Drug Disposal Program.

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  • (1) As used in the section:
    • (a) "Controlled substance" means the same as that term is defined in Section 58-37-2.
    • (b) "Department" means the Department of Environmental Quality.
    • (c) "Environmentally friendly" means a controlled substance that is rendered:
      • (i) non-retrievable, as determined by the attorney general in consultation with the department;
      • (ii) non-hazardous, as determined by the department; and
      • (iii) permissible to dispose in a landfill in a manner that does not violate state or federal law relating to surface water or groundwater.
    • (d) "Home controlled substance disposal receptacle" means a receptacle provided by the program that can be used by an individual to render a small amount of controlled substances at an individual's residence non-retrievable and environmentally friendly.
    • (e) "Non-retrievable" means the same as that term is defined in 21 C.F.R. 1300.05.
    • (f) "Program" means the Drug Disposal Program described in this section.
    • (g) "Repository" means a controlled substance disposal repository described in Subsection (3).
  • (2) The attorney general may, in coordination with the department and within funds available for this purpose, administer a program, known as the Drug Disposal Program, to provide for the safe, secure, and environmentally friendly disposal of controlled substances in the state.
  • (3) The attorney general and the department, in developing and implementing the program:
    • (a) may work with law enforcement agencies, pharmacies, hospitals, and other entities to ensure that one or more repositories are present in each county in the state;
    • (b) shall ensure that each repository:
      • (i) renders a controlled substance placed in the repository non-retrievable and environmentally friendly, onsite; and
      • (ii) is secure from tampering or unauthorized removal;
    • (c) may require verification that:
      • (i) a repository complies with Subsection (3)(b); and
      • (ii) a home controlled substance disposal receptacle renders a controlled substance non-retrievable and environmentally friendly;
    • (d) shall ensure that the program operates in accordance with Drug Enforcement
      Administration rules; and
    • (e) may publish, on the websites of the attorney general's office and the department:
      • (i) a list of the location of each repository in the state; and
      • (ii) if home controlled substance disposal receptacles are used as part of the program, information on how to obtain a home controlled substance disposal receptacle.
  • (4) The attorney general may, instead of, or in addition to, establishing a repository in a county, establish a process for residents of the county to obtain a home controlled substance disposal receptacle.
  • (5) A state or local government entity, other than the attorney general's office, the department, or a designee of the department, may not:
    • (a) regulate the disposal of a controlled substance rendered non-retrievable in a repository or home controlled substance disposal receptacle differently, or more strictly, than disposal of non-hazardous household waste;
    • (b) regulate or restrict the location of a repository or the distribution of a home controlled substance disposal receptacle; or
    • (c) otherwise take action to regulate or interfere with administration of the program.
  • (6) This section does not prohibit the disposal of a controlled substance:
    • (a) in a receptacle that does not qualify as a repository if:
      • (i) the receptacle is located on the premises of an entity authorized by Drug Enforcement Administration rules to accept a controlled substance for subsequent disposal; and
      • (ii) the entity described in Subsection (6)(a)(i) ensures that the controlled substance is managed in a manner permitted by Drug Enforcement Administration rule; or
    • (b) disposed at a facility that has received the approval required under Section 19-6-108.
  • (7) Unless otherwise agreed by the attorney general, an entity described in Subsection (3)(a) that permits the placement of a repository on property owned or controlled by the entity will dispose of a controlled substance placed in the repository after the controlled substance is rendered environmentally friendly.




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