“Bath salts” drug banned

A bill passed April 2 makes the drug known as “bath salts” an illegal substance.

LB670 originally dealt with the Nebraska Juvenile Code but was amended to contain provisions originally introduced by Ogallala Sen. Ken Schilz as LB814.

The amended bill expands the Uniform Controlled Substances Act to ban the compounds that are used to make bath salts, which are chemically altered substances that have similar effects as methamphetamines, LSD and PCP. The product is manufactured and marketed as bath salts to skirt current drug laws.

The penalty for possessing bath salts is now a Class lV felony and manufacturing or trafficking the drug is a Class III felony.

The bill passed 47-0 and goes into effect immediately.