Pubdate: Sat, 26 Feb 2005
Source: Sand Mountain Reporter, The (Albertsville, AL)
Copyright: 2005 Sand Mountain Reporter.
Contact:  http://www.sandmountainreporter.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1713
Author: Steven Stiefel
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/meth.htm (Methamphetamine)

MCDANIEL LEADS DRIVE TO CONTROL EPHEDRINE USE

The battle against methamphetamine is not only waged in the streets and
forests but also in Montgomery, where two pieces of legislation stand to hit
meth cooks hard.

State Rep. Frank McDaniel, D-Albertville, said two other bills resemble his
legislation to control the sale of products containing ephedrine, the key
ingredient in crystal meth, but he serves as the House spokesperson for the
initiative, paired with Pro Tem Lowell Barron, D-Fyffe, in the senate.

"(Barron) and I have both been strong supporters of business in the past,
but we are determined to control the ingredients used to make meth,"
McDaniel said.

Specifically, his bill would require stores to sell ephedrine products
behind a counter not accessible by the public, limit purchases to no more
than three packages of ephedrine product within a 30-day period and require
customers to show photo identification and sign for the purchase.

McDaniel said he met Tuesday with Alabama Attorney General Troy King.

Also at the meeting were representatives of the state district attorneys
association, Alabama retailers, the pharmaceutical industry and convenience
store owners.

"It was a good meeting," McDaniel said. "Boaz Police Chief Terry Davis was
there, along with a couple of representatives of Marshall County's drug
enforcement unit. The attorney general is very committed to seeing something
done also."

Another bill deals with the high cost of dealing with meth lab cleanups,
shifting the cost from taxpayers to those responsible for turning a site
into a meth lab. Because toxic, possibly explosive chemicals are used to
make the drug, special teams are required to handle such cleanups. 
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