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AMENDMENTS TO THE GUIDELINES MANUAL

2024

AMENDMENT 517

Section 2D1.1(c)(10) is amended by deleting:

"20 KG or more of Secobarbital (or the equivalent amount of other Schedule I or II Depressants) or Schedule III substances (except Anabolic Steroids);

40,000 or more units of Anabolic Steroids.",

and by inserting in lieu thereof:

"40,000 or more units of Schedule I or II Depressants or Schedule III substances.".

Section 2D1.1(c)(11) is amended by deleting:

"At least 10 KG but less than 20 KG of Secobarbital (or the equivalent amount of other Schedule I or II Depressants) or Schedule III substances (except Anabolic Steroids);

At least 20,000 but less than 40,000 units of Anabolic Steroids.",

and by inserting in lieu thereof:

"At least 20,000 but less than 40,000 units of Schedule I or II Depressants or Schedule III substances.".

Section 2D1.1(c)(12) is amended by deleting:

"At least 5 KG but less than 10 KG of Secobarbital (or the equivalent amount of other Schedule I or II Depressants) or Schedule III substances (except Anabolic Steroids);

At least 10,000 but less than 20,000 units of Anabolic Steroids.",

and by inserting in lieu thereof:

"At least 10,000 but less than 20,000 units of Schedule I or II Depressants or Schedule III substances.".

Section 2D1.1(c)(13) is amended by deleting:

"At least 2.5 KG but less than 5 KG of Secobarbital (or the equivalent amount of other Schedule I or II Depressants) or Schedule III substances (except Anabolic Steroids);

At least 5,000 but less than 10,000 units of Anabolic Steroids.",

and by inserting in lieu thereof:

"At least 5,000 but less than 10,000 units of Schedule I or II Depressants or Schedule III substances.".

Section 2D1.1(c)(14) is amended by deleting:

"At least 1.25 KG but less than 2.5 KG of Secobarbital (or the equivalent amount of other Schedule I or II Depressants) or Schedule III substances (except Anabolic Steroids);

At least 2,500 but less than 5,000 units of Anabolic Steroids;

20 KG or more of Schedule IV substances.",

and inserting in lieu thereof:

"At least 2,500 but less than 5,000 units of Schedule I or II Depressants or Schedule III substances;

40,000 or more units of Schedule IV substances.".

Section 2D1.1(c)(15) is amended by deleting:

"At least 500 G but less than 1.25 KG of Secobarbital (or the equivalent amount of other Schedule I or II Depressants) or Schedule III substances (except Anabolic Steroids);

At least 1,000 but less than 2,500 units of Anabolic Steroids;

At least 8 KG but less than 20 KG of Schedule IV substances.",

and inserting in lieu thereof:

"At least 1,000 but less than 2,500 units of Schedule I or II Depressants or Schedule III substances;

At least 16,000 but less than 40,000 units of Schedule IV substances.".

Section 2D1.1(c)(16) is amended by deleting:

"At least 125 G but less than 500 G of Secobarbital (or the equivalent amount of other Schedule I or II Depressants) or Schedule III substances (except Anabolic Steroids);

At least 250 but less than 1,000 units of Anabolic Steroids;

At least 2 KG but less than 8 KG of Schedule IV substances;

20 KG or more of Schedule V substances.",

and inserting in lieu thereof:

"At least 250 but less than 1,000 units of Schedule I or II Depressants or Schedule III substances;

At least 4,000 but less than 16,000 units of Schedule IV substances;

40,000 or more units of Schedule V substances.".

Section 2D1.1(c)(17) is amended by deleting:

"Less than 125 G of Secobarbital (or the equivalent amount of other Schedule I or II Depressants) or Schedule III substances (except Anabolic Steroids);

Less than 250 units of Anabolic Steroids;

Less than 2 KG of Schedule IV substances;

Less than 20 KG of Schedule V substances.",

and inserting in lieu thereof:

"Less than 250 units of Schedule I or II Depressants or Schedule III substances;

Less than 4,000 units of Schedule IV substances;

Less than 40,000 units of Schedule V substances.".

