[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 170 (Monday, October 23, 2017)]
[House]
[Pages H8057-H8059]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
INTERNATIONAL NARCOTICS TRAFFICKING EMERGENCY RESPONSE BY DETECTING
INCOMING CONTRABAND WITH TECHNOLOGY ACT
Mr. FITZPATRICK. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass
the
[[Page H8058]]
bill (H.R. 2142) to improve the ability of U.S. Customs and Border
Protection to interdict fentanyl, other synthetic opioids, and other
narcotics and psychoactive substances that are illegally imported into
the United States, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 2142
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 ``International Narcotics
Trafficking Emergency Response by Detecting Incoming
Contraband with Technology Act'' or the ``INTERDICT Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Chemical screening device.--The term ``chemical
screening device'' means an immunoassay, narcotics field test
kit, infrared spectrophotometer, mass spectrometer, nuclear
magnetic resonance spectrometer, Raman spectrophotometer, or
other scientific instrumentation able to collect data that
can be interpreted to determine the presence of fentanyl,
other synthetic opioids, and other narcotics and psychoactive
substances.
(2) Commissioner.--The term ``Commissioner'' means the
Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
(3) Express consignment operator or carrier.--The term
``express consignment operator or carrier'' has the meaning
given that term in section 128.1 of title 19, Code of Federal
Regulations (or any similar successor regulation).
SEC. 3. INTERDICTION OF FENTANYL, OTHER SYNTHETIC OPIOIDS,
AND OTHER NARCOTICS AND PSYCHOACTIVE
SUBSTANCES.
(a) Chemical Screening Devices.--The Commissioner shall--
(1) increase the number of chemical screening devices
available to U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers over
the number of such devices that are available on the date of
the enactment of this Act; and
(2) make such additional chemical screening devices
available to U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers as
the Commissioner determines are necessary to interdict
fentanyl, other synthetic opioids, and other narcotics and
psychoactive substances that are illegally imported into the
United States, including such substances that are imported
through the mail or by an express consignment operator or
carrier.
(b) Personnel to Interpret Data.--The Commissioner shall
dedicate the appropriate number of U.S. Customs and Border
Protection personnel, including scientists, so that such
personnel are available during all operational hours to
interpret data collected by chemical screening devices.
SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Commissioner
$9,000,000 to ensure that U.S. Customs and Border Protection
has resources, including chemical screening devices,
personnel, and scientists, available during all operational
hours to prevent, detect, and interdict the unlawful
importation of fentanyl, other synthetic opioids, and other
narcotics and psychoactive substances.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Pennsylvania (Mr. Fitzpatrick) and the gentlewoman from California (Ms.
Barragan) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Pennsylvania.
General Leave
Mr. FITZPATRICK. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all
Members have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their
remarks and include any extraneous material on the bill under
consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Pennsylvania?
There was no objection.
Mr. FITZPATRICK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, as communities across my district and across our Nation
continue to deal with the crisis of opioid abuse and addiction, it is
incomprehensible to imagine a synthetic drug up to 50 times stronger
than heroin and 100 times stronger than morphine.
Fentanyl is a manufactured opioid which, in its illicit versions, has
contributed to tens of thousands of deaths. This fact is especially
concerning, given that this drug can be ordered online and delivered
via mail or express consignment couriers from places like China.
Fentanyl is highly potent in trace amounts, and this problem is
exacerbated due to fentanyl being extremely difficult for our
authorities to detect. That is why Congresswoman Tsongas and I
introduced the INTERDICT Act, a bipartisan piece of legislation that
provides U.S. Customs and Border Protection access to the most
effective chemical screening devices and scientific support to detect
and intercept synthetic opioids before they can cause more harm.
Mr. Speaker, the INTERDICT Act will ensure that CBP will have
additional portable chemical screening devices available at ports of
entry and mail and express consignment facilities, along with
additional fixed chemical screening devices available in CBP
laboratories.
It also provides CBP with sufficient resources, personnel, and
facilities, including scientists available at all hours, to interpret
screening test results from the field and authorizes, based upon
professional expertise, the appropriation of $9 million for hundreds of
new screening devices, laboratory equipment, facilities, and personnel
for support during all operational hours.
Combined, the additional chemical screening devices, scientists, and
other resources will help safeguard CBP field personnel from exposure
to fentanyl and other deadly synthetic opioids and narcotics and
prevent their unlawful importation.
As an EMT and former Federal drug prosecutor, I have seen firsthand
the devastating impact of addiction in our communities and understand
the increased danger added by synthetic opioids like fentanyl. Illicit
fentanyl being trafficked into the United States poses a continued
threat to the American people.
