ANOA in Washington

Written by Jim Henderson

Thursday, 11 February 2010

First I want to thank all of you for allowing me the opportunity to represent you and the state of Alabama at the National Narcotic Officers’ Associations’ Coalition (NNOAC) meeting in Washington DC last week. The meetings were held January 31st thru February 3rd with briefings from speakers and organizations as the National Guard Counterdrug Program; the National Association of Drug Court Professionals; the Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance; the District Attorney of Los Angeles County; the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund; Retired Chief of Police William Bratton; Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar; the Drug Free America Foundation; the International Association of Chiefs of Police; the Central Intelligence Agency; Oregon Senator Ron Wyden and DEA Administrator Michele Leonhart. On Tuesday February 2nd, meetings were held with Senator Shelby’s staffers Laura Friedel and Goodloe Sutton. They are extremely supportive of ANOA and true friends of law enforcement (I have to admit this is my favorite meeting). I also had just a few moments with the Senator and was able to thank him for his support of the Byrne-JAG drug task forces. I also met with Bradley Hayes of Senator Jeff Sessions’ Office. After lunch, meetings were held with Representative Bobby Bright and his staffer Juan Hinojosa; Representative Jo Bonnor and his staffer Luke Strange; and finally Representative Spencer Bachus’ staffers Philip Swartzfager and Johnathon Stevens. That night an NNOAC congressional reception was attended by Representative Brights’ staffers Lewis Lowe, Carrie Adams, Art Richey, Lane Lofton, as well as Mr. Stevens of Representative Bachus’ office. On Wednesday February 3rd, meetings were held with Megan Medley from Representative Aderholt’s Office; Whitney Verett of Representative Mike Roger’s Office; Nichelle Williams of Representative Artur Davis Office; and finally Representative Parker Griffith and his staffer Robert LeBranche. Follow-up meetings with Senator Session’s staffers Pete Landrum and Matt Minor were also conducted. The primary issues the NNOAC and ANOA are fighting for is continued funding for the Byrne-Justice Assistance Grants (which funds many law enforcement programs and drug task forces); drug legalization; input into the adjustment in the crack and cocaine federal sentencing guidelines; increased funding for the national guard counterdrug program; the classification of pseudoephedrine as a controlled substance; funding for the Regional Information Sharing Systems Program (RISS – parent to ROCIC); and funding for the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA). Probably the most promising item on this agenda is the classification of pseudoephedrine as a controlled substance. Oregon saw a 95% drop in meth labs after their legislature enacted this change. Just last week Mississippi passed similar legislation and a similar bill is said to on the agenda in Montgomery. Oregon Senator Ron Wyden is introducing a bill to make this federal law. We are hoping we can gather the support of Senator Sessions (he is on the Judiciary Committee with Senator Wyden) to get the bill out of committee. In addition, Representative Parker Griffith assured me that he will sponsor the legislation in the House of Representatives. This is the one way we can severely cut meth labs. Electronic logs are great for research and tracking, but it does not prevent labs. Ask Kentucky and other states that have tried tracking. One additional bit of interest is the enacting of local ordinances to control the sale of pseudoephedrine in Missouri. Municipalities in that state have discovered a Food and Drug Administration loophole that allows communities to control the sales of pseudoephedrine similarly to the Oregon’s laws. Stay tuned for additional information on this topic!