Section 2D1.1(c) is amended in the notes following the Drug Quantity Table by inserting the following additional note as the sixth note:

"In the case of Schedule I or II Depressants, Schedule III substances (except anabolic steroids), Schedule IV substances, and Schedule V substances, one ‘unit’ means one pill, capsule, or tablet. If the substance is in liquid form, one ‘unit’ means 0.5 gms.".

The Commentary to §2D1.1 captioned "Application Notes" is amended in Note 10, Example d, by deleting "28 kilograms" and inserting in lieu thereof "56,000 units"; by deleting "50 kilograms" and inserting in lieu thereof "100,000 units"; and by deleting "100 kilograms" and inserting in lieu thereof "200,000 units".

The Commentary to §2D1.1 captioned "Application Notes" is amended in Note 10 in the Drug Equivalency Tables in the subsection captioned "Secobarbital and Other Schedule I or II Depressants" by deleting " Secobarbital and Other"; and by deleting:

"1 gm of Amobarbital = 2 gm of marihuana

1 gm of Glutethimide = 0.4 gm of marihuana

1 gm of Methaqualone = 0.7 gm of marihuana

1 gm of Pentobarbital = 2 gm of marihuana

1 gm of Secobarbital = 2 gm of marihuana",

and inserting in lieu thereof:

"1 unit of a Schedule I or II Depressant = 1 gm of marihuana".

The Commentary to §2D1.1 captioned "Application Notes" is amended in Note 10 in the Drug Equivalency Tables in the subsection captioned "Schedule III Substances" by deleting:

"1 gm of a Schedule III Substance

(except anabolic steroids) = 2 gm of marihuana

1 unit of anabolic steroids = 1 gm of marihuana",

and inserting in lieu thereof:

"1 unit of a Schedule III Substance = 1 gm of marihuana".

The Commentary to §2D1.1 captioned "Application Notes" is amended in Note 10 in the Drug Equivalency Tables in the subsection captioned "Schedule IV Substances" by deleting:

"1 gm of a Schedule IV Substance = 0.125 gm of marihuana",

and inserting in lieu thereof:

"1 unit of a Schedule IV Substance = 0.0625 gm of marihuana".

The Commentary to §2D1.1 captioned "Application Notes" is amended in Note 10 in the Drug Equivalency Tables in the subsection captioned "Schedule V Substances" by deleting:

"1 gm of a Schedule V Substance = 0.0125 gm of marihuana",

and inserting in lieu thereof:

"1 unit of a Schedule V Substance = 0.00625 gm of marihuana".

The Commentary to §2D1.1 captioned "Application Notes" is amended in Note 11 in the "Typical Weight Per Unit Table" by deleting the caption "Depressants"; and by deleting "Methaqualone* 300 mg".

Reason for Amendment: This amendment modifies §2D1.1 (Unlawful Manufacturing, Importing, Exporting, or Trafficking; Attempt or Conspiracy) with respect to the determination of the offense levels for Schedule I and II Depressants and Schedule III, IV, and V controlled substances by applying the Drug Quantity Table according to the number of pills, capsules, or tablets rather than by the gross weight of the pills, capsules, or tablets. Schedule I and II Depressants and Schedule III, IV, and V substances are almost always in pill, capsule, or tablet form. The current guidelines use the total weight of the pill, capsule, or tablet containing the controlled substance. This method leads to anomalies because the weight of most pills is determined primarily by the filler rather than the controlled substance. Thus, heavy pills lead to higher offense levels even though there is little or no relationship between gross weight and the potency of the pill. Applying the Drug Quantity Table according to the number of pills will both simplify guideline application and more fairly assess the scale and seriousness of the offense.

Effective Date: The effective date of this amendment is November 1, 1995.