H.R. 6344, Office Of National Drug Control Policy Reauthorization Act of 2006

H.R. 6344, OFFICE OF NATIONAL DRUG CONTROL POLICY REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2006 -- (Extensions of Remarks - December 08, 2006)

* Mr. SOUDER. Madam Speaker, yesterday, before we passed H.R. 6344, I took the opportunity to thank the various members of the House and Senate, without whom we could not have passed this important and long-overdue legislation. As a point of personal privilege, I want to take this opportunity to thank the many staff members who worked so long and so hard for us.

* First, I must thank the Staff director of our Subcommittee on Criminal Justice, Drug Policy and Human Resources. Marc Wheat has been with us for over three years, and he has been relentless and energetic in pursuing this daunting project. There is no other staffer on the House or Senate side who deserves more credit.

* Subcommittee counsel Dennis Kilcoyne, who joined our staff in February, has led the negotiations with the Senate for months and skillfully steered this legislation through the demands and critiques of the many competing parties in Congress, the Administration and private sector. It was a huge task requiring patience, skill and diplomacy, without which the effort would not have succeeded.

* The bipartisan nature of this negotiation has been an inspiration, and that is represented on the House side by Tony Haywood, counsel to the minority staff of the Government Reform Committee, who has ably represented the interests of our ranking Subcommittee member, ELIJAH CUMMINGS. He has been a team player with our staff.

* I cannot forget the role played by our former Staff Director Chris Donesa--now with the House Intelligence Committee--and our former Subcommittee counsel Nick Coleman. These men brought great insight and skill that has contributed much to this legislation.

* And I would be remiss if I didn't thank Susie Schulte of the Government Reform Committee and Matt Miller of the Speaker's Drug Task Force, as well as his predecessor Andy Tiongson. All of these people have been enthusiastic and resourceful partners in this fight.

* Finally, I must mention all those staff members on the Senate side who responded so well to the hard work of our House Staff. First, I must thank Gavin Young--who represents Chairman SPECTER on the Judiciary Committee--and his predecessor Matt McPhillips, who just left last week to take up his FBI assignment in Denver. These two proved every bit as skillful in shepherding the bill in the last few weeks of maneuvering in that mysterious body we call the United States Senate.

* Also we thank Jeremy Mischler and Melissa Sundberg of the Senate Drug Caucus. They have worked long on behalf of Senator GRASSLEY to help us finally reach the elusive goal of passing this bill.

* Jackie Parker of Senator LEVIN's staff and Reagan Taylor of Senator BIDEN's staff have been working this issue for a long time, and my staff have nothing but high praise for their team efforts. Roscoe Jones of Senator LEAHY's staff worked hard and in good faith in recent weeks with my staff to hammer out the last few wrinkles in the negotiations, and we thank him for his efforts also.

* I also want to salute John Mackey of the House International Relations Committee, Janice O'Connell of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Tim Rieser of the Senate Appropriations Foreign Operations Subcommittee, who did so much in the drafting of the provisions to ensure that the Director of ONDCP carries out a study on the use of mycoherbicides as a way to kill off coca and opium poppy plants in an environmentally safe manner. Their efforts may succeed where thousands of tons of chemical spraying has failed.

* Among the private sector groups, we are especially grateful to Sue Thau of the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America, Marcia Lee Taylor of the Partnership for a Drug-Free America, and Ron Brooks of the National Narcotics Officers Associations Coalitions. From the treatment, prevention and law enforcement sides--respectively--they have been indispensable partners in our efforts to enact this law. Additionally, I must thank Professor Charles O'Keeffe of Virginia Commonwealth University, who gave us such helpful guidance on provisions to allow doctors to treat more heroin addicts who needs drugs like buprenorphine for treatment.

* Finally, I am particularly proud that this Act to be signed by the President takes the first step to prevent what C. S. Lewis referred to as ``the abolition of Man.'' In the section authorizing the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, it explicitly bans from athletic competition anyone who has been genetically modified for performance enhancement. This technology of ``gene-doping'' is not yet viable in humans, but it is widely anticipated to be on the horizon. To that end, it is critical to anticipate the problem and explicitly address it.

* The protocol set by the U.S. Anti Doping Agency, which follows the World Anti-Doping Agency, is also the standard followed by the International Olympic Committee. These standards state that ``The non-therapeutic use of cells, genes, genetic elements, or of the modulation of gene expression, having the capacity to enhance athletic performance, is prohibited.'' Although the U.S. Anti Doping Agency and the World Anti-Doping Agency presently prohibit gene-doping, there is no guarantee that gene-doping will remain on the prohibited list. The prohibition of gene-doping by statute and further public dialogue is critical. I salute my House and Senate colleagues for their foresighted efforts in this regard.

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