Synthetic Drug Bill Passes Senate Committee

A Senate committee passed a bill today that would clarify the state’s prohibition on synthetic drugs and the compounds used to make them. The legislation comes after an existing law was overturned by a state appellate court.

In a 2-1 decision, the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled that the state’s law on synthetic drugs and compounds is too vague for the average citizen to understand. In response, Sen. Jim Merritt authored Senate Bill 93, which would list all illegal substances used in these drugs within the state’s administrative code.

Although Merritt says the court’s ruling jeopardized the law, he says adding more transparency through this bill will only bolster his efforts. 

“Posting all the compounds and everything that deals with designer drugs on the Indiana administrative code is a good thing," Merritt said. "It really is an act of transparency and we should have done that in the beginning.”

Merritt says he is working with the Indiana Attorney General to appeal the ruling to the Indiana Supreme Court.