Ok, I took a closer look at this bill. Because this is not a political forum, I will refrain from commenting about the names listed as sponsors of the bill, although I have a lot to say about both of those individuals (seriously don't get me started), and simply note that this legislation is bipartisan, so would seem to have a good chance of passing.
The language establishing "Schedule A" literally says:
View attachment 7963
So... if I were a defense attorney (which I jolly well am not) in a case against a K@ seller I would say something along these lines to the judge:
"K@ and it's active ingredients are not scheduled substances. That's settled. The active ingredients in K@ are opioids, but they are unique and their chemical structures are not similar to any scheduled opioid. Therefore paragraph 6.A.i.I doesn't apply here."
So, it would seem that according to the letter of the law, this would not affect K@.
However, I think K@ advocates are right to worry, because the prosecution could say something like:
"The spirit of the law is clearly intended to apply to things like K@. And anyway, K@ has a similar effect on opioid receptors to scheduled opioids, and therefore the chemical structure must be
similar enough in some way to count as an analog."
Like I said this bill definitely does not apply to kava. It would seem that the law does not apply to kava, but the language is worryingly vague and not specifically about opioids. And the kind of ignorant attitudes that led to this bill very much do apply to kava. Those attitudes being:
1) "All drugs in a particular category such as opioids are equally harmful." and
2) "All drugs are equally harmful."
Just read the news and it is clear there are people in very high places who literally believe #2 above.
I hope this post is not too political. I will be happy to remove or amend it if it is, but I feel these things need to be said.
