Earlier this year, you may remember reading about bath salts becoming a public safety concern. Tiny packets were being sold in convenience stores throughout the country. They had catchy names like Vanilla Sky, Ivory Wave, and White Rush. It didn’t take law enforcement long to realize that people were snorting or smoking the salts for a reaction similar to what cocaine produces. Since they were being sold as a product such as bath salts, and not as a food item, peddlers had found a way around strict and standard safety measures the Food and Drug administration imposes.

The bath salts produced a meth-like high and sometimes violent behavior in users. You may recall hearing outbursts from users in the news a few months back. As a result, the federal Drug Enforcement Administration instituted an emergency ban, effective immediately, on the common ingredient found in them, known in the chemistry circles as JWH-018. The problem was that although this did help curb some users chemists quickly produced hundreds of other substitutes that gave users essentially the same high.

There is concern locally over a product being sold called Happy Shaman. Here again, the product is being sold not as a food item but as an incense that you burn. However, consumers are smoking it. The drug has an effect similar to marijuana but it is unclear what ingredients comprise Happy Shaman. Farnham Family Services recently addressed the Oswego County Legislature to inform local lawmakers about the effects this drug is having and urged parents to take note: if they see packages their kids have that say “incense…not for human consumption” then they should question why they have it.

Oswego County Legislature recently passed a resolution urging the State Legislature and Governor to immediately pass meaningful and effective legislation criminalizing the manufacturing, sale and possession of these substances. We are currently working to draft legislation that would outlaw all of these types of synthetic drugs.

Until that legislation is in place, or until our federal Drug Enforcement Administration can outlaw the ingredients used in the drugs, parents need to be aware. Manufacturers and retailers tend to market these drugs to children and teenagers so it’s important for parents to take note: Until our government produces an enforceable law, parents need to be aware and teach their children that these drugs are dangerous and addictive. Hospitals report increased emergency room visits causing illnesses and even death linked to the use and abuse of these substances by children and adults. Paying attention to what they’re doing can make a big difference in their future decisions.

If you have any questions or comments on this or any other state issue, or if you would like to be added to my mailing list or receive my newsletter, please contact my office. My office can be reached by mail at 200 North Second Street, Fulton, New York 13069, by e-mail at barclaw@assembly.state.ny.us or by calling (315) 598-5185. You also can find me, Assemblyman Barclay, on Facebook.