM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI noted that the bill lists just 10 items are
he wondered if the Legislature will need to address this every
year as new chemical combinations are developed.
MS. KLOSTER said yes; the 10 chemicals that are listed are the
ones that other states and the DEA have outlawed, but the bill
can't prohibit similar compounds without being specific. As more
chemicals are banned we hope that retailers won't want to sell
them, she said.
CHAIR FRENCH reminded the committee that the drafter testified
that he drafted the bill to be as broad as possible.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if there would a grandfathering
accommodation for a person who purchased Spice when it was legal
and forgot about it, so they had it in their house when it was
illegal.
MS. KLOSTER replied once it's illegal it would be just like any
other drug and it would be illegal to possess.
2:24:33 PM
KATE BURKHART, Executive Director, Advisory Board on Alcohol
Abuse and Drug Abuse (ABADA), stated that she is not speaking
for the Department of Health and Social Services, but the record
should show that ABADA is in strong support of HB 7. She
expressed appreciation for the discussion on balancing the
significant health and safety risks with the necessary
consideration of the appropriate penalty. She explained that the
substances that are being regulated were developed in a lab
under a federal grant to do research on the effects of THC on
the brain, and were never intended for human use. These are
chemicals that were created in a lab and should therefore be
regulated at a higher level in the schedule than organic
products like marijuana or Salvia divinorum, she stated.
MS. BURKHART noted that previous testimony from the crime lab
indicated that three grams is equivalent to six to nine
cigarettes of the product, which makes the idea that amounts in
excess of that are for personal use somewhat specious. She added
that regardless of whether this product is regulated at the
statewide level, employers are seeking ways to test their
employees and several Alaska businesses have responded to the
market and now offer an effective test for $149. She thanked
both Representative Munoz and Senator Meyer for their attention
on this issue.
2:27:25 PM
SENATOR PASKVAN asked if Alaska can ban import of the product
into the state.
MS. BURKHART said if this bill passes it would be a state
offense once the product crosses the state line. It's already a
federal offense under the DEA's emergency scheduling, but that
federal regulation is only good for 12-18 months.
SENATOR PASKVAN asked if she believes that most teens believe
this is similar to marijuana.
MS. BURKHART replied that was a standard assumption when the
product first came on the market, but the word is getting around
that it's not like a marijuana high and the health consequences
are severe.
SENATOR PASKVAN asked if it wouldn't make more sense to ban the
importation and sale of the product in Alaska as opposed to
focusing on a teen who thinks it's similar to marijuana.
MS. BURKHART replied that's a reasonable consideration and the
committee can do that by focusing on what is reasonable for an
adolescent who thinks he or she should try it versus a business
that is profiting on misinformation about the product.
SENATOR PASKVAN asked if a distributor could be convicted if
importation were banned.
2:31:21 PM
MS. BURKHART deferred questions about investigation and
enforcement of a ban to law enforcement and the Department of
Law (DOL).
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if the product is expensive to
manufacture.
MS. BURKHART replied the research indicates that it's a
sophisticated process. Most of what comes to Alaska comes from
abroad, but it's readily and inexpensively available in the
state.
SENATOR MCGUIRE asked what she knows about the federal study to
mimic the affects of THC.
MS. BURKHART replied she understands that it was a National
Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) grant the purpose of which was to
determine the affects of THC on the brain. A synthetic was
created for the purposes of that research, which led to a host
of synthetic cannabinoids. The researcher has clearly stated
that the synthetic was never meant to be suitable for human
consumption.
SENATOR MCGUIRE asked what it was tested on and what they were
trying to understand about THC if they didn't use human
subjects.
MS. BURKHARDT said the information she read indicated that the
test subjects were primates.
CHAIR FRENCH commented that the DEA has taken emergency action
on this and he believes that there is no quicker way to end its
presence in Alaska than to have the FBI arrest and prosecute a
retailer in federal court.
SENATOR PASKVAN said he understands that she's saying that the
derivatives aren't suitable for human consumption, but he
suspects that the federal government also established that
marijuana wasn't suitable for human consumption. He would
therefore like to hear the broad spectrum differences between
marijuana and the synthetic cannabinoids. He reiterated that
he'd like to focus on the sellers, not the kids who are making a
poor decision to try the substance.
2:36:12 PM
STEVEN STUBER, representing himself, said he can't talk about
the affects [of synthetic cannabinoids] because he's never tried
it, but he is a shop owner who follows the law explicitly. As a
business owner who pays taxes, employs a number of Alaskans, and
pays them well, he expressed concern that the bill would make
him a felon overnight because of the immediate effective date.
This is neither constitutional nor fair, he stated. If due
notice were given he would obviously pull and dispose of the
product, but expecting him to flush $20,000 worth of product, as
has been suggested, is a financial hardship and unreasonable
since he is doing nothing illegal. The testimony today has been
very one-sided and there is an amazing amount of "the other side
of the story," he stated.
Mr. Stuber said that up to 85 percent of his customers are 40-55
year-old white males who work on the North Slope and are looking
for something that has an effect that is similar to marijuana.
