“Congress needs to treat illicit fentanyl like the crisis it truly is.”

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-Wyo.), Senate Majority Whip, today spoke on the Senate Floor in support of the bipartisan HALT Fentanyl Act.

Click HERE to watch Senator Barrasso’s remarks.

Sen. Barrasso’s remarks as prepared:

“We have a fentanyl crisis in our country – even in my home state of Wyoming. I’m a doctor. I’ve practiced medicine in Wyoming for 24 years. Illicit fentanyl poisoned and killed more than 74,000 Americans in 2023.

“Every state is impacted. It is the leading cause of death for Americans between the ages of 18 and 45. It is responsible for declining life expectancy in America.

“Every American is a fentanyl victim. Most Americans know someone who has lost a loved one to illicit fentanyl. No community is spared. We are losing our sons and our daughters; our brothers and our sisters; our friends and our neighbors; our fellow Americans. Congress needs to treat illicit fentanyl like the crisis it truly is.

“Our law enforcement officers are working to stop the flood of illicit fentanyl. They are cracking down on drug dealers. They need certainty in the law. Right now, law enforcement officers are fighting against these merchants of death with one hand tied behind their backs.

“The Senate has the opportunity this week to change that. We have legislation coming to the floor that will save lives. It’s called the HALT Fentanyl Act. This bipartisan legislation permanently schedules deadly illicit fentanyl as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substance Act.

“This is an important change. It means tough penalties for fentanyl traffickers. It means certainty for law enforcement. This would get law enforcement tools they are asking for to get deadly drugs off our streets. That is why Senators unanimously agreed on Monday to debate this legislation. This is strong, bipartisan legislation.

“In 2018, the Drug Enforcement Agency temporarily scheduled illicit fentanyl on a short-term basis under Schedule I. It made a difference. Congress voted nine times since 2020 to extend this classification. The votes were bipartisan.

“Republicans in Congress have pushed for years to make this change permanent. The Democrat Leader – when he was the Majority Leader of the Senate – blocked any votes on the HALT Fentanyl Act. The Minority Leader bowed to soft-on-crime Democrats. They didn’t want tougher penalties on drug traffickers. That was the clear message behind Democrats’ blockade.

“What Americans need are safety and security. The status quo is not an option. The border crisis fueled the fentanyl crisis. An open border has meant more drugs flooding across our borders. Most of the fentanyl in America comes from Mexico. It is produced, transported, and sold by transnational criminal cartels. Alarmingly, the cartels import chemicals to make this poison from Communist China.

“The secure border that President Trump is delivering takes a chunk out of the cartel’s bottom line. The cartels are shutting down their drug labs and running scared. Now is the time to turn up the heat. Passing the HALT Fentanyl Act will aid President Trump’s successful efforts to secure the border and stop the killer cartels.

“One final point. Perhaps the most important. The Senate Judiciary Committee heard from parents who lost their children to fentanyl overdoses. Let me read you the words of one of these parents. Jaime Puerta of California lost his son to a fentanyl overdose. Just 16 years old.

“Listen to Jaime’s words. ‘My son had consumed what he thought was a blue M30 Oxycodone pill, but in fact, had unknowingly, I repeat, unknowingly ingested an illicitly manufactured counterfeit opioid made of nothing more than filler, a binding agent, and illicit fentanyl. This was deceptively made to look exactly like a pharmaceutical grade oxycodone pill, and it killed him.’ Jaime’s story is a cautionary tale.

“Passing the HALT Fentanyl Act will help turn the tide against the fentanyl epidemic. This is legislation that deserves to become law. Every major law enforcement group supports it. Most importantly, families of the victims support it.

“The Senate has the opportunity to act now to save lives. Let’s work together to get it done.”

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