BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2300
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 2, 2002
Counsel: Gregory Pagan
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY
Carl Washington, Chair
AB 2300 (Bates) - As Introduced: February 21, 2002
SUMMARY : Makes 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, XTC,
Ecstasy) a Schedule I controlled substance. Specifically, this
bill makes the:
1)Unlawful possession of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine
punishable by up to one year in county jail, or by 16 months,
2 or 3 years in state prison.
2)Possession for sale of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine
punishable by 16 months, 2 or 3 years in state prison.
3)Sale of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine punishable by two,
three, or four years in state prison.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Classifies controlled substances in five schedules according
to their danger and potential for abuse. Schedule I
substances are the most restricted and have the highest
penalties, and Schedule V are the least restricted. (Health
and Safety Code Sections 11054-11058.)
2)Provides that the penalty for the possession, possession for
sale, and sale of an analog of a controlled substance shall be
the same as the penalty for the classified controlled
substance. (Health and Safety Code Section 11401.)
3)Classifies hallucinogenic substances, including
3,4-methylendedioxymethamphetamine, as a Schedule I controlled
substance. [21 Code of Federal Regulations Section
1308.11(d)(10).]
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
AB 2300
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1)Author's Statement . According to the author, "Ecstasy is a
dangerous drug being abused at an alarming rate by our young
people in California. We must allow law enforcement every
tool available to combat the use of this stimulant and
hallucinogenic drug. To say that Ecstasy has a high potential
for abuse is indeed a gross understatement. The drug has no
accepted medical use. Ecstasy has led to a number of teenage
deaths and thousands of trips to the emergency room from
overdoses producing increased heart rate, dehydration, and
kidney failure and overheating. The federal government has
already recognized the enormous danger of this drug, and we in
California must do likewise."
2)Background . According to the United States Department of
Justice Drug Enforcement Agency, MDMA is
3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, a ring-substituted
derivative of phenethylamine, which is a close structural
analog of amphetamine, methamphetamine, and 3,4
methylenedioxyethylamphetamine (MDE:Eve). MDMA has both
stimulant and hallucinogenic effects in humans. MDMA has
analgesic and central stimulating effects; it produces
hyperthermia, memory loss, cognitive impairment, and long-term
neurochemical and brain cell damage. Pharmacologically, MDMA
is an indirect monoaminergic agonist producing a heightened
sense of awareness. MDMA also induces a state characterized
as "excessive talking" (loquacity), which was once believed to
be helpful in psychotherapy. In the 1970's, MDMA was
documented to produce permanent damage to serotonin pathways
in the brains of rats and monkeys. Short-term high dose use
of MDMA has produced incidences of an amphetamine-like
psychosis and, in some cases, severe hyperthermia which was
unresponsive to medical intervention leading to death. In the
mid-1990's, it was clearly demonstrated that similar
neurotoxicity was produced in humans self-ingesting MDMA as a
recreational drug. The results of extensive laboratory
testing of humans with a history of MDMA use has shown
cognitive and memory loss which have been attributed to a
unique interaction between serotonin and midbrain dopamine
systems resulting in the progressive degeneration of nerve
terminals.
MDMA has no approved medical use in the United States. MDMA was
discovered in Germany in 1913 and was patented by a
pharmaceutical company in 1914. It was intended as a
AB 2300
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weight-loss (anorectic) drug, but because of its side effects,
MDMA was never marketed. MDMA was re-discovered in the
mid-1960's, began to be reported in growing numbers in the
scientific literature, but remained outside of the control
mechanisms for many more years. During the 1970's, there was
an interest by some psychiatrists in using MDMA as a
therapeutic agent because it was reported to reduce the
inhibition of their patients to speak openly during therapy
sessions. The subjective effects of MDMA in humans include a
heightened sense of awareness as well as a feeling of
increased empathy or emotional closeness to others. The
production of MDMA in clandestine laboratories, its increasing
abuse among young people and evidence of adverse health
effects, including brain damage, led to emergency scheduling
of MDMA into C1 of the Controlled Substance Act in 1985.
