The Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs introduced a measure targeting the illicit fentanyl supply chain.
The Fentanyl Eradication and Narcotics Deterrence (FEND) Off Fentanyl Act was introduced by Chairman Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Ranking Member Tim Scott (R-SC), with co-sponsoring from Senate Committee on Armed Services Chairman Jack Reed (D-RI) and Ranking Member Roger Wicker (R-MS).
The legislation bolsters current law to enable government agencies to more effectively disrupt illicit opioid supply chains and penalize those facilitating the trafficking of fentanyl while also ensuring sanctions are imposed on the illicit drug trade and money laundering that makes it profitable.
“The addiction crisis has taken too many lives and caused too much devastation in Ohio and around the country — and so often illicit fentanyl is the culprit,” Brown said. “In roundtables and conversations with Ohio communities on the frontlines of this fight, I hear over and over that we need new, more powerful tools to prevent the flow of fentanyl into our neighborhoods. This bipartisan bill will add effective new sanctions to target the illicit fentanyl supply chain, from China through Mexico, to help stop increasingly dangerous forms of this drug before they ever reach our communities.”
Scott said fentanyl takes the lives of far too many young Americans, stripping a whole generation of the opportunity to contribute to their communities and achieve their dreams.
“This legislation takes decisive action to cut off the deadly flow of fentanyl at the source,” Scott said. “By using the full weight of America’s economic power and directing the Treasury Department to make addressing this crisis a priority, this bill will restore hope for communities suffering from this deadly drug.”