STAND. COM. REP. NO.823
Honolulu, Hawaii
, 2001
RE: S.B. No. 1178
S.D. 2
Honorable Robert Bunda
President of the Senate
Twenty-First State Legislature
Regular Session of 2001
State of Hawaii
Sir:
Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred S.B. No. 1178, S.D. 1, entitled:
"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES,"
begs leave to report as follows:
The purpose of this measure is to amend Hawaii's Uniform Controlled Substances Act to conform to changes in federal and state laws.
Specifically, this measure:
(1) Adds new definitions of "controlled substance analogue" and "locum tenens practitioners";
(2) Allows the Department of Public Safety to automatically add, delete, or reschedule a substance as a controlled substance by rule;
(3) Makes additions to the detailed listing of substances;
(4) Modifies some of the schedule controlled substances to mirror the federal rules;
(5) Makes conforming amendments in the penalty section, and adds a new provision regarding fraudulent procurement of controlled substances; and
(6) Requires additional information, such as patient's address and date prescription was issued to be included in the electronic prescription accountability system.
Testimony in support of the measure was submitted by the Department of Public Safety.
Your Committee finds that these changes to the Uniform Controlled Substance Act are necessary to stay current on the many changes occurring around controlled substances. Adding a new definition of "controlled substance analogue" will prevent so-called "street chemists" from creating a drug with similar effects to a listed substance and circumventing the system and criminal penalties because the substitute is not regulated as a controlled substance.
Your Committee finds that many of these amendments, which the Department of Public Safety (Department) proposes annually, are necessary to conform to the federal drug schedule or requirements of the Drug Enforcement Administration. Your Committee believes that since changes are made frequently to the federal drug schedules, the Department should be able to amend these schedules by rule instead of coming to the legislature yearly.
Your Committee further finds that the changes in penalties are necessary due to an increase in the amount of clandestine laboratory cases where suspects fraudulently obtain regulated chemicals to manufacture crystal methamphetamine utilizing fraudulent identifications, general excise tax numbers, or by giving fraudulent information to purchase the regulated chemicals from licensed chemical distribution houses.
Your Committee believes that additional information for the electronic prescription accountability system is necessary to verify when the prescription was issued against when the prescription was filled.
Your Committee has amended the measure by inserting existing statutory language that was inadvertently deleted.
As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1178, S.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 1178, S.D. 2.
Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Judiciary,
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____________________________ BRIAN KANNO, Chair |
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