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Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 59 / Tuesday, March 30, 2021 / Proposed Rules
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L. 110415, and the Combat Methamphetamine Act of 2010 Pub. L.
111268.4 The international community soon took similar measures.
With the growing problem of illicit drug production, the issue of precursor chemical control has gained global attention. International controls on precursors were first established under Article 12 of the 1988 Convention, which established two categories of controlled illicit drug precursor substances: Table I and Table II.5
International efforts to prevent the illicit production of amphetamine-type stimulants including amphetamine and methamphetamine, and international control of precursors, have since made significant progress. Two international entities have played a crucial role in this effort: The CND and the International Narcotics Control Board INCB. The CND meets annually to consider and adopt a range of decisions and resolutions related to international drug control treaties, including the 1988
Convention. The INCB is an independent, quasi-judicial expert body for the implementation of the international drug control treaties, including the 1988 Convention.
In response to domestic and international controls on amphetamine and methamphetamine precursors, clandestine laboratory operators have continued to explore alternate methods of making these illicit drugs, including developing techniques to manufacture their own precursors and diverting other precursors to produce these precursors.
The INCB reported the emergence of MAPA in late 2017, noting its use as a precursor for the production of P2P.6
The emergence and increase in encounters of MAPA are linked to increased scrutiny over other P2P
precursors, such as alphaphenylacetoacetamide APAA.7
Although MAPA does not have any legitimate use and it has not been widely traded through legitimate channels, it is advertised by online 4 DEA implemented the Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act of 2005, the Methamphetamine Production Prevention Act of 2008, and the Combat Methamphetamine Enhancement Act of 2010 in a series of interim and final rules. 72 FR 17401 Apr. 9, 2007, 72 FR 28601
May 22, 2007, 73 FR 73549 Dec. 3, 2008, 73 FR
79318 Dec. 29, 2008, 75 FR 4973 Feb. 1, 2010, 75 FR 10168 Mar. 5, 2010, 75 FR 38915 Jul. 7, 2010, 76 FR 20518 Apr. 13, 2011, and 76 FR
74696 Dec. 1, 2011.
5 Table I and Table II are annexed to the Convention.
6 Statement by Mr. Cornelis de Joncheere, President, International Narcotics Control Board, Reconvened sixty-second session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs, 13 December 2019, at 1.
7 Id.

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suppliers.8 Clandestine laboratory operators currently use MAPA to manufacture P2P, which they then convert to methamphetamine and amphetamine.
MAPA
MAPA is known as methyl alphaphenylacetoacetate; methyl 3-oxo-2phenylbutanoate; methyl 2phenylacetoacetate; a-acetylbenzeneacetic acid, methyl ester; and CAS Number: 16648445. MAPA first emerged in late 2017 with the Netherlands reporting seizures totaling nearly 490 kg on Form D.9 Belgium followed in 2018 with reports through the Precursors Incident Communication System PICS of more than 550 kg of MAPA seized.10 China was reported as the alleged origin for all of the incidents in the Netherlands or Belgium where the origin was provided. The INCB
reported an increase in the frequency of seizures and amounts seized reported through PICS since November 2018.11
MAPA is a close chemical relative of precursors controlled under the 1988
Convention e.g., APAAN and APAA
and the timing of its emergence suggests it is trafficked to circumvent these recent precursor controls. The INCB
notes that MAPA does not have any legitimate use.12 DEA has not identified any known legitimate use for MAPA, other than in small amounts for research, development, and laboratory analytical purposes. Due to the lack of industrial uses of MAPA, the chemical has not been widely available from legitimate chemical suppliers. Since late 2017, however, there have been large international seizures of MAPA, primarily in Europe, which suggest there is a ready supply of MAPA from international chemical manufacturers.
The only use for a large quantity of MAPA of which DEA is aware is as a primary precursor for conversion to P2P, and subsequent conversion to amphetamine or methamphetamine.
Between late 2017, and May 7, 2019, the INCB noted 29 incidents from PICS
where MAPA was seized. The amount of MAPA seized in individual incidents ranged from 500 grams to 2 metric tons, 8 Id.
9 Member countries use Form D to report to INCB
annual information on substances frequently used in the illicit manufacture of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances.
10 The Precursors Incident Communication System or PICS is a worldwide, real-time, on-line tool for communication and information sharing between national authorities on precursor incidents to include seizures, stopped shipments, diversion and diversion attempts, illicit laboratories and associated equipment.
11 Id.
12 Id.

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and totaled more than 10.5 metric tons.
All incidents reported in PICS occurred in Europe, or involved shipments of MAPA destined for countries in Europe.
DEA has determined that MAPA is now readily available from commercial chemical suppliers and has identified seven potential suppliers in China, five potential suppliers in the United States, three potential suppliers in the United Kingdom, and one potential supplier each in France, Hong Kong, and Latvia.
DEA is concerned about the ease with which MAPA serves as a precursor chemical for illicit controlled substance production and with the international trafficking in this chemical. The international community shares this concern. The INCB found that MAPA
is frequently used in the illicit manufacture of amphetamine-type stimulants, namely amphetamine, and that the volume and extent of the illicit manufacture of amphetamine-type stimulants pose serious public health or social problems so as to warrant international action. 13 Based in part on the findings of the INCB, and as noted above, the CND has added MAPA to Table I of the 1988 Convention.
Therefore, DEA is proposing the designation of MAPA as a list I
chemical.
Proposed Designation of MAPA and Its Optical Isomers as a List I Chemical For the reasons discussed above, the Acting Administrator of DEA finds that MAPA is used in the manufacture of controlled substances i.e., schedule II
substances P2P, methamphetamine, and amphetamine in violation of the CSA
and is important to the manufacture of these controlled substances. Laboratory operators are using MAPA as the precursor material for the illicit manufacture of P2P, methamphetamine, and amphetamine. Therefore, the Acting Administrator proposes the designation of MAPA as a list I chemical.
If finalized, handlers of MAPA would become subject to the chemical regulatory provisions of the CSA, including 21 CFR parts 1309, 1310, 1313, and 1316. Since 1 gram of MAPA
could make approximately 1 gram of methamphetamine hydrochloride, which is equivalent to approximately 200 tablets containing 5 milligrams of methamphetamine hydrochloride, this action does not propose the establishment of a threshold for domestic and import transactions of MAPA in accordance with the 13 Notification from the President of the INCB to the Chair of the CND on its sixty-third session concerning the scheduling of MAPA under the 1988
Convention, Nov. 12, 2019, at 1.

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