TBI requests funding for new program to test wastewater for drugs [Video]

“It’s not just enforcement but more of an education and prevention effort,” Rausch said in that hearing. “Everything from health, mental health, TDEC, I mean, all of us who are in this fight, this would be something that would potentially give us a better understanding prior to the overdose deaths.”

In this year’s budget meeting, Rausch proposed the program to test wastewater using a company called Stercus Bioanalytics.

“This is scary Big Brother stuff, but we’ll see where it goes,” said Don Bosch, a legal analyst for WBIR. “I’m just afraid that in government zeal to deal with this, that they could tread on personal liberties if they take subsequent steps after a positive test from wastewater that might encroach on an individual’s privacy and constitutional rights. That concerns me …