Walden Statement on Legislation to Fight Fentanyl

Statement

Energy and Commerce Committee Republican Leader Greg Walden (R-OR) released the following statement on the Stop the Importation and Manufacturing of Synthetic Analogues (SIMSA) Act, bipartisan legislation introduced today by Reps. John Katko (R-NY) and Kathleen Rice (D-NY) to combat illicit fentanyl, of which Walden is an original cosponsor.

"Fentanyl and other synthetic drugs are devastating our communities at a rapid pace; Congress can and must do something about it. Fortunately, John Katko is again leading the charge, providing law enforcement with the tools they need to stop these deadly drugs from entering our country, without compromising important public health and research protections," said Walden.

"The influx of toxic synthetic drugs is devastating families in Central New York and across the country," said Rep. Katko. "To effectively combat the synthetic drug crisis, we must support law enforcement and ensure they have the necessary tools to crack down on the inflow of these drugs. With this bipartisan legislation, law enforcement will be able to expeditiously schedule new synthetic drugs under the Controlled Substances Act, allowing them to take on international drug traffickers and prevent these dangerous drugs from reaching our communities. I'm grateful that this measure has bipartisan support on the House Energy & Commerce Committee, and especially appreciate Ranking Member Walden's longstanding commitment to ridding our communities of synthetic drugs."

Background:

The SIMSA Act provides tools to law enforcement to aid in getting illicit synthetic drugs, such as fentanyl, out of our communities and prevent the illegal importing and exporting of synthetic drugs.

Representative Katko introduced similar legislation last Congress to combat fentanyl, which passed the House by a 239-142 vote but was not considered by the Senate.

32,656 Americans died from synthetic opioids like fentanyl in one year. This "third wave" of the opioid crisis is plaguing the country, cutting short the promising lives of people like Amanda Gray, who was killed by pure fentanyl at just 24 years old.

Last week, Energy and Commerce Republicans highlighted 12 bills Congress could consider right now to continue the progress made with the Committee-led SUPPORT Act to combat the opioid crisis, including legislation to combat fentanyl.

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