[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1532 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1532
To suspend the entry of covered aliens in response to the fentanyl
public health crisis.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
May 10, 2023
Mr. Scott of South Carolina (for himself, Mr. Graham, Mr. Hagerty, and
Mrs. Blackburn) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To suspend the entry of covered aliens in response to the fentanyl
public health crisis.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Alan T. Shao II Fentanyl Public
Health Emergency and Overdose Prevention Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) More than 100,000 Americans died from drug overdoses
during 2021, with the majority of such deaths caused by
fentanyl.
(2) Fentanyl is a potent synthetic opioid drug that is 50
times more potent than heroin and 100 times more potent than
morphine.
(3) Fentanyl is involved in more deaths of Americans
younger than 50 years of age than any other cause of death,
including heart disease, cancer, homicide, suicide, and other
accidents.
(4) In 2022, the United States Drug Enforcement Agency
seized 50,000,000 fentanyl-laced pills and over 10,000 pounds
of fentanyl powder, which is enough fentanyl to kill every
American.
(5) Just 2 milligrams of fentanyl is considered a lethal
dose.
(6) The smuggling of fentanyl into the United States
constitutes a major public health crisis.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Covered alien.--The term ``covered alien'' means any
person who--
(A) is attempting to unlawfully enter the United
States from Canada or from Mexico;
(B) does not possess the required travel documents
to be admitted to the United States; and
(C) is being held at a point of entry or a Border
Patrol station to facilitate immigration processing.
(2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Homeland Security.
SEC. 4. SUSPENDING THE INTRODUCTION OF COVERED ALIENS INTO THE UNITED
STATES DUE TO THE FENTANYL PUBLIC HEALTH CRISIS.
(a) In General.--Beginning on the date of the enactment of this
Act, the admittance of covered aliens into the United States is
suspended to protect the public health.
(b) Relocation.--Covered aliens who attempt to enter the United
States, either through a point of entry or between points of entry,
while the suspension described in subsection (a) remains in place shall
be returned to their country of origin or to the country from which
they entered the United States as rapidly as possible to lower the risk
of such aliens introducing, selling, trafficking, or otherwise
illicitly disseminating or promoting the dissemination of deadly
fentanyl into the United States.
(c) Repatriation Flights.--The Secretary is authorized to transport
covered aliens being relocated pursuant to subsection (b) on scheduled
repatriation flights, on a space available basis.
<all>