Senate will vote on steroid restrictions, By: Peter Wong

March 14, 2007

The Senate is the next stop for a bill by Senate President Peter Courtney, D-Salem, to curb the use of anabolic steroids and performance-enhancing supplements by Oregon youths.

The Senate Education Committee voted Tuesday for a revised version of Senate Bill 519.

Modeled on a policy of the Eugene School District, the bill would bar school employees from endorsing, distributing or suggesting anabolic steroids or performance-enhancing supplements to students. The bill was changed to specify anabolic steroids, as opposed to other types used to treat inflammation.

The bill would direct the state Department of Education to work with others to include information about these substances in physical-education and health classes. Coaches and athletic directors would have to undergo training once every four years, instead of twice a year, on how to identify abuse and prevent their use.

Courtney said last year he would introduce a new bill after the Statesman Journal published a series about the abuse of steroids and performance-enhancing supplements.