[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 150 (Tuesday, October 20, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S12680-S12681]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES TRAFFICKING PROHIBITION ACT

  Mr. BURNS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now 
proceed to consideration of H.R. 3633, which is at the desk.
  The PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will report.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (H.R. 3633) to amend the Controlled Substances 
     Import and Export Act to place limitations on controlled 
     substances brought into the United States.

  The PRESIDENT pro tempore. Is there objection to the immediate 
consideration of the bill?
  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, H.R. 3633, ``The Controlled Substances 
Trafficking Prohibition Act,'' addresses a gap in our controlled 
substances laws. At present, people entering the United States from 
Mexico may bring up to a ninety-day supply of drug products into the 
country without a prescription, under the so-called ``personal use'' 
exemption. Many of these drug products are then illegally distributed 
within the United States.
  Such abuses have increased dramatically in recent years, and there is 
a need to address this problem now. H.R. 3633 does this by limiting the 
personal use exemption in certain circumstances to 50 dosage units. But 
this is only a stopgap measure. What constitutes ``personal use'' is a 
complicated issue that will turn on a number of circumstances, 
including the nature of the controlled substance and the medical needs 
of the individual. It is the sort of issue that should be addressed not 
through single-standard

[[Page S12681]]

legislation but through measures regulations passed by an agency with 
expertise in the matter. For this reason, I believe that we will have 
to take this issue up again next year, to direct the Department of 
Justice to study the problems at our borders and to pass regulations 
that are more finely-tuned to address those problems. In the meantime, 
H.R. 3633 will help to stem the tide of illegal importations of 
controlled drugs, which pose dangers to Americans when illegally 
distributed and used.
  Mr. BURNS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be 
considered read the third time and passed, the motion to reconsider be 
laid upon the table, and that any statement relating to the bill appear 
at the appropriate place in the Record.
  The PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The bill (H.R. 3633) was considered read the third time and passed.

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