Reis: Tougher Meth Legislation Signed Into LawNovember 17 , 2005
Olney…. State Representative David Reis (R-Ste. Marie) is pleased that legislation he helped sponsor that restricts the sale of cold medicines used to make methamphetamine by placing them behind pharmacy counters has been signed into law by the governor.
“Out-of-state meth users have been coming in to Illinois to take advantage of looser restrictions on pseudoephedrine” said Reis. “The only real solution was to get the one ingredient that is absolutely essential in making methamphetamine off the street and this legislation will do exactly that.”
Senate Bill 273 also requires people to show photo identification and sign a log book when purchasing any medicine containing pseudoephedrine. Customers would also be limited to purchasing two packages of cold medicine or 7,500 milligrams in a 30-day period. The proposal also requires buyers to be at least 18 years old.
Reis said he is sympathetic with the average consumer who uses these products and needs to purchase them. “But at the same time” he added “meth is wreaking havoc on our communities. Through this legislation the key ingredient will be kept behind the counter and sold in limited quantities by pharmacists only. Purchases will be kept track of so those manufacturing methamphetamine will no longer be able to shop from store to store until they have enough pseudoephedrine to make their drug. ”
Reis added that the legislation is a direct result of hearings held by House Republicans dating as far back as two years ago. “I spoke with many high ranking members of local law enforcement regarding this legislation. From those conversations, we were able to identify what tools the General Assembly needed to provide our law enforcement agencies with to start putting meth makers in Illinois out of business for good. I believe the laws we have set down in this bill will be an aggressive way to curtail the production of meth in our state.”