Elected Officials in Chula Vista took the first step in their march against psychoactive drugs on Tuesday when councilmembers and the mayor approved a policy that allows law enforcement officers to confiscate synthetic drugs during routine investigations.

Deputy Mayor Rudy Ramirez was critical of the approach. During the hearing he urged the City to move forward with tougher regulations.

"This city can do more by criminalizing possession," said Ramirez. "This is the tip of the iceberg. This is something that we need to approach with a sledgehammer.

Councilmember Steve Castaneda said testing and other verification methods need to be in place before the City can enact additional regulations. "The District Attorney has already told us that they are to busy, they have other things to do. They don't have the resources or the testing available. We are getting [psychoactives] out of the pockets, and the purses, and the backpacks of our young people today while working on the permanent fix we will have available tomorrow."

Ramirez wasn't convinced. "We can do more next week and the week after that. We could have done a lot more today."

Despite the concerns, the council voted unanimously to implement the policy. Staff will return in thirty days with an update.

Pictured: Rudy Ramirez