A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT to AUTHORIZE THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES TO REgister animal shelters under the North Carolina Controlled substances Act for the limited purpose of obtaining, possessing, and using DRUGS FOR ANIMAL EUTHANASIA, TO AUTHORIZE certified euthanasia technicians to administer these drugs to euthanize DOGS and CATS on the premises of the animal shelter, AND to give the Department of agriculture and Consumer services explicit authorization to reject certification OF or to decertify a euthanasia technician for certain felony convictions, AS RECOMMENDED BY THE gENERAL sTATUTES cOMMISSION.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
SECTION 1.  G.S. 90‑101 reads as rewritten:
"§ 90‑101.  Annual registration and fee to engage in listed activities with controlled substances; effect of registration; exceptions; waiver; inspection.
(a)	Every person who manufactures, distributes, dispenses, or conducts research with any controlled substance within this State or who proposes to engage in any of these activities shall annually register with the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, in accordance with rules adopted by the Commission, and shall pay the registration fee set by the Commission for the category to which the applicant belongs. An applicant for registration shall file an application for registration with the Department of Health and Human Services and submit the required fee with the application. The categories of applicants and the maximum fee for each category are as follows:
CATEGORY	MAXIMUM FEE
Clinic 	$150.00
Animal Shelter	150.00
Hospital 	  350.00
Nursing Home 	  150.00
Teaching Institution 	  150.00
Researcher 	  150.00
Analytical Laboratory 	  150.00
Dog Handler 	  150.00
Distributor 	  600.00
Manufacturer	  700.00
(a1)	Any physician who prescribes or dispenses Buprenorphine for the treatment of opiate dependence shall annually register with the Department, in accordance with rules adopted by the Commission. In the application for registration under this subsection, the applicant shall document plans to ensure that patients are directly engaged or referred to a qualified provider to receive counseling and case management, as appropriate, and shall acknowledge the application of federal confidentiality regulations to patient information. Applicant plans for referral to appropriate services shall be a written document and may include either an executed memorandum of agreement, contractual arrangement, or linkage agreement with qualified providers. The Department shall provide assistance upon request to physicians registered under this subsection to identify and establish linkages with qualified providers of counseling and case management. The Department shall provide the North Carolina Medical Board with any evidence of noncompliance with this subsection by a qualified physician prior to taking action to rescind the physician's registration to prescribe or dispense Buprenorphine for the treatment of opiate dependency.
(a2)	An animal shelter may register under this section for the limited purpose of obtaining, possessing, and using sodium pentobarbital and other drugs approved by the Department in consultation with the North Carolina Veterinary Medical Association for the euthanasia of animals lawfully held by the animal shelter. An animal shelter registered under this section shall also register with the federal Drug Enforcement Agency under the federal Controlled Substances Act. An animal shelter's acquisition of sodium pentobarbital and other approved drugs for use in the euthanizing of animals shall be made only by the shelter's manager or chief operating officer or by a licensed veterinarian.
A person certified by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to administer euthanasia by injection is authorized to possess and administer sodium pentobarbital and other approved euthanasia drugs for the purposes of euthanizing domestic dogs (Canis familiaris) and cats (Felis domestica) lawfully held by an animal shelter. Possession and administration of sodium pentobarbital and other approved drugs for use in the euthanizing of dogs and cats by a certified euthanasia technician shall be limited to the premises of the animal shelter.
For purposes of this section, "animal shelter" means an animal shelter registered under Article 3 of Chapter 19A of the General Statutes and owned, operated, or maintained by a unit of local government or under contract with a unit of local government for the purpose of housing or containing seized, stray, homeless, quarantined, abandoned, or unwanted animals.
(b)	Persons registered by the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services under this Article (including research facilities) to manufacture, distribute, dispense or conduct research with controlled substances may possess, manufacture, distribute, dispense or conduct research with those substances to the extent authorized by their registration and in conformity with the other provisions of this Article.
(c)	The following persons shall not be required to register and may lawfully possess controlled substances under the provisions of this Article:
(1)	An agent, or an employee thereof, of any registered manufacturer, distributor, or dispenser of any controlled substance if such agent is acting in the usual course of his business or employment;
(2)	The State courier service operated by the Department of Administration, a common or contract carrier, or a public warehouseman, or an employee thereof, whose possession of any controlled substance is in the usual course of his business or employment;
(3)	An ultimate user or a person in possession of any controlled substance pursuant to a lawful order of a practitioner;
(4)	Repealed by Session Laws 1977, c. 891, s. 4.
(5)	Any law‑enforcement officer acting within the course and scope of official duties, or any person employed in an official capacity by, or acting as an agent of, any law‑enforcement agency or other agency charged with enforcing the provisions of this Article when acting within the course and scope of official duties; and
(6)	A practitioner, as defined in G.S. 90‑87(22)a., who is required to be licensed in North Carolina by his respective licensing board.