Saying that this is a dangerous drug is sensationalist and
reminiscent of "Reefer Madness." He claimed that what he sells
isn't as dangerous as it's purported to be and suggested looking
at the statistics on how many children died in Alaska last year
in alcohol-related offenses. If this is so dissimilar to
marijuana, why do hundreds of my customers who are upstanding
citizens disagree, he questioned.
MR. STUBER reiterated that he is a responsible, upstanding
citizen who pays his taxes and he doesn't believe that it's
right that he or his employees could be felons tomorrow.
Reasonable notice to get the product off the shelf is only fair.
We will continue to comply with any law that's out there, he
stated. Kids shouldn't have this product and it shouldn't be
legal to sell it to anyone under age 19, but his customers are
not kids.
2:44:27 PM
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked how many customers he has and if he
is aware of any who have suffered adverse affects from this
substance.
MR. STUBER said he might have 1,000 customers and he sells about
$40,000 of this product each month. One customer claimed he had
an adverse reaction and didn't want to use the particular
product again, but that's the only one in $300,000 worth of
sales.
CHAIR FRENCH asked what deadline the DEA set for getting rid of
the material.
MR. STUBER replied the DEA banned five chemicals in November and
said it could register them within 30 days, but it didn't do so
until March. He wholesaled his inventory at less than cost and
complied two months ahead of time. Now everything he sells has a
DEA compliant sticker on it and he posts a DEA registered lab
report stating that his business is following the law.
CHAIR FRENCH said if the DEA order and this bill cover the same
materials.
MR. STUBER said yes.
SENATOR PASKVAN remarked that there could be 20 more
permutations out there.
CHAIR FRENCH asked Mr. Stuber if that's correct.
MR. STUBER said he believes that it would be closer to 100. He
opined that over the next several years this will likely be a
game of cat and mouse between the manufacturers and the
government as each chemical compound is altered infinitesimally.
This is the experience other states have had. He noted that this
law is better than almost any he's seen.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked if a better policy would be to enact
a very heavy tax on the substance.
MR. STUBER said absolutely, 100 percent.
CHAIR FRENCH pointed out that the packets contain information
from the DEA that states that the five banned substances have
the potential to be extremely harmful due to manufacturing
methods and high pharmacological potency but that the full
danger has not yet been determined with scientific certainty.
CHAIR FRENCH closed public testimony and said the committee
would hear invited testimony as necessary. He asked Ms.
Carpeneti to remind the committee of the possession limits for a
schedule III controlled substance.
2:51:05 PM
ANNE CARPENETI, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division,
Department of Law (DOL), stated that under AS 11.71.040 (a)(4),
it's a class C felony to possess any amount of a schedule IIIA,
IVA, VA, or VIA controlled substance on a school bus or close to
a school ground or youth center. AS 11.71.050 provides that
possession of less than 3 grams of a IIIA or IVA controlled
substance is a class A misdemeanor and possession of more than 3
grams is a class C felony.
CHAIR FRENCH asked if the amount is calculated by the weight of
the plant material upon which the drug is sprayed.
MS. CARPENETI said that's correct; it would be difficult to
remove the spray compound from the plant material. Discussion
from other committees has indicated that it would be a good idea
to consider that the plant material isn't dangerous or
controlled, just the spray compound.
CHAIR FRENCH observed that it would be a different category of
offense to possess a gram of the pure substance.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI commented that it's an interesting question
because the bulk of the substance isn't illegal but a person
would be charged based on that weight.
MS. CARPENETI said she understands the concern.
SENATOR WIELECHOWSKI asked for assurance that the language on
page 1, lines 5-10, wouldn't criminalize basic household
products.
MS. CARPENETI deferred to the drafter.
2:56:13 PM
CHAIR FRENCH reminded the committee that the drafter testified
previously that he structured the bill to be as broad as
possible without being overly broad. He asked Mr. Luckhaupt how
he balanced the need to give notice when the substance can
readily mutate.
JERRY LUCKHAUPT, Assistant Revisor of Statutes, Legislative
Legal Services, explained that he employed the same strategy as
with other controlled substances. He used the intra-language,
which is salts, isomers, or salts of isomers that is used for
other similar substances set out in statute. The federal
government uses the same language in classifying those
substances. The ten new substances that are listed in the bill
are what other states have already classified. Some of these
were created as a result of the study, but the others have been
around for some time. They're all synthetic THCs not synthetic
marijuana. Delta 9 THC is the active ingredient in marijuana and
that's currently a schedule III controlled substance. Marijuana
is defined to not include THC. The marijuana is weighed
separately and when the THC is refined, to make hashish for
example, it's a schedule III controlled substance. Currently
it's an unclassified penalty if the seller sells to someone who
is under age 19 and at least three years younger than the
seller.
3:01:13 PM
CHAIR FRENCH announced he would hold HB 7 in committee.
3:01:23 PM
There being no further business to come before the committee,
Chair French adjourned the meeting at 3:01 p.m.
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