More Dems join with Republicans to pass fentanyl crackdown bill

The Republican-led House passed legislation Thursday with significant Democratic support that would lead to harsher sentences for fentanyl traffickers, leaving it with a good chance of becoming law.

The so-called HALT Fentanyl Act got more Democrats on board this year, with 98 voting in favor, compared with the 74 Democrats who backed a similar version when it passed the House last Congress. The bill didn’t receive a Senate vote at that time amid Democratic concerns it leaned too heavily on law enforcement and would result in more mass incarcerations — a worry for some Democrats this time around too.

But now, with Republicans controlling the Senate and enough Democratic co-sponsors in that chamber to clear the filibuster threshold, the bill has a strong chance of being enacted. It sailed through the House with a 312-108 vote.

The swift passage in the House so early in the new year underscores that Republicans see responding to the opioid epidemic as both a top policy priority and a political messaging winner, framing the issue in the context of calls to bolster border security and arguing Democrats haven’t done enough to stop it.

At the same time, the growing bipartisan support for the legislation signals a growing willingness among Democrats to lean into law enforcement after a bruising election loss that left them out of power in Washington.

The measure would permanently classify street versions of fentanyl, the killer synthetic opioid, as Schedule I substances, in recognition of the seriousness of the product’s addictive and deadly qualities. It also would bolster efforts to research fentanyl analogs.

Fentanyl-related substances are currently considered a Schedule I substance on a temporary basis until March 31, putting pressure on lawmakers to act quickly to make that designation permanent. Fentanyl itself, which has medicinal uses, is a Schedule II drug.

Supporters of the legislation have argued it would give law enforcement more power to crack down on drug traffickers, since it would result in harsher sentences for fentanyl traffickers. Many Democrats, in addition to their concerns that the bill will exacerbate inequities in the criminal justice system, are calling for an approach that puts more of an emphasis on public health.

“Rescheduling fentanyl as a Schedule I substance in and of itself does not prevent one death,” said Rep. Diana DeGette of Colorado, the top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s health subcommittee, said at a Rules Committee hearing this week. “The HALT Fentanyl Act does nothing to provide law enforcement or public health agencies with additional resources to detect and intercept illicit drugs at legal ports of entry, nor does it provide resources for prevention, treatment or recovery efforts.”

Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-Va.), a senior member of the Energy and Commerce Committee and the bill’s sponsor, has said the HALT Fentanyl Act is just one part of a broader approach needed to take on the opioid crisis, including tariffs on imports from China, which provides many of the chemicals used to produce fentanyl.

Democrats also expressed frustration during floor debate with a Trump administration federal funding freeze that has thrown health care providers into chaos.

“There are still real concerns about federal funding not getting out the door to help us combat the drug overdose epidemic,” Energy and Commerce Committee ranking member Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) said.