[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 535 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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114th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. RES. 535
Expressing the sense of the Senate regarding the trafficking of illicit
fentanyl into the United States from Mexico and China.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
July 14, 2016
Mr. Markey (for himself and Mr. Rubio) submitted the following
resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of the Senate regarding the trafficking of illicit
fentanyl into the United States from Mexico and China.
Whereas the United States continues to experience a prescription opioid and
heroin use epidemic that claimed almost 30,000 lives in 2014;
Whereas fentanyl is a synthetic opioid and the euphoric effects of fentanyl are
sometimes indistinguishable from the euphoric effects of heroin or
morphine;
Whereas the effect of fentanyl can be approximately 50 times stronger than
heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine;
Whereas although pharmaceutical fentanyl can be diverted for misuse, most
fentanyl deaths are believed to be linked to illicitly manufactured
fentanyl and illicit versions of chemically similar compounds known as
fentanyl analogs (collectively referred to in this preamble as ``illicit
fentanyl'');
Whereas illicit fentanyl is potentially lethal even if only a very small
quantity of illicit fentanyl is ingested or inhaled;
Whereas across the United States, illicit fentanyl use and related deaths are
rising at alarming rates;
Whereas illicit fentanyl is cheaper to manufacture than heroin and the sale of
illicit fentanyl is highly profitable for drug dealers;
Whereas illicit fentanyl is sold for its heroin-like effects and illicit
fentanyl is often mixed with heroin, cocaine, or methamphetamine as a
combination product, with or without the knowledge of the user;
Whereas illicit fentanyl is often produced to physically resemble other opioid
pain medicines, such as oxycodone, which sell for high amounts on the
street;
Whereas drug users often overdose on illicit fentanyl because users are unaware
that they are ingesting illicit fentanyl and do not anticipate the
toxicity and potential lethality of illicit fentanyl;
Whereas, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, between
2013 and 2014, the death rate from the use of synthetic opioids,
including illicit fentanyl and synthetic opioid pain relievers other
than methadone, increased 80 percent, and those deaths are largely
attributable to fentanyl rather than other prescription synthetics;
Whereas, in 2015, the Drug Enforcement Administration (referred to in this
preamble as the ``DEA'') issued a National Drug Threat Assessment
Summary, which found that Mexican transnational criminal organizations
are--
(1) one of the greatest criminal drug threats to the United States; and
(2) poly-drug organizations that use established transportation routes
and distribution networks to traffic heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine, and
marijuana throughout the United States;
Whereas, in 2016, the DEA issued a National Heroin Threat Assessment Summary,
which found that ``starting in late 2013, several States reported spikes
in overdose deaths due to fentanyl and its analog acetyl-fentanyl'';
Whereas the 2016 National Heroin Threat Assessment Summary found that--
(1) Mexican drug traffickers are expanding their operations to gain a
larger share of eastern United States heroin markets; and
(2) the availability of heroin is increasing throughout the United
States;
Whereas between 2013 and 2014, more than 700 fentanyl-related deaths in the
United States were attributable to illicit fentanyl;
Whereas the number of deaths attributable to illicit fentanyl may be
significantly underreported because--
(1) coroners and medical examiners do not test, or lack the resources
to test, routinely for fentanyl;
(2) crime laboratories lack the resources to test routinely for
fentanyl; and
(3) illicit fentanyl deaths may erroneously be attributed to heroin;
Whereas, in March 2015, the DEA issued a nationwide alert on illicit fentanyl as
a threat to health and public safety;
Whereas illicit fentanyl has the potential to endanger public health workers,
first responders, and law enforcement personnel who may unwittingly come
into contact with illicit fentanyl by accidentally inhaling airborne
powder;
Whereas the 2015 National Drug Threat Assessment Summary found that--
(1) Mexico is the primary source for illicit fentanyl trafficked into
the United States; and
(2) distributors in China are the source of the fentanyl analogs and
the precursor chemicals to manufacture fentanyl analogs that are found in
Mexico;
Whereas fentanyl produced illicitly in Mexico is--
(1) smuggled across the southwest border of the United States, or
delivered through mail and express consignment couriers; and
(2) often mixed with heroin or diluents in the United States and then
distributed in the same United States markets in which white powder heroin
is distributed; and
Whereas United States law enforcement officials have recently seen--
(1) an influx of illicit fentanyl into the United States directly from
China; and
(2) shipments of the equipment to manufacture illicit fentanyl, such as
pill presses: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
(1) the use of illicit fentanyl in the United States and
the resulting overdose deaths are a public health crisis;
(2) the trafficking of illicit fentanyl into the United
States, especially the trafficking of illicit fentanyl by
transnational criminal organizations, is a problem that
requires close cooperation between the United States Government
and the Governments of Mexico and China;
(3) the United States Government and the Governments of
Mexico and China have a shared interest in, and responsibility
for, stopping the trafficking of fentanyl into the United
States and all 3 countries should develop joint actions to
attain that goal;
(4) the United States should--
(A) support the Governments of Mexico and China in
the efforts of the Governments of Mexico and China to
stop the trafficking of illicit fentanyl into the
United States;
(B) take further measures to reduce and prevent
heroin and fentanyl consumption through the use of
evidence-based prevention, treatment, and recovery
services; and
(C) provide access to treatment and rehabilitation
to help individuals with substance use disorders
recover; and
(5) the United States Government, including the Secretary
of State, the Attorney General, the Secretary of Homeland
Security, and the Director of the Office of National Drug
Control Policy, should use the broad diplomatic and law
enforcement resources of the United States, in partnership with
the Governments of Mexico and China, to stop the trafficking of
illicit fentanyl into the United States.
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