I 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2873

To amend the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act of 1994 

to prevent the abuse of inhalants through programs under that Act, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 24, 2003

Ms. HOOLEY of Oregon (for herself, Mr. WALDEN of Oregon, Mr. HINCHEY, 

Mr. WELDON of Pennsylvania, Mr. WOLF, and Mrs. MALONEY) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce 

A BILL

To amend the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities 

Act of 1994 to prevent the abuse of inhalants through 

programs under that Act, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Fighting Abuse of 

5 Inhalants Act of 2003’’. 
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1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 Section 4131 of the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and 

3 Communities Act of 1994 (20 U.S.C. 7141) is amended 

4 by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(7) ABUSE.—The term ‘abuse’, used with re6 spect to an inhalant, means the intentional breath7 ing of gas or vapors from the inhalant for the pur8 pose of achieving an altered state of consciousness. 

9 ‘‘(8) DRUG.—The term ‘drug’ includes a sub10 stance that is an inhalant, whether or not possession 

11 or consumption of the substance is legal. 

12 ‘‘(9) INHALANT.—The term ‘inhalant’ means a 

13 product that—

14 ‘‘(A) may be a legal, commonly available 

15 product; and 

16 ‘‘(B) has a useful purpose but can be 

17 abused, such as spray paint, glue, gasoline, cor18 rection fluid, furniture polish, a felt tip marker, 

19 pressurized whipped cream, an air freshener, 

20 butane, or cooking spray. 

21 ‘‘(10) USE.—The term ‘use’, used with respect 

22 to an inhalant, means abuse of the inhalant.’’. 

23 SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 

24 Section 4002 of the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and 

25 Communities Act of 1994 (20 U.S.C. 7102) is amended—
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1 (1) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘, and the 

2 abuse of inhalants,’’ after ‘‘other drugs’’; 

3 (2) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘and the ille4 gal use of alcohol and drugs’’ and inserting ‘‘, the 

5 illegal use of alcohol and drugs, and the abuse of 

6 inhalants’’; 

7 (3) in paragraph (7), by striking ‘‘and tobacco’’ 

8 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘, tobacco, and 

9 inhalants’’; 

10 (4) in paragraph (9), by striking ‘‘and illegal 

11 drug use’’ and inserting ‘‘, illegal drug use, and in12 halant abuse’’; and 

13 (5) by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(11)(A) The number of children using 

15 inhalants has doubled during the 10-year period pre16 ceding 1999. Inhalants are the third most abused 

17 class of substances by children age 12 through 14 in 

18 the United States, behind alcohol and tobacco. One 

19 of 5 students in the United States has tried 

20 inhalants by the time the student has reached the 

21 8th grade. 

22 ‘‘(B) Inhalant vapors react with fatty tissues in 

23 the brain, literally dissolving the tissues. A single 

24 use of inhalants can cause instant and permanent 

25 brain, heart, kidney, liver, and other organ damage. 
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1 The user of an inhalant can suffer from Sudden 

2 Sniffing Death Syndrome, which can cause a user to 

3 die the first, tenth, or hundredth time the user uses 

4 an inhalant. 

5 ‘‘(C) Because inhalants are legal, education on 

6 the dangers of inhalant abuse is the most effective 

7 method of preventing the abuse of inhalants.’’. 

8 SEC. 4. PURPOSE. 

9 Section 4003 of the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and 

10 Communities Act of 1994 (20 U.S.C. 7103) is amended 

11 in the matter preceding paragraph (1) by inserting ‘‘and 

12 abuse of inhalants’’ after ‘‘and drugs’’. 

13 SEC. 5. GOVERNOR’S PROGRAMS. 

14 Section 4114(c)(2) of the Safe and Drug-Free 

15 Schools and Communities Act of 1994 (20 U.S.C. 

16 7114(c)(2)) is amended by inserting ‘‘(including inhalant 

17 abuse education)’’ after ‘‘drug and violence prevention’’. 

18 SEC. 6. DRUG AND VIOLENCE PREVENTION PROGRAMS. 

19 Section 4116 of the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and 

20 Communities Act of 1994 (20 U.S.C. 7116) is amended—

21 (1) in subsection (a)(1)(A), by inserting ‘‘, and 

22 the abuse of inhalants,’’ after ‘‘illegal drugs’’; and 

23 (2) in subsection (b)—

24 (A) in paragraph (1)—
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1 (i) by inserting ‘‘and the abuse of 

2 inhalants’’ after ‘‘use of illegal drugs’’; and 

3 (ii) by inserting ‘‘and abuse 

4 inhalants’’ after ‘‘use illegal drugs’’; and 

5 (B) in paragraph (2)—

6 (i) in the matter preceding subpara7 graph (A), by inserting ‘‘(including age ap8 propriate inhalant abuse prevention pro9 grams for all students, from the preschool 

10 level through grade 12)’’ after ‘‘drug pre11 vention’’; and 

12 (ii) in subparagraph (C), by inserting 

13 ‘‘and inhalant abuse’’ after ‘‘drug use’’. 

14 SEC. 7. FEDERAL ACTIVITIES. 

15 Section 4121(a) of the Safe and Drug-Free Schools 

16 and Communities Act of 1994 (20 U.S.C. 7131(a)) is 

17 amended in the first sentence by striking ‘‘illegal use of 

18 drugs’’ and inserting ‘‘illegal use of drugs, the abuse of 

19 inhalants,’’. 

20 SEC. 8. MATERIALS. 

21 Section 4132(a) of the Safe and Drug-Free Schools 

22 and Communities Act of 1994 (20 U.S.C. 7142(a)) is 

23 amended by striking ‘‘illegal use of alcohol and other 

24 drugs’’ and inserting ‘‘illegal use of alcohol and other 

25 drugs and the abuse of inhalants’’. 
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1 SEC. 9. QUALITY RATING. 

2 Section 4134(b)(1) of the Safe and Drug-Free 

3 Schools and Communities Act of 1994 (20 U.S.C. 

4 7144(b)(1)) is amended by inserting ‘‘, and the abuse of 

5 inhalants,’’ after ‘‘tobacco’’.

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