WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) today joined Senator Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) as an original cosponsor of a bipartisan amendment that would require stronger coordination of federal law enforcement and resources in working with state and local agencies to respond to the rapid growth in use and distribution of synthetic drugs, including the illicit narcotics MDPV and mephedrone, known more commonly as “bath salts.”

“The increased use of bath salts has ruined many lives and is growing as a destructive cancer in some of Delaware’s close-knit communities,” Senator Coons said.  "I’m proud to join my colleagues in introducing this amendment, which will call for a coordinated effort between federal and state governments to keep dangerous new hallucinogenic drugs off our streets. This legislation will make Delaware safer by providing our law enforcement officials with the resources they need to fight the growing abuse of bath salts.”

The amendment would require the Department of Justice to craft a comprehensive strategy for partnering with local law enforcement to target the spread of synthetic drugs, including:

(1) Conducting public awareness campaigns, partnering with local law enforcement officials, hospitals, and schools to educate parents and young people about the dangers of abusing synthetic drugs;

(2) Addressing the rampant abuse and ease of access of synthetic drugs in rural communities, where such problems can multiply quickly while attention is placed on larger population centers;

(3) Use the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program to provide additional assistance to law enforcement agencies operating in areas experiencing high levels of synthetic drug trafficking;

(4) Improving coordination with U.S. Customs and Border Protection to seize shipments of synthetic drugs;

(5) Developing and distributing test kits so that local law enforcement can better identify dangerous individuals under the influence of synthetic drugs in the field; and

(6) Using the authority under section 203 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 813), to pursue law enforcement actions against the distribution of synthetic drugs. 

“The severity of the bath salts crisis cannot be overstated,” Senator Snowe said. “This use of these mind-altering drugs are resulting in prolonged, violent episodes and greatly stressing the resources of local law-enforcement and medical facilities. Let me be clear, the toll it has taken on our state and the health of our citizens is significant, and disturbing reports of violent and self-destructive behavior are deeply concerning and must be addressed at all levels of government.  A coordinated strategy at all levels of law enforcement is required to provide the training, awareness and resources essential to combating the rampant abuse of bath salts, which to this point has been largely unregulated and nearly impossible to track. We cannot afford to wait any longer while these frightening substances spread rapidly throughout our communities.”

Senator Coons is also a co-sponsor of the Combating Dangerous Synthetic Stimulants Act of 2011, which would add MDPV and mephedrone to the list of controlled substances, making their possession and sale illegal in the United States.

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