BILLS GIVE WAY TO ANTI-DRUG PLAN

Before she left office in December, Attorney General Heidi Heitkamp
introduced a series of bills on privacy, drug crimes, child custody, gas
prices and other issues.

A number of the bills didn't last long.

Her successor, Wayne Stenehjem, said Monday that he'll ask the Legislature
to withdraw seven of Heitkamp's proposals.

Instead, Stenehjem said he plans to offer legislation to enact the
"comprehensive drug plan" that he promised during the fall campaign.

Stenehjem, a Republican, was elected to the post to replace Heitkamp, a
Democrat who ran unsuccessfully for governor. Heitkamp could not be reached
for comment Monday.

Among the Heitkamp bills that Stenehjem wants withdrawn:

Privacy -- Heitkamp had championed two bills that would have provided
greater privacy protection for individual medical records and for financial
records. Among other things, the bills would have required that anyone who
wanted to use private information would have to get explicit permission
from that person.

Stenehjem said the federal government just released new rules on privacy.
Heitkamp's proposals would conflict with provisions in the 2-inch-thick
stack of federal regulations, he said, and that would lead to confusion.

Instead, he's recommending that the Legislature study privacy issues over
the next two years and put together a new privacy proposal for the 2003
Legislature.

Methamphetamine --- Heitkamp proposed to clamp down on in-state
methamphetamine manufacture by making theft of anhydrous ammonia a felony
and by making it a felony to transport anhydrous ammonia in nonstandard
containers. Anhydrous ammonia is often used to make meth, and officials
believe the anhydrous is stolen from ammonia tanks.

But Stenehjem said the proposed bill would make criminals out of farmers
who failed to use a proper container, and noted that there's already a law
on the state's books that make it illegal to transport anhydrous ammonia
for the purpose of making meth.

He said, too, that this is just a small part of a much larger problem,
which he hopes to address with his comprehensive program.

Gasoline price commission -- This bill would have created an advisory
commission on gas prices. Stenehjem said the bill anticipated the report of
a committee reviewing gas prices in North Dakota, but, "In light of the
fact that a final report from this committee was not completed, a bill
creating a commission seems premature," Stenehjem said.

Heitkamp introduced 16 bills. Stenehjem is recommending that seven of those
be withdrawn. Of the remainder, most are routine "housekeeping" bills.

Meanwhile, Stenehjem said he'd introduce his anti-drug program within the
next 10 days.

He said his plan will deal with training for people in private businesses
who might come in contact with drug users or manufacturers; will seek money
to train more agents in the difficult and dangerous task of cleaning up the
toxic spaces left behind after a methamphetamine manufacturing operation
has been put out of business; will seek funding for up to three more drug
enforcement agents, to be stationed in Dickinson, Rugby or Valley City; and
will propose treatment for offenders.

While noting his support for tough anti-drug laws and stiff sentences, he
said, "If we don't deal with the treatment of this, we're never going to
get a handle on it."

Stenehjem also said he supports the effort to establish "drug courts" for
adult offenders across the state. Such a court now is in operation in
Burleigh-Morton counties and there's a bill in the Legislature that would
extend that to the state's other courts. Drug court gives judges
flexibility to require treatment, frequent testing and other measures
designed to help a drug user break his habit.

Finally, Stenehjem said he will support measures to keep the state's police
officers and deputies on the job. That might include a statewide,
state-subsidized retirement plan, he said.