February 4, 2020 - Issue: Vol. 166, No. 23 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 2nd Session

[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E125]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 OPPOSITION TO S. 3201, THE TEMPORARY REAUTHORIZATION AND STUDY OF THE 
             EMERGENCY SCHEDULING OF FENTANYL ANALOGUES ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. PETER A. DeFAZIO

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 4, 2020

  Mr. DeFAZIO. Madam Speaker, on January 29, I voted against S. 3201, 
the Temporary Reauthorization and Study of the Emergency Scheduling of 
Fentanyl Analogues Act.
  Fentanyl, a deadly synthetic drug 50 times more powerful than heroin, 
is wreaking havoc on Americans across the country. In 2017, there were 
over 47,000 opioid overdose deaths, and 28,000 of those deaths involved 
synthetic opioids such as fentanyl. In Oregon, fentanyl use and deaths 
associated with fentanyl use continue to climb: In 2013, there were 14 
related fentanyl deaths in Oregon; In 2018, there were more than 75.
  We must to do more to combat this epidemic. We should start with 
aggressively cracking down on major manufacturers. According to the 
Oregon-Idaho High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area program, most non-
pharmaceutical fentanyl and fentanyl analogues that are available in 
Oregon are illicitly manufactured--primarily in China, as well as in 
Mexico--and then imported into the United States.
  That's why I am a cosponsor of the Fentanyl Sanctions Act. This 
legislation would require the imposition of sanctions on drug 
manufacturers in China who knowingly provide synthetic opioids to 
traffickers, transnational criminal organizations (such as cartels in 
Mexico who are known to mix fentanyl with other drugs before 
trafficking them into the U.S.), and financial institutions that assist 
such entities. It would also authorize new funding for law enforcement 
and intelligence agencies to combat the foreign trafficking of 
synthetic opioids and urge the president to significantly ramp up 
diplomatic efforts with China and Mexico to establish multilateral 
sanctions against foreign synthetic opioid traffickers. I am pleased 
that this important legislation was included in the National Defense 
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 that was signed into law last 
year.
  However, I have strong concerns that S. 3201 will expose more 
individuals to prosecutions and aggressive federal mandatory minimums 
for even trace amounts of illicit fentanyl and fentanyl analogues, 
undermine our progress on bipartisan sentencing reform efforts like the 
First Step Act, and fail to focus our efforts on combatting major 
illicit fentanyl manufacturers and traffickers.
  We must not arrest our way out of this crisis. This epidemic demands 
thoughtful legislation from Congress, not a knee-jerk response that is 
likely to exacerbate troubling trends in federal drug prosecutions and 
incarceration levels.
  Given that S. 3201 will extend the Drug Enforcement Administration's 
(DEA) emergency scheduling of fentanyl-related substances through May 
6, 2021, I hope the committees of jurisdiction use that time to develop 
a balanced, comprehensive approach that protects public health and 
safety while addressing fentanyl overdoses and reducing the harm of 
federal mandatory minimums and overincarceration.

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