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Committee endorses replacing obsolete ‘drug abuse’ wording with 'substance use disorder' definition
Summary
A draft bill was moved forward to replace references to 'drug abuse' with the statutory definition of 'substance use disorder' already used elsewhere in state law; drafter said the change aligns with definitions used by the Department of Regulatory Agencies.
Kristen Forrestal of the Office of Legislative Legal Services told the panel the bill replaces an old “drug abuse” reference with the established statutory definition of “substance use disorder” used throughout Title 12. Forrestal said she reviewed where the term appears and used the most common definition: the definition the Department of Regulatory Agencies (DORA) uses for licensed professions.
“Instead of using the term drug abuse ... we've used the common definition for substance use disorder, which was put into the bill, last session in Senate Bill 24‑047,” Forrestal said. She told the committee she had discussed the change with DORA and that DORA “responded that they have no problems with the change.”
Members asked whether the change would broaden coverage because the newer definition is broader than the old term. Forrestal replied the change was intended as an oversight fix and not a policy expansion: she said the DORA definition was the one “consistently used throughout Title 12.” Committee members pressed whether other statutory references with a different definition would be left alone; Forrestal said where another definition exists it would remain in place.
The committee moved LLS 25‑7705 forward; sponsors were assigned in both chambers and committee members characterized the draft as an alignment of terminology to avoid obsolete wording rather than a substantive policy change.