(d)	The Commission may, by rule, waive the requirement for registration of certain classes of manufacturers, distributors, or dispensers if it finds it consistent with the public health and safety.
(e)	A separate registration shall be required at each principal place of business, research or professional practice where the registrant manufactures, distributes, dispenses or uses controlled substances.
(f)	The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services is authorized to inspect the establishment of a registrant, applicant for registration, or practitioner in accordance with rules adopted by the Commission.
(g)	Practitioners licensed in North Carolina by their respective licensing boards may possess, dispense or administer controlled substances to the extent authorized by law and by their boards.
(h)	A physician licensed by the North Carolina Medical Board pursuant to Article 1 of this Chapter may possess, dispense or administer tetrahydrocannabinols in duly constituted pharmaceutical form for human administration for treatment purposes pursuant to rules adopted by the Commission.
(i)	A physician licensed by the North Carolina Medical Board pursuant to Article 1 of this Chapter may dispense or administer Dronabinol or Nabilone as scheduled in G.S. 90‑90(5) only as an antiemetic agent in cancer chemotherapy."
SECTION 2.  G.S. 19A‑24(b) reads as rewritten:
"(b)	In addition to rules on the euthanasia of animals adopted pursuant to subdivision (5) of subsection (a) of this section, the Board of Agriculture  shall adopt rules for the certification of euthanasia technicians. The rules may provide for:
(1)	Written and practical examinations for persons who perform euthanasia.
(2)	Issuance of certification to persons who have successfully completed both training and examinations to become a euthanasia technician.
(3)	Recertification of euthanasia technicians on a periodic basis.
(4)	Standards and procedures for the approval of persons who conduct training of euthanasia technicians.
(5)	Approval of materials for use in euthanasia technician training.
(6)	Minimum certification criteria for persons seeking to become euthanasia technicians including, but not limited to: age; previous related experience; criminal record; and other qualifications that are related to an applicant's fitness to perform euthanasia.
(7)	Denial, suspension, or revocation of certification of euthanasia technicians  who:
a.	Violate any provision of  this Article or rules adopted pursuant to this Article;
b.	Have been convicted of or entered a plea of guilty or nolo contendere to:
1.	Any felony;
2.	Any misdemeanor or infraction involving animal abuse or neglect; or
3.	Any other offense related to animal euthanasia, the duties or  responsibilities of a euthanasia technician, or a euthanasia technician's fitness for certification;
c.	Make any false statement, give false information, or omit material information in connection with an application for certification or for renewal or reinstatement of certification as a euthanasia technician; or
d.	Otherwise are or become ineligible for certification.
(8)	Provision of the names of persons who perform euthanasia at animal shelters and for the animal shelter to notify the Department when those persons are no longer affiliated, employed, or serving as a volunteer with the shelter.
(9)	Certified euthanasia technicians to notify the Department when they are no longer employed by or are serving as a volunteer at an animal shelter.
(10)	The duties, responsibilities, and standards of conduct for certified euthanasia technicians."
SECTION 3.  G.S. 19A‑24 is amended by adding two new subsections to read:
"(c)	Regardless of the extent to which the Board exercises its authority under subsection (b) of this section, the Department may deny, revoke, or suspend the certification of a euthanasia technician who has been convicted of or entered a plea of guilty or nolo contendere to a felony involving the illegal use, possession, sale, manufacture, distribution, or transportation of a controlled substance, drug, or narcotic.
(d)	Persons seeking certification as euthanasia technicians, or a renewal of such certification, shall provide the Department a fingerprint card in a format acceptable to the Department, a form signed by the person consenting to a criminal record check and the use of the person's fingerprints, and such other identifying information as may be required by the State or national data banks. The Department may deny certification to persons who refuse to provide the fingerprint card or consent to the criminal background check. Fees required by the Department of Justice for conducting the criminal background check shall be collected by the Department and remitted to the Department of Justice along with the fingerprint card and consent form."
SECTION 4.   Part 2 of Chapter 114 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new section to read:
"§ 114‑19.28.  Criminal record checks of applicants for certification by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services as euthanasia technicians.
The Department of Justice may provide a criminal record check to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services for a person who has applied for a new or renewal certification as a euthanasia technician. The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services shall provide the Department of Justice a request for the criminal record check, the fingerprints of the individual to be checked, any additional information required by the Department of Justice, and a form signed by the person seeking certification consenting to the check of the criminal record. The fingerprints shall be forwarded to the State Bureau of Investigation for a search of the State's criminal history record file, and the State Bureau of Investigation shall forward a set of fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for a national criminal history record check. The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services shall keep all information pursuant to this subsection privileged, in accordance with applicable State law and federal guidelines, and the information shall be confidential and shall not be a public record under Chapter 132 of the General Statutes. The Department of Justice may charge each applicant a fee for conducting the checks of criminal history records authorized by this subsection."
SECTION 5.  This act becomes effective October 1, 2010.