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Program Overview and Resources
The number of clandestine or illegal drug labs in Indiana has steadily increased through the years, posing a serious danger to Hoosiers. In addition to exposure to potentially dangerous chemicals, threats to the public include criminal activity, drug proliferation, immediate hazmat threats (explosions, fires, chemical burns, vapors), and persistent residual contamination.
To address these threats, the Indiana General Assembly enacted Public Law 192-2005 which
- regulated further the sale of products containing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine;
- extended the definition of environmental contaminant to include chemicals used in the illegal manufacture of a controlled substance or its immediate precursor(s);
- required all law enforcement agencies to report meth labs to the Indiana State Police, local health department and local fire department following the termination of operation; and
- required the Indiana Department of Environmental Management to maintain a list of persons qualified to inspect and clean property polluted by a contaminant and to adopt regulations to prescribe the inspectors' qualifications.
Thereafter, that agency promulgated Indiana Department of Environmental Management: Inspection and Cleanup of Property Contaminated with Chemicals Used in the Illegal Manufacture of a Controlled Substance, which was formally adopted in February 2007 and readopted in its entirety in August 2013. The original rule was located under 318 of the Indiana Administrative Code. In 2018, the Indiana General Assembly transferred the Qualified Inspector program to the Indiana State Department of Health.
The main responders involved in the process of seizing a methamphetamine lab and ultimately decontaminating the property where it was found include the Indiana State Police, Local Health Departments, and private (for-hire) Qualified Inspectors.
The Indiana State Police Drug Enforcement Section:
- proactively suppress illegal drug lab activity;
- investigate suspicious illegal drug lab activity;
- use enforcement, education and partnerships to suppress meth production;
- remove labs, bulk chemicals, reactions, and those things that pose an immediate threat to public safety and the environment;
- collect evidence; and
- maintain a database containing Clandestine Lab Addresses that reflect properties in which ISP has found labs, bulk chemicals, reactions, precursors or paraphernalia.
The Indiana Local Health Departments under Ind. Code 16-41-20:
- protect public health by ensuring that the contaminated properties remain vacant until they are properly tested and decontaminated;
- review Indiana State Police Occurrence Reports to determine extent of issues and whether illegal manufacturing occured;
- declare property unfit for human habitation under IC 16-41-20-1 or public nuisance under IC 16-41-20-6 and issue an abatement order under IC 16-41-20-7 to the property owner to address the issues;
- Liases with the Qualified Inspector while they're addressing the property's issues and with ISDH for any issues arising from the testing and decontamination of the property; and.
- release the property once the Qualified Inspector has provided sufficient documentation to reflect that the decontamination has been properly addressed.
The Qualified Inspectors:
- are qualified by the Indiana State Department of Health under 410 IAC 38 et seq. to address the potential contamination of the property; and
- are hired by property owners to test to determine contamination levels and, if necessary, decontaminate and certify the property as ready to be reoccupied or sold.
While not involved in the direct disassembly of the labs or the return of the property to a non-decontaminated state, other agencies too play a role. The Indiana State Department of Health, Environmental Public Health Division:
- trains and regulates the Qualified Inspectors;
- maintains the list of Qualified Inspectors;
- consults with and provides technical assistance to Local Health Departments;
- consults with and provides technical assistance to the Qualified Inspectors; and
- serves as a repository for the documentation of the decontaminated properties connected to illegal drug labs.
If a child was present, or not present but evidence suggested they resided or visited often at the property where an illegal drug lab was found, the Indiana State Police contacts the Indiana Department of Child Services so that it may initiate an investigation into the child's welfare. The Indiana Department of Child Services:
- ensures implementation and fulfillment of the Indiana Drug Endangered Children Response Protocol; and
- develops policies, provides health care payment codes and additional resources.
If a fire and/or explosion occurred at the property, the local fire departments will be involved as well.
Indiana Links
- 410 Indiana Administrative Code 38 et seq. Inspection and Cleanup of Property Contaminated with Chemicals Used in the Illegal Manufacture of a Controlled Substance.
- IC 16-41-20: Chapter 20. Health, Sanitation, and Safety: Dwellings Unfit for Human Habitation
- IC 16-20: Article 20. Local Health Departments
- Indiana Local Health Departments Environmental Health Specialists contacts
- Cleared Properties under 410 IAC 38
- ISDH Qualified Inspector List
- State Form 53276 Qualified Inspector's Certificate of Illegal Drug Lab Cleanup
- State Form 55660 Notification of Demolition
- Frequently Asked Questions for Property Owners
- Drug Lab Hazards
- Preventing Drug Labs on Rental Property
- Preventing Drug Labs on Motel & Hotel Property
- Indiana State Police- Districts
- Indiana State Police Methamphetamine Suppression Section
- Indiana State Police Database of Clandestine Lab Addresses
- Indiana State Police-Report Suspected Meth Activity
- Indiana State Police Meth Lab Seizure Statistics
- Indiana Meth Watch Program Brochure
- Indiana Meth Watch Tamper Tag Program Brochure
- What Does a Meth Lab Look Like? : Indiana State Police Brochure
- Tips for Property Owners: Indiana State Police Brochure
- Possible Meth Lab Activity/Home Visitor Safety Tips: Indiana State Police Brochure
- First Responder Safety Tips
- Cleaning Up Former Drug Labs: Indiana State Police Brochure
- Indiana Department of Child Services
- Indiana Department of Child Services Local Offices
- Indiana Drug Endangered Children (DEC) Response Protocol
- Indiana Environmental Health Association
- Indiana Environmental Health Association Common Meth Chemicals Chart
- Indiana Meth Free Coalition
Related Indiana Statutes
http://www.in.gov/legislative/ic_iac/
- IC 4-3-22 Office of Management and Budget
- IC 4-22-2 Adoption of Administrative Rules
- IC 4-22-2.1, Rules Affecting Small Businesses
- IC 5-2-14 Methamphetamine Abuse Task Force
- IC 5-2-15, Methamphetamine Lab Reporting
- IC 6-1.1-24 Sale of Real Property When Taxes or Special Assessments Become Delinquent
- IC 10-11-2-31 Methamphetamine Reporting Guidelines
- IC 10-11-8 Retailer Education Program
- IC 13-25-3, Responsible Property Transfer Law
Changes to IC 13-25-2 in P.L. 15-2006 (SEA 146) - IC 25-34.1 Real Estate Brokers and Salespersons
- IC 32-21-5-7.2 Residential Real Estate Sales Disclosure
- IC 32-21-6 Psychologically Affected Properties
- IC 32-21-11, Responsible Property Transfer Law
- IC 32-30-8 Actions for Drug Nuisances
- IC 32-31-4 Moving and Storage of Tenant’s Property
- IC 35-48-1 Controlled Substances Definitions
- IC 35-48-2 Controlled Substances: Classification of Drugs
- IC 35-48-4 Offenses Relating to Controlled Substances
- IC 36-7-9 Unsafe Building Law
Additional Research
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Voluntary Guidelines for Meth Lab Cleanup
- U.S. DEA National Clandestine Laboratory Registry
- U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA)
- National Institute on Drug Abuse
- Office of National Drug Control Policy
- Clandestine Laboratory Investigators Association (CLIA)
- National Alliance for Drug Endangered Children
- The Partnership at DrugFree.org
- National Jewish Medical Center Meth Exposure Studies