Psychotropic Substances Act
Latest action. Referred to House Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce.
Psychotropic Substances Act - Requires the Secretary of State, upon notification from the Secretary General of the United Nations that the World Health Organization has been given information pursuant to the Convention on Psychotropic Substances, that may justify adding a substance to the schedules of the Convention, transferring a substance to another schedule, or deleting it from schedules, to notify the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare, who shall prepare for submission to the World Health Organization evaluations regarding proposed actions. Directs the Secretary, upon such notification to confer with the Attorney General and determine if existing legal controls meet the requirements of the schedule specified in such notification. Allows the Secretary to propose more stringent controls, even if requirements are being met, to propose scheduling of substances to meet requirements of the Convention, or to follow procedures to remain in at least temporary noncompliance with such requirements. Requires the Attorney General to assure that minimal United States obligations to the Convention are met if procedures of noncompliance will take more than a time specified by the Convention. Requires the Attorney General to comply with the scheduling requirements if a review of such requirements, requested under the noncompliance procedures, by the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations results in support of such requirements. Requires manufacturers of psychotropic substances subject to the Convention to report to the Attorney General periodically. States that no international agreements on psychotropic substances shall be construed to: (1) require specific punishments for psychotropic substances offenses or to limit education and rehabilitation as alternatives to conviction or punishment; (2) limit protection of confidentiality of patient records of research subjects; (3) modify the authority of practitioners and registered establishments to use and dispense narcotic controlled substances; or (4) prevent drug price communications to consumers.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on September 19, 1973. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on September 19, 1973: Referred to House Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 93rd Congress (1973-74), 651 of the 23,396 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 2.8 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
JAMES HASTINGS (R-NY) introduced it on September 19, 1973, and 4 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 2 Democrats, 2 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on September 19, 1973, 19349 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 19349 days ago, on September 19, 1973.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 93rd Congress has not finished by January 3, 1975 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers