Abraham forms GHB task force By Jeremy W. Peters Daily Staff Reporter Once again thrusting GHB into the local spotlight, Sen. Spencer Abraham (R-Mich.) announced yesterday his plan to form a task force that will promote the education of the so-called date rape drug in Michigan schools. Abraham's announcement comes after both the U.S. Senate and the House of Representatives passed separate bills last December to tighten federal restrictions on GHB, or gamma hydroxybutyrate. The task force combined with the legislation is part of a larger campaign to stop the abuse of GHB. In Michigan, the issue has received particularly heavy attention after the death of Samantha Reid, a Rockwood teenager who ingested Mountain Dew laced with GHB at a party on Grosse Ile. Abraham's task force will work with school drug education programs already in place in an attempt to bring awareness to the potential dangers of GHB and other date rape drugs. "If we can educate people about the hazards of using these drugs, we feel we can stop people from using them," said Dave Woodruff, press secretary for Rep. Fred Upton (R-St. Joseph), the author of the GHB bill that passed the House last year. Upton decided to push for GHB legislation after a hearing last March that explored the dangers of date-rape drugs like GHB. Reid's mother testified at the hearing. "We want to make sure there aren't anymore families that have to go through this," Woodruff said. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has accounted for at least 32 deaths since 1990 from GHB overdoses. The legislation tightens the restrictions on GHB by putting it on Schedule 1, the most stringent level of classification by the Food and Drug Administration, allowing harsher sentences for convicted offenders. The effort to curb GHB usage is not only a Republican issue. Rep. Debbie Stabenow (D-Lansing), who is challenging Abraham for his senate seat in November, also has been a long time proponent of anti-GHB legislation. "She's got a long history of working on this issue. Both (Stabenow and Abraham) agree this is something we need to get off our college campuses," said Karin Polla, press secretary for Stabenow. Stabenow was a co-sponsor of the Upton bill. Another Michigan Democrat, Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Menominee), also has been a major player in the anti-GHB campaign. "We don't view the GHB issue as a partisan problem. We certainly welcome Sen. Abraham on board to the issue," said Bob Meissner, press secretary for Stupak. The legislation has not yet been passed on to the President because the Senate and the House passed different versions of the bill. The differences in the two bills are not expected to hamper the passage of a final GHB bill into law. "I am confident a final mutually agreeable piece of legislation will move," Meissner said. - The Associated Press contributed to this report. Originally on page 1A in the 1-19-2000 issue of the Daily.