A reported 70 percent drop in meth labs in Oklahoma simply by moving over-the-counter cold medicines containting pseudoephedrine, a necessary ingredient in making meth, behind the counter, is encouraging.

The Minnesota legislature is considering a similar move in a bill introduced last week by Sen. Julie Rosen, R-Fairmont and Rep. Jeff Johnson, R-Plymouth.

In addition to moving the cold medicines with pseudoephedrine behind the counter, the bill would require customers to sign for purchases and limit them to two packages.

Albert Lea businesses are also moving such medicines behind the counter and we applaud the pro-active response.

We encourage the legislature to make it more difficult for meth manufacturers to produce the highly-addictive drug as well. Neighboring states, which are also seeing increased meth activity, are considering such laws. If Minnesota lags behind in passing this legislation, we will become the dumping ground for every &uot;meth-head,&uot; according to Rosen.

Rosen’s bill also includes prevention programs, funding for 10 new Bureau of Criminal Apprehension agents and tougher penalties.

The total price tag is estimated at approximately $3.5 million. While it is a lot of money, it is a relatively small amount when compared to the cost of meth use to our rural communities which are far less equipped to bear the expenses. Enforcement, incarceration, meth inmate medical expenses, court services and more are depleting local government budgets at an unprecedented rate.

If passage of this simple law keeps ingredients out of the reach of meth makers and reduces the number of operational labs in our state and rural communities, legislators would be foolish to avoid taking action.