[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 37 (Monday, February 27, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Page S507]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

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    SENATE RESOLUTION 79--EXPRESSING SUPPORT FOR THE DESIGNATION OF 
 FEBRUARY 26, 2023, TO MARCH 4, 2023, AS ``NATIONAL FENTANYL AWARENESS 
WEEK'' AND RAISING AWARENESS OF THE NEGATIVE IMPACTS OF FENTANYL IN THE 
                             UNITED STATES

  Mr. SCOTT of Florida submitted the following resolution; which was 
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary:

                               S. Res. 79

       Whereas, as of August 2022, drug overdoses during the 
     previous 12 months claimed a reported 101,552 lives in the 
     United States;
       Whereas countless families in the United States are now 
     facing the unimaginable pain of losing a child, mother, 
     father, sibling, or loved one taken by deadly, illegal 
     fentanyl;
       Whereas the life expectancy in the United States has 
     dropped to its lowest point in 2 decades, in part because of 
     street drugs like fentanyl;
       Whereas fentanyl is 50 times more potent than heroin, and 
     is considered the deadliest drug threat in the United States;
       Whereas drug traffickers use illicit fentanyl to produce 
     fake and counterfeit pills;
       Whereas drug traffickers are using fentanyl-laced fake and 
     counterfeit pills to exploit the opioid crisis in the United 
     States;
       Whereas those illicit drugs are primarily made in secret 
     factories in Mexico with chemicals mostly from China;
       Whereas, without laboratory testing, there is no safe way 
     to know how much fentanyl is concentrated in a pill or 
     powder;
       Whereas the Drug Enforcement Agency has issued warnings 
     about brightly-colored fentanyl-laced pills being used to 
     target young individuals in the United States;
       Whereas less than 2 milligrams is considered a deadly dose 
     of fentanyl;
       Whereas the Drug Enforcement Agency announced that in 2022 
     alone, the Drug Enforcement Agency seized over 379,000,000 
     doses of potentially deadly fentanyl, enough to kill every 
     individual in the United States, which included--
       (1) more than 50,600,000 fentanyl-laced pills; and
       (2) 10,000 pounds of fentanyl powder;
       Whereas U.S. Customs and Border Protection seized more than 
     17,000 pounds of fentanyl in fiscal year 2022;
       Whereas fentanyl has also been found in street drugs such 
     as cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine; and
       Whereas, according to data from the Centers for Disease 
     Control and Prevention, fentanyl-related poisonings are 
     currently the leading cause of death for individuals in the 
     United States ages 18 to 49: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) applauds the work of Federal, State, and local law 
     enforcement agencies for their work in combating the fentanyl 
     crisis;
       (2) applauds the work of treatment and recovery 
     organizations that help individuals with substance use 
     disorder;
       (3) encourages all individuals to only use medication 
     prescribed by their physician;
       (4) encourages individuals suffering from substance use 
     disorder to seek assistance; and
       (5) designates February 26, 2023, through March 4, 2023, as 
     ``National Fentanyl Awareness Week''.

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