82R4032 GCB-F

By: Darby H.B. No. 1137

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the transmission of records regarding over-the-counter sales of ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, and norpseudoephedrine and a person's civil liability for certain acts arising from the sale of those products.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 486.014, Health and Safety Code, is amended to read as follows:

Sec. 486.014. PREREQUISITES TO AND RESTRICTIONS ON SALE. (a) Before completing an over-the-counter sale of a product containing ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, or norpseudoephedrine, a business establishment that engages in those sales shall:

(1) require the person making the purchase to:

(A) display a driver's license or other form of government-issued identification containing the person's photograph and indicating that the person is 16 years of age or older; and

(B) sign for the purchase;

(2) make a record of the sale, including the name and date of birth of the person making the purchase, the address of the purchaser, the date and time of the purchase, the type of identification displayed by the person and the identification number, and the item and number of grams purchased; and

(3) transmit the record of sale as required by Section 486.0141.

(b) A business establishment may not sell to [take actions necessary to prevent] a person who makes over-the-counter purchases of one or more products containing ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, or norpseudoephedrine:

(1) within any calendar day, [from obtaining from the establishment in a single transaction] more than:

(A) two packages of those products; or

(B) 3.6 [six] grams of ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, norpseudoephedrine, or a combination of those substances; and

(2) within any 30-day period, more than nine grams of ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, norpseudoephedrine, or a combination of those substances.

SECTION 2. Subchapter B, Chapter 486, Health and Safety Code, is amended by adding Sections 486.0141, 486.0142, 486.0143, and 486.0144 to read as follows:

Sec. 486.0141. TRANSMISSION OF SALES INFORMATION TO A REAL-TIME ELECTRONIC LOGGING SYSTEM. (a) Before completing an over-the-counter sale of a product containing ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, or norpseudoephedrine, a business establishment that engages in those sales shall transmit the information in the record made under Section 486.014(a)(2) to a real-time electronic logging system used by pharmacies and law enforcement agencies and personnel, such as the National Precursor Log Exchange, that is administered by a nonprofit organization involved in the prevention and investigation of prescription drug diversion, such as the National Association of Drug Diversion Investigators, if such a system is available to the establishment at no cost.

(b) A business establishment may not complete an over-the-counter sale of a product containing ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, or norpseudoephedrine if a real-time electronic logging system described in Subsection (a) returns a report that the completion of the sale would result in the person obtaining an amount of ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, norpseudoephedrine, or a combination of those substances greater than the amount described by Section 486.014(b), regardless of whether all or some of the products previously obtained by the buyer were sold at the establishment or another business establishment.

(c) The administrators of the real-time electronic logging system described in this section shall forward to the Department of Public Safety a copy of each record of an over-the-counter sale of a product containing ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, or norpseudoephedrine that is submitted by a business establishment located in this state.

Sec. 486.0142. WRITTEN LOG. If a business establishment that engages in over-the-counter sales of a product containing ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, or norpseudoephedrine experiences a mechanical or electronic failure of the real-time electronic logging system, the business shall maintain a written or electronic record that satisfies the requirements of Section 486.014(a)(2) and enter the information in the electronic logging system as soon as practicable after the electronic logging system becomes operational.

Sec. 486.0143. ONLINE PORTAL. The nonprofit organization involved in the prevention and investigation of prescription drug diversion described in Section 486.0141 that operates a real-time electronic logging system used by pharmacies and law enforcement agencies and personnel shall provide real-time access to the information in the system to the Department of Public Safety if the department executes a memorandum of understanding with the nonprofit organization that operates the system.

Sec. 486.0144. LIMITATION ON CIVIL LIABILITY. A person is not liable for an act or omission arising from the person's compliance with the requirements of Section 486.014 or 486.0141.

SECTION 3. Not later than September 30, 2011, the Texas State Board of Pharmacy and the Department of State Health Services shall provide to the nonprofit organization described in Section 486.0141, Health and Safety Code, as added by this Act, the names, addresses, and phone numbers of all pharmacy and retail establishments selling over-the-counter products containing ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, and norpseudoephedrine.

SECTION 4. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to an over-the-counter sale of a product containing ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, or norpseudoephedrine that is completed on or after the effective date of this Act. An over-the-counter sale of a product containing ephedrine, pseudoephedrine, or norpseudoephedrine that was completed before the effective date of this Act is covered by the law in effect when the sale was completed, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.

SECTION 5. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), this Act takes effect January 1, 2012.

(b) Section 3 of this Act takes effect September 1, 2011.