Indio takes first steps toward regulating kratom, nitrous oxide, and drug paraphernalia sales

The Indio City Council on Wednesday gave first reading approval to three ordinances that would regulate the sale and distribution of kratom products, nitrous oxide, and drug paraphernalia — a package of public health measures the city’s police chief said was prompted in part by two local fatalities that might have involved nitrous oxide.

The council voted 5-0 to advance all three ordinances, each of which was introduced on first reading with further reading waived. Each ordinance would take effect 30 days after formal adoption.

Indio Police Department Chief Brian Tully, addressing the council during discussion of the measures, said the department has had run-ins with at least one of the substances, “We’ve had two fatalities where nitrous was available inside the passenger compartment for personal use,” he said.

The chief noted Indio’s consideration of ordinances related to kratom and nitrous oxide is not happening in a vaccuum. In February, Palm Desert passed an ordinance restricting the use of kratom.

“Within Riverside County, the city chiefs and sheriff’s department have noticed an increase in abuse of the product,” Tully said. He added that the documented kratom abuse is in concentrations above the 2% threshold set by Indio’s ordinance.

Kratom as a product derived from the leaves of the Mitragyna speciosa tree, native to Southeast Asia, where it has been used as a stimulant and pain reliever. Modern kratom products — including concentrated extracts, flavored drinks, gummies and vapes — can be far more potent and inconsistently labeled than the traditional leaf.

The kratom measure prohibits the sale of kratom and 7-hydroxymitragynine products — commonly known as “7-OH” — to anyone under 21, ban products in which 7-OH exceeds 2% of total kratom alkaloids, and prohibit packaging designed to appeal to children.

Councilmember Oscar Ortiz, before casting his vote, asked whether the kratom ordinance would preserve access to natural leaf products used by some people in recovery from alcohol dependency. The city attorney confirmed that leaf-based products would remain available as long as they did not exceed the 2% concentration threshold.

“I just want to make sure that that access is still there for those who need it for that purpose,” Ortiz said, “but I understand that the added dangers now that it’s being concentrated in different forms — it’s a different story.”

The nitrous oxide measure would broadly prohibit the sale, distribution or transfer of nitrous oxide and devices used to administer it. Exemptions would remain for dental uses, food-grade propellants, automotive performance products, and other professional uses.

A city staff report noted that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has linked repeated misuse of nitrous oxide — sometimes sold under names including “laughing gas,” “NOX,” “whippits” or “galaxy gas” — to severe neurologic, cardiovascular and psychiatric harm. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has warned that inhalation of nitrous oxide can result in asphyxiation, blood clots, loss of consciousness, spinal cord or brain damage and death.

Ortiz, who has worked as a chemist, also urged the city to open a broader conversation with public health officials about emerging substances of concern, noting that regulations often struggle to keep pace with products that change formulation quickly to skirt laws.

“If we can catch it faster than the federal government and act a little quicker, we might be able to save some lives,” he said.

The drug paraphernalia measure imposes operational requirements on businesses that sell drug paraphernalia, including mandatory video surveillance with recordings retained for at least 90 days, prohibited operation between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., and display cases locked and inaccessible to customers without employee assistance. Retailers would also be barred from displaying paraphernalia in any manner visible from a public right-of-way or from outside the premises.

All three ordinances carry the same enforcement provisions: violations may be charged as a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of up to $1,000, up to six months in county jail, or both, with each day a violation continues treated as a separate offense.

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