Adopted at the 121st Annual Conference

Orlando, Florida

October 21, 2014

Opposition to the Enactment of H.R. 4709 - Removing the Attorney General's Authority to Issue Immediate Suspension Orders Under the Controlled Substances Act

Submitted by: Narcotics & Dangerous Drugs Committee

NDDC.017.T14

WHEREAS, by passage of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) over 40 years ago, Congress made the judgment that that the illegal distribution, and possession and improper use of controlled substances—including pharmaceutical controlled substances—have a substantial and detrimental effect on the health and general welfare of the American people; and

WHEREAS, the United States is in the midst of the most significant prescription drug abuse epidemic in our nation's history; and

WHEREAS, as a result of the ongoing prescription drug abuse epidemic, more Americans are becoming addicted to, and dying from, overdoses of prescription controlled substances than ever before; and

WHEREAS, the CSA requires all lawful distributors and dispensers of controlled substances to be registered with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA); and

WHEREAS, the current prescription drug epidemic is being fueled in large part by rogue DEA-registered distributors, pharmacies, and practitioners; and

WHEREAS, one of the critical tools created by Congress for preventing the diversion of pharmaceutical controlled substances is the immediate suspension order (ISO), which allows the Attorney General to immediately suspend a registration where he finds that doing so is necessary to prevent an imminent danger to the public health and safety; and

WHEREAS, H.R. 4709, passed by the United States House of Representatives in July 2014, would allow rogue DEA registrants to flood the illicit market with dangerous pharmaceutical controlled substances by effectively eliminating the Attorney General's authority to issue ISOs through the creation of a new definition of "imminent danger to the public health and safety" that is essentially impossible to prove; and

WHEREAS, the proposed new definition of "imminent danger" in H.R. 4709 requires a level of proof that is inconsistent with protecting the public health and safety; namely, that the registrant will distribute controlled substances with the intent that they be diverted; and

WHEREAS, the proposed new definition of "imminent danger" in H.R. 4709 fails to recognize that DEA registrants have a duty to take affirmative steps to prevent the diversion of controlled substances; and

WHEREAS, enactment into law of H.R. 4709 will likely increase the number of Americans who become addicted to, and die from the misuse of, pharmaceutical controlled substances; and therefore, be it

RESOLVED, that the International Association of the Chiefs of Police duly assembled at its 121st Annual Conference in Orlando, Florida, 2014, opposes the enactment of H.R. 4709 and urges the United States Senate and the White House to take all possible steps to prevent its enactment.