Sanford Supports STOP Act

Press Release

Representative Mark Sanford has signed on as a cosponsor of H.R. 1057, the Synthetics Trafficking and Overdose Prevention (STOP) Act, which would help stop drugs from being shipped through our borders to traffickers in the United States. This bipartisan legislation was introduced by Rep. Patrick Tiberi (R-OH), and there are currently 260 cosponsors.

Rep. Sanford released the following statement:

"Every year, over 300 million international packages come in to the US through our Postal Service with little to no screening from customs officials. And this has been taken advantage of by drug traffickers who are looking for the easiest way to spread their products. This commonsense bill will help close the loophole in the US postal system, thereby saving lives, and I'm proud to be a cosponsor."

Companies based in China, India, and other foreign countries take advantage of weaknesses in international mail security standards to break U.S. customs laws and regulations by shipping drugs directly through the U.S. postal system. Unlike UPS or FedEx, the U.S. Postal Service does not require advance electronic customs data for the vast majority of mail entering the United States. Specifically, the STOP Act responds to this by requiring shipments from foreign countries through our postal system to provide electronic advance data before they enter the United States. This will enable Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to better target potential illegal packages and stop them from entering our borders.

Source