Meth Solutions

Its 5am in a quiet South Anchorage neighborhood and Gary Zimmerman waits a short distance from a suspected meth house for Anchorage Police Officers to arrive. For the third time in less than a week, he is recovering a company vehicle that was stolen and sold for meth. Items recovered inside the vehicles included loaded weapons, drugs and even a family photo album.

Were not in Kansas anymore Toto.

From construction site thefts to convenience store robberies the negative impacts of Alaska’s meth epidemic are slowly coming into full view. This highly addictive drug –that’s been labeled Alaska’s biggest public safety problem- has been flying under the public’s radar for years. That’s about to change.

While the impacts are becoming clear to the private sector, state and local governments have been aware of the impacts for years. From increasing court and corrections costs, to the dramatic impact on local police departments. The long term cost exposure for Alaskan taxpayers is staggering. But it doesn’t have to be.

The meth problem like most public policy challenges requires a multi-dimensional approach. What’s needed in Alaska is effective prevention and education efforts, public safety grants to local communities to help with the burgeoning costs and accessible rehabilitation programs. But the most proven method to battle the meth scourge is to limit the access to core materials like cold medicines.

In response what’s been called a national epidemic, those states that have limited the access to certain cold remedies have experienced drastic reductions in meth related busts. Iowa recently passed the toughest law in the country. They not only limited the amount that can be purchased, but also makes purchasers show identification and sign a logbook at the pharmacy counter before being sold certain cold medicines. The impacts were immediate.

This type of oversight works well because of the nature of meth. One of the prominent side effects of the drug is a feeling of intense paranoia. Forcing meth cooks or users to show identification at the checkout counter has proven to be a deterrent itself. In addition, the logbook provides law enforcement with a written record to track suspicious buying habits and the ability to show probable cause.

So what did we do this past legislative session about Alaska’s biggest public safety problem?

For years one legislator has been ahead of the curve on the meth epidemic: State Senator Gretchen Guess. From her earliest days in Juneau, she has been the smartest voice on the issue. However partisanship has kept her legislation waiting on the doorstep.  

Enter Fairbanks State Rep. Jay Ramras. The freshman Republican legislator and successful business owner came to Juneau this session with his own private sector meth experience. “It’s like a cancer”, he said, explaining how he was forced to purge a segment of his workforce because of one employee and the highly addictive nature of meth.

In response, Rep. Ramras worked collaboratively with Sen. Guess to craft HB149. This is exactly what Alaska needs to fight the growing meth problem.

The legislation would require purchasers to show identification and sign a logbook at the checkout stand while limiting purchases to 3 boxes per month. Since 50% of the meth lab busts involve the presence of children, the bill increases penalties for child endangerment as well as stronger penalties for repeat offenders. In addition, the bill expands the law to include mobile labs that have become increasingly common.

HB149 passed the House of Representatives unanimously, but was stalled in the Senate Finance Committee. Large retailers objected to the reporting requirements, even after Rep. Ramras agreed to sunset the provisions in five years if they proved ineffective. What’s most stunning about the finance committee’s failure to pass the bill is that both committee Co-Chairs represent districts hit hard by the devastating impacts of meth.  

State Senator Lyda Green represents the Mat-Su Valley which has become known as the meth capitol of Alaska. State Senator Gary Wilkens represent Fairbanks where meth has become an increasing problem for local law enforcement.

If Alaska is going to win the battle against what’s been called “the worst drug ever”, HB149 must include strong reporting requirements. The state senate cannot cave in to outside retailers if they hope to defend the health of Alaska’s private and public sectors against the menace of meth.