Coordinated Response Through Interagency Strategy and Information Sharing Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5925) to codify provisions relating to the Office of National Drug Control, and for other purposes, as amended.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

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Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 5925, introduced by the gentleman from South Carolina, Chairman Gowdy.

The Coordinated Response through Interagency Strategy and Information Sharing, or CRISIS, Act is a bill to reauthorize the Office of National Drug Control. This relatively small office plays an important role in coordinating the Nation's drug control efforts. The office has become increasingly important as we look to engage governmentwide initiatives to combat the opioid epidemic.

Over the past 2 weeks, we have passed many good bills to help combat the opioid epidemic. Each will move us closer to ending the opioid crisis.

This bill is a critical piece of the puzzle. It ensures Federal, State, and local governments work with each other and other nongovernmental entities to achieve the results we are seeking. Congress needs to provide the Office of National Drug Control the authorities it needs to lead the effort to combat the opioid crisis. The CRISIS Act does just that.

The CRISIS Act updates and reaffirms the office's important role. That includes strengthening certain authorities to empower the office in the midst of this devastating epidemic.

The opioid epidemic has impacted nearly every community across the Nation. One person dies about every 4 hours from an opioid overdose. One of the most important aspects of this bill is a comprehensive response plan. It is not enough to simply have a plan. We need action and follow-through to end the opioid crisis.

The CRISIS Act requires measurable objectives so we know whether the programs we are funding are working.

Accountability is at the heart of this bill. The CRISIS Act requires the Office of National Drug Control to develop a national strategy to be carried out by a wide array of agencies. It then requires the office to oversee and coordinate implementation of that strategy each year. It requires the office to measure whether the agencies are meeting the specific goals of that strategy.

Our colleagues in the House and Senate are advancing a number of bills to address the opioid epidemic, and new initiatives are being announced daily. I offered an amendment in committee markup, with the support of Congressman Raskin, which brings in requirements from the CODE RED Act, sponsored by the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Rothfus).

The CODE RED Act and the amendment require a coordinated tracking system of the Federal funding to be put toward drug control efforts throughout the country. This system includes a central repository of grants related to substance abuse treatment, prevention, and enforcement, and to identify those which are duplicative.

The government needs to know exactly what it is spending, where it is going, and if it is working. This is not the time to invest in ineffective strategies. We need to identify resources that work and apply Federal resources accordingly.

I would like to thank my fellow committee members for accepting the amendment, the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Raskin) for offering it with me, and, of course, Mr. Rothfus for all the work he has done in finding an effective approach to tackle the opioid crisis.

There are many bills and proposals that seek to end the opioid crisis, but it will only be possible with commitment to a coordinated strategy and a unified approach. This bill, through the reauthorization of the Office of National Drug Control, will provide the coordination, strategy, and unified approach we need.

This is an important and timely bill.

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Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the support of my colleague for this bipartisan effort to address the opioid crisis in this country. I also appreciate his emphasis on effectively and efficiently addressing that crisis.

I will note that in the last appropriation cycle, we increased funding for opioid treatment by almost $4 billion in this year alone. There is much work to be done; it is a crisis; and we will work together to address that crisis.

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the support of my colleague from Virginia (Mr. Connolly) for this bipartisan effort. I certainly hope the American people have the opportunity to see this effort as we address this crisis on a bipartisan basis. Far too frequently, they see conflict and disagreement put forth by media and other sources, but there is a great deal we work together on, and I think we need to stress that as we talk to people about this crisis.

Mr. Speaker, in a moment, I will yield to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Rothfus), but first let me give him credit, because he is the sponsor of legislation on which my amendment was based, H.R. 5980, the CODE RED Act.

The CODE RED Act, like the amendment I offered with Mr. Raskin in committee, requires a coordinated tracking system of Federal funding put towards drug control efforts throughout our country. It is a smart idea, especially given the opioid epidemic in our Nation and the costs of it, and I strongly supported it.

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Mr. MITCHELL. Mr. Speaker, I want to make the gentleman from Maryland aware that I have no further speakers and I am prepared to close.

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate my colleague's support of the bill. In my brief time here, a year and a half, it has become abundantly clear to me that rarely do we get to dust off our hands and say we are done around here.

It has also become clear to me that the debate of the bill rarely stays on the topic of the bill or solely on the topic of the bill. You see, the ACA, the Affordable Care Act, is not the sole approach to addressing healthcare issues in this country, preexisting conditions, or the preexisting conditions that are affected by drug abuse.

I believe when we passed the American Health Care Act in this House, that that addressed preexisting conditions, treatment for substance abuse, and, using the words of my colleague, did so more effectively and efficiently than the Affordable Care Act does now.

We clearly disagree on that. I respect that, and will continue to work on it.

Today, we are dealing with this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support passage of this bill, because I believe that H.R. 5925 is an important step not only in reauthorizing the Office of National Drug Control, but also in providing additional resources to do so.

Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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