[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 26 (Wednesday, February 8, 2023)]
[House]
[Page H742]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 COMMEMORATING THE LIFE OF ZACH DIDIER

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Kiley) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. KILEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate Zach Didier, a 
beloved member of our community in Rocklin who tragically passed away 
from fentanyl shortly after Christmas Day a little over 2 years ago, in 
2020.
  I would also like to take a moment to introduce the American people 
to Zach's parents, Laura Didier and Chris Didier, who are with us today 
in the gallery. I was honored to have Laura and Chris as my guests for 
last night's State of the Union. They have worked tirelessly to honor 
Zach's life through raising awareness of the fentanyl crisis and have 
undoubtedly saved many lives.
  This is Zach. He was 17 years old, a senior at Whitney High School. 
He was an Eagle Scout, soccer player, star of the high school musical, 
and straight-A student. He had just applied to college, and his parents 
had to go through the gut-wrenching experience of watching acceptance 
envelopes arrive from California's leading universities.
  I would like to offer a moment of silence to honor the memory and 
life of Zach Didier.
  Mr. Speaker, Zach had no history of drug use. He was the type of 
young man that parents hope their child would become. I know how proud 
of him Chris and Laura are.
  His story shows that the poison of fentanyl is a risk to everyone. No 
community is safe from it. No family can be unaware of the danger.
  Fentanyl has become the leading cause of death for Americans ages 18 
to 45, more than car accidents, more than suicides, more than anything.
  Over 73,000 Americans died from fentanyl this past year. That amounts 
to 200 deaths a day, about 1 every 7 minutes.
  Though lethality of fentanyl is unlike any other drug, it is about 
100 times more potent than morphine. Two milligrams, or the amount that 
fits on the tip of a pencil, is a deadly dose. It is now very commonly 
added to street pills, such that 98 percent of pills on the street are 
fake, and by some estimates, 60 percent have the potential to be 
lethal.
  Many of the victims are teenagers, young people, people with no prior 
drug use. There are many causes connected to this, of course: mental 
health, teenagers who are just stressed with the stresses of school, 
and certainly the isolation during the whole COVID era.
  They often purchase these fake pills on social media over the 
internet. The dealers sometimes drive and deliver them straight to the 
victims' homes.
  What can we do? Well, the first and most important thing, perhaps, is 
to continue to raise awareness. Many Americans aren't aware of the 
severity of this crisis until it is too late.
  Chris and Laura Didier have done 45 school assemblies this year 
alone, reaching tens of thousands of students and families, and have 
saved many lives, I know, in the process. Every school across the 
country needs to have a strategy for making students and families aware 
of the dangers.
  Secondly, we need to do much more to prevent fentanyl from flowing 
into this country. We know that the southern border is a primary 
source. In 2022 alone, the DEA seized 379 million lethal doses of 
fentanyl. That is enough to kill every single American. Securing the 
border would diminish the availability of fentanyl and make it more 
difficult to traffic into the United States.
  Finally, we need to hold dealers accountable. We need appropriate 
criminal laws to punish those who peddle life-ending pills to 
unsuspecting victims. We need to have consequences that are 
commensurate with the gravity, the evil, of this offense to deter those 
who would prey on innocent Americans. This requires State and Federal 
governments to revisit their drug laws in many cases. It also requires 
prosecutors to make full use of the tools at their disposal.

  I applaud Placer County District Attorney Morgan Gire, from my 
district, who has provided a roadmap by charging fentanyl dealers with 
murder because that is what it is.
  The good news is we are seeing growing momentum for addressing this 
crisis with the seriousness that it deserves and requires. I am 
grateful that President Biden devoted a portion of his State of the 
Union Address to addressing it.
  I am grateful that Chris and Laura Didier were here last night to see 
that because they have played such a large role in working with many 
other families who have lost loved ones and are raising public 
consciousness.
  Mr. Speaker, now is the time that we need to follow words with 
action. I look forward to working with the President and everyone in 
this Congress, on a bipartisan basis, to help our country turn the 
corner on this crisis.

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