[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Res. 566 Introduced in House (IH)]







109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. RES. 566

Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the President 
 should seek to convene an international conference in 2006 to develop 
  more effective means to deal with the serious and growing threat of 
        methamphetamine and synthetic drug precursor chemicals.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           November 17, 2005

  Mr. Cardoza (for himself, Mr. Souder, Mr. Larsen of Washington, Mr. 
   Wamp, Mr. Berry, Mr. Abercrombie, Mr. Thompson of California, Mr. 
   Salazar, Mr. Hastings of Florida, and Mr. Gibbons) submitted the 
     following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on 
                        International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the President 
 should seek to convene an international conference in 2006 to develop 
  more effective means to deal with the serious and growing threat of 
        methamphetamine and synthetic drug precursor chemicals.

Whereas methamphetamine abuse is one of the most serious public health threats 
        facing the United States, as the drug is highly addictive, physically 
        debilitating, and carries a high risk of overdose;
Whereas, although methamphetamine is easy to produce, drug traffickers need to 
        obtain the necessary precursor chemicals to make the drug;
Whereas the most significant precursor chemical is pseudoephedrine, which is 
        commonly used in cold medicines;
Whereas pseudoephedrine is produced by only a small number of manufacturers 
        worldwide, and the supply could therefore be monitored and controlled to 
        help prevent its diversion to methamphetamine production;
Whereas drug traffickers have taken advantage of the worldwide distribution of 
        pseudoephedrine to obtain the chemical for methamphetamine production;
Whereas, for example, Mexican imports of pseudoephedrine tripled between 2000 to 
        2004, and are now far in excess of legitimate demand for the chemical in 
        that country;
Whereas the Office of National Drug Control Policy believes that two-thirds of 
        all methamphetamine used in the United States is now produced in Mexico, 
        by large drug trafficking organizations;
Whereas methamphetamine traffickers may also be using third countries as routes 
        for precursor chemical smuggling;
Whereas from 2000 to 2003, Argentina's imports of pseudoephedrine doubled, 
        Colombia's imports tripled, and Indonesia's rose tenfold; and
Whereas currently, there are few international mechanisms for monitoring the 
        distribution of pseudoephedrine to prevent its diversion to illegal drug 
        production: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
            (1) reaffirms the principles of the international Single 
        Convention on Narcotic Drugs (1961), the Convention on 
        Psychotropic Substances (1971), and the Convention Against 
        Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances 
        (1988);
            (2) calls on the President to seek to convene an 
        international conference on the threat of methamphetamine and 
        synthetic drug precursor chemicals, with the participation and 
        involvement of government leaders at the highest level from all 
        countries that are direct sources of precursor chemicals and 
        from all countries that are most affected by methamphetamine 
        production, trafficking, and use, to intensify and coordinate 
        an effective international response in order to prevent 
        methamphetamine production;
            (3) calls on the countries in which the precursor chemicals 
        and pharmaceutical products used in the manufacture of 
        methamphetamine are produced, and the countries that are most 
        affected by methamphetamine trafficking, to establish an 
        effective international system to monitor and control these 
        products to prevent their diversion to illegal purposes; and
            (4) calls on the Secretary of State, in consultation with 
        the Attorney General, the Secretary of Homeland Security, and 
        the Secretary of Health and Human Services, to take active 
        steps to establish such an international system, by seeking to 
        negotiate, draft, and ratify such multilateral or bilateral 
        agreements as may be necessary.
                                 <all>