By passing this legislation, this body can follow through on its
promise to the American people and align our policy with the
President's Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the Opioid
Crisis, which has prioritized regulating the flow of fentanyl in its
interim report.
I urge all of my bipartisan Members of this House to join me in
supporting this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. BARRAGAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2142, the INTERDICT Act of
2017. H.R. 2142, the International Narcotics Trafficking Emergency
Response by Detecting Incoming Contraband with Technology Act, or the
INTERDICT Act, is an important piece of legislation in our ongoing
fight to stop the flow of illicit opioids like fentanyl from places
like China and Mexico.
According to the CDC, the death rate from synthetic opioids, which
includes drugs such as tramadol and fentanyl, increased by 72.2 percent
from 2014 to 2015. In 2016, CBP seized nearly 200 pounds of fentanyl
and other synthetic opioids, primarily from along the southwest border.
This is 25-fold increase over seizures from the previous year.
The INTERDICT Act before us today ensures that CBP will have the
necessary tools to better combat the flow of these opioids. More
specifically, this bill provides CBP high-tech chemical screening
devices to help detect and interdict fentanyl and other illicit
synthetic opioids. Additionally, the bill provides for the laboratory
equipment, facilities, and personnel for support during all operational
hours.
This bill was passed by our committee unanimously, and I commend the
sponsors of this bill, the gentlewoman from Massachusetts (Ms. Tsongas)
and the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fitzpatrick), for their
leadership on this issue.
I urge my colleagues to supports this bill, and I reserve the balance
of my time.
Mr. FITZPATRICK. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my
time.
Ms. BARRAGAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as she may consume to
the gentlewoman from Massachusetts (Ms. Tsongas).
Ms. TSONGAS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2142, the
INTERDICT Act, legislation I was pleased to introduce with Congressman
Fitzpatrick.
Whenever I meet with local public safety officials in my district,
they explain the urgent need for resources and support to combat drugs
like fentanyl, which can be up to 50 times stronger than heroin and 100
times stronger than morphine.
In Massachusetts, the proportion of overdose deaths attributed to
fentanyl is rising at a meteoric rate. At its lowest, in the third
quarter of 2014,
[[Page H8059]]
fentanyl was present in 18 percent of opioid-related deaths in
Massachusetts; but by 2016, fentanyl was present in a staggering 69
percent of the State's opioid-related deaths, resulting in 1,400
fentanyl-related deaths in the Commonwealth, a staggering number.
Although pharmaceutical fentanyl can be misused, most fentanyl deaths
are linked to illicitly manufactured fentanyl and illicit versions of
chemically similar compounds. The primary source of fentanyl is outside
of the United States, in Mexico or China. The drug is smuggled in
across the U.S. border or delivered via mail or express consignment
couriers.
The INTERDICT Act will provide U.S. Customs and Border Protection
with the latest in chemical screening devices to deploy across the
United States to better detect and intercept fentanyl and other
synthetic opioids.
Furthermore, this legislation will ensure that Customs and Border
Protection has the resources, personnel, and facilities--including
scientists available during all operational hours--to interpret
screening test results from the field.
These high-tech devices will also protect law enforcement officers
and their four-legged counterparts on the front lines from exposure to
the deadly narcotic, which is so powerful that coming into contact with
just a few grains can be fatal.
I would like to thank the chairman and ranking member of the Homeland
Security Committee for their support, and I also want to thank Mr.
Fitzpatrick for his partnership on this legislation, as well as our
colleagues in the Senate, Senators Markey, Rubio, Brown, and Capito,
for their bipartisan work on the Senate counterpart legislation.
{time} 1715
The Federal Government must do its part to ensure our first
responders have the tools they need in this greatest of public health
fights. The INTERDICT Act provides important and powerful resources in
this endeavor, and I urge its adoption.
Mr. FITZPATRICK. Mr. Speaker, I have no other speakers. If the
gentlewoman from California has no other speakers, I am prepared to
close.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. BARRAGAN. Mr. Speaker, I am prepared to close. Mr. Speaker, H.R.
2142 is an important piece of legislation that has strong bipartisan
support. Passage of this bill will go a long way in our fight against
opiates. As such, I encourage my colleagues to support H.R. 2142.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. FITZPATRICK. Mr. Speaker, I once again urge my colleagues to
support H.R. 2142, and I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Fitzpatrick) that the House suspend
the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2142, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. FITZPATRICK. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
____________________