Similar to gamma-hydroxy-butyrate (GHB), MDMA is abused by young
adults who frequent the "rave" or "techno" parties which have
become popular in large, urban communities. While these urban
rave clubs may be the usual venue for the acquisition of MDMA,
many suburban communities are experiencing an increased use of
MDMA within smaller party environments. It has become
increasingly available through high school drug networks
through purchases made in rave clubs. MDMA is usually taken
orally in doses ranging from 50 to 150 mg. Doses of MDMA are
often "piggy-backed" on each other in a series over just a few
hours, leading to severe over-heating and cardiac emergencies
which require medical intervention.
3)Federal Controlled Substance Schedules . MDMA was emergency
controlled as a Federal Schedule I controlled substance on
July 1, 1985. The permanent control of MDMA was completed in
1986, but there was a protracted appeal and the federal
scheduling decision did not become final until 1988. Although
there is no similar list of statutory criteria in California
law, this state generally follows federal classification
procedures, as specified:
a) Schedule I :
i) The drug or other substance has a high potential for
abuse.
ii) The drug or other substance has no currently
accepted medical use in treatment in the United States.
AB 2300
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iii) There is a lack of accepted safety for use of the
drug or other substance under medical supervision.
b) Schedule II :
i) The drug or other substance has a high potential for
abuse.
ii) The drug or other substance has a currently accepted
medical use in treatment in the United States or a
currently accepted medical use with severe restrictions.
iii) Abuse of the drug or other substances may lead to
severe psychological or physical dependence.
c) Schedule III :
i) The drug or other substance has a potential for
abuse less than the drugs or other substances in
Schedules I and II.
ii) The drug or other substance has a currently accepted
medical use in treatment in the United States.
iii) Abuse of the drug or other substance may lead to
moderate or low physical dependence or high psychological
dependence.
d) Schedule IV :
i) The drug or other substance has a low potential for
abuse relative to the drugs or other substances in
Schedule III.
ii) The drug or other substance has a currently accepted
medical use in treatment in the United States.
iii) Abuse of the drug or other substance may lead to
limited physical dependence or psychological dependence
relative to the drugs or other substances in Schedule
III.
e) Schedule V :
AB 2300
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i) The drug or other substance has a low potential for
abuse relative to the drugs or other substances in
Schedule IV.
ii) The drug or other substance has a currently accepted
medical use in treatment in the United States.
iii) Abuse of the drug or other substance may lead to
limited physical dependence or psychological dependence
relative to the drugs or other substances in Schedule IV.
4)Analog Statute . Health and Safety Code Section 11401,
commonly referred to as an analog statute, makes the penalty
for the unlawful possession, possession for sale, and sale of
an unscheduled analog of a controlled substance the same as
for the unlawful possession, possession for sale, and sale of
the classified controlled substance. Ecstasy, although
unscheduled, has a chemical composition similar to
methamphetamine, which is a Schedule II controlled substance.
In People v. Silver (1991) 230 Cal.App.3d. 389, the court held
that Ecstasy is an analog of methamphetamine, and offenses
involving Ecstasy may be prosecuted as if it were
methamphetamine. If this bill becomes law, the penalties for
the unlawful possession, possession for sale, and sale of
Ecstasy would be the same as the penalties, which are
currently being imposed under the analog statute.
This bill seeks to make Ecstasy a Schedule I controlled
substance. One of the factors to be considered in determining
whether a drug should be classified as Schedule I, is whether
or not there is an accepted medical use for the drug.
Recently, the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) approved
limited chemical trials of Ecstasy for the treatment of post
traumatic stress disorder. Placing Ecstasy on Schedule I,
arguably, is inconsistent with this action, and would prevent
physicians from prescribing Ecstasy in the event it were to
gain FDA approval. In view of prosecutor's being able to
prosecute offenses involving Ecstasy under California's analog
statute, is it necessary to make Ecstasy a Schedule I
controlled substance?
5)Prior Legislation . AB 1416 (Leach), of the 2001-2002
Legislative Session, was identical to this bill in that it
makes 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine a Schedule I
controlled substance. AB 1416 failed passage in the Assembly
AB 2300
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Appropriations Committee.
SB 1103 (Margett), of the 2001-2002 Legislative Session, was
identical to this bill in that it makes
3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine a Schedule I controlled
substance. SB 1103 failed passage in the Senate Public Safety
Committee.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California District Attorneys Association
Committee on Moral Concerns
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Gregory Pagan / PUB. S. / (916) 319-3744