Comprehensive reforms of the Rockefeller Drug Laws were signed into law by Governor David Paterson on April 7, 2009. A ceremonial signing of the Rockefeller Drug Laws was held on April 24, 2009, at Elmcor Youth and Adult Activities, Inc., a drug treatment facility in Queens.

The Legal Action Center has worked to reform the Rockefeller-era drug laws ever since they were enacted, over thirty five years ago.

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In March 2009 the Legal Action Center wrote and distributed a sign-on letter, addressed to President Obama, outlining the critical need for including mental health and addiction prevention, treatment, and support services in national healthcare reform.  The letter was circulated widely and a total of 176 organizations from across the country signed on, including 83 national organizations.  Copies of the letter were sent to the White House and key leaders in the executive branch, including the President's nominees to direct the Office of National Drug Control Policy and the Department of Health and Human Services.  Copies were also sent to a number of leaders in the U.S. House and Senate expected to play major roles in developing and passing healthcare reform legislation.

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LAC launches its first ever "Know Your Rights" webinar series: Anti-Discrimination Laws Protecting People with Alcohol and Drug Problems and Criminal Records. The free, five-part series covers anti-discrimination laws protecting people with alcohol/drug histories and criminal records. For more information and to register, please visit our Training Materials section or the series homepage.

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The Legal Action Center has launched a new ehealth4ny website - www.ehealth4ny.org - dedicated to educating New Yorkers about the benefits offered by growing electronic health information networks in the state, and the options and choices New Yorkers now have for reaping those benefits in their own lives. This new website offers comprehensive resources to help New Yorkers inform themselves about what eHealth means, why it matters to patients and their caregivers, and how people can put eHealth to work so they, and their health care providers, can better manage their health care, while also protecting their privacy.

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Research by the NIH's National Institute on Drug Abuse and National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and other leading scientists has proven that alcohol and drug addiction is a disease that can be treated successfully, and has identified a number of medications that are effective tools in treating addiction. But these effective interventions are reaching very few of the more than 23 million Americans who suffer from substance use disorders. Both the public and private sectors inadequately fund addiction treatment and create barriers to providing medications and other successful treatments to those who need them.

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The Legal Action Center has just completed a new study, Drug Law Reform 2009 - Dramatic Costs Savings For New York State, which finds that New York would save over a quarter billion dollars a year by reforming the Rockefeller-Era Drug Laws. When drug law reform is fully operational, it is estimated that New York would save $267,660,000 a year.  Even in the first year, estimates show that New York would realize tens of millions of dollars in savings. The study calculated the cost savings that would accrue to New York State by diverting addicted individuals charged with second, non-violent, non-sex felony offenses from prison to community-based treatment, as they comprise the vast majority of individuals who are mandated into prison under current law. LAC believes such individuals should be diverted into mandated treatment if the laws are reformed.  The study excludes people charged with Class A felonies. The findings take into account savings generated by the elimination of costs associated with incarceration; savings related to reduced foster care, health care and welfare costs; and increased tax contributions. To see the full study, click here.

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The New York State Assembly held a hearing on May 8^th -- the 35^th anniversary of the enactment of the New York State's notorious Rockefeller Drug Laws. Thanks to great film director and LAC Board member Doug Liman and Jason Flom, we were joined by Whoopi Goldberg who was eager to offer her perspective "as just a normal person and as a New Yorker" about the need to get rid of a law that is causing much more harm than the problem it was intended to address.

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On March 13th, 2008, Congressman Danny Davis (D-IL) hosted a press conference at the National Press Club in Washington, DC to celebrate the recent passage of the "Second Chance Act" reentry legislation in Congress. Joining Congressman Davis was Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones (D-OH); Former Congressman and Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Jack Kemp; Melody Heaps, President of the Center for Health and Justice at TASC; Paul Samuels, President and Director of the Legal Action Center; and a number of other supporters of the Second Chance Act.

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