Definitions

Definitions. As used in this chapter, the phrase “product or substance containing any chemical material having the property of releasing toxic vapors and fumes” shall mean and include, but not be limited to, any product or substance containing one or more of the following chemicals or compounds: acetone, acetate, benzine, butyl alcohol, carbon tetrachloride, cyclohexane, ethyl alcohol, ethylene dichloride, freon, hexane, isopropyl alcohol, methyl alcohol, methyl ethyl ketone, methyl isobutyl ketone, naphtha, nitrite, nitrous oxide, pentachlorophenol, perchlorethylene, petroleum ether, toluol, toluene, trichloreothane or xylene. Source: PL 9-65, § 4. Commission Comment: PL 9-65, the “Inhalant Abuse Prevention Act of 1995,” took effect October 17, 1995. According to PL 9-65, §§ 2 and 3: Section 2. Purpose. The purpose of this Act is to control the use, possession, and distribution of products and substances containing volatile solvents, nitrites and anesthetics to persons in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands with a particular focus on person[s] under the age of eighteen (18) because of the increasing prevalence of inhalant abuse within the under-eighteen population. Section 3. Findings. The Legislature finds that, according to a survey produced in 1993 by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), about seventeen percent (17%) of adolescents in the United States say that they have sniffed inhalants, usually volatile solvents such as spray paint, glue, or cigarette lighter fluid, at least once in their lives. Results from a number of surveys suggest that among persons under the age of eighteen (18), the level of use of inhalants is comparable to that of stimulants and is exceeded only by the level of use of marijuana, alcohol, and cigarettes. The Legislature also finds that inhalant abuse is prevalent among the youth of the CNMI as reported by the Department of Public Health. The Legislature further finds that a total of eight (8) young men, ranging in age from ten (10) to sixteen (16), have begun treatment for inhalant abuse within the last six (6) months and were hospitalized for seizures, excessive bleeding from the nose and body burn. More importantly, a young man, age fifteen (15), died in August, 1995, from sniffing butane